Well, the gifts have all been opened and the used wrapping paper recycled. The girls and I had a great Christmas, and they are enjoying their new Wii, iPod, and Uggs. It's hard to believe that another Christmas has come and gone. As I sit back and enjoy the last few days of my holiday vacation, it's hard to believe that today is yet another "big shopping day." I understand that retailers count on days like today to make their money and remain in business, but I'm tired of somehow being convinced that I have to go back out there to take advantage of all the wonderful savings opportunities. What else do I really need?
I have three healthy daughters, one cranky old cat, and a gently used Honda, and we're all as happy as can be. There's nothing a major department store chain can offer me that would affect significant change in my life. I have everything I need. It's funny how subtle consumerism can be. I mean, I'd love to create a personal home consumer scoreboard that could be mounted in the den of every home. The device would start out with a score of zero points. And every time a new nonperishable item entered the home a point would be added but every time the equivalent amount of trash or recycling exits the house a point could be subtracted. As long as an equal number of things are entering and exiting the home, the score would remain right around zero. Should more products enter the home than leave it, the score would begin to climb. I wonder how long it would take for the score to reach 100. 200? 500? I wonder how long it would take my score to climb to an embarrassing level.
What's wrong with us? Do we really need all this stuff? Who said that the old iPod I bought three or four years ago needs to be replaced with the snazzy new purple Nano? What's wrong with the old video game system my daughters used to enjoy so much? Do I really need an HD TV?
Here's to a great new year, filled with loving more, spending less, and eating (& drinking) in moderation!
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