Yay! One month down and only 11 more to go. Seriously, I'm not counting down. I must admit for the first few Saturdays I was a bit antsy. Saturday mornings were my online shopping days. I'd lie in bed and just browse my favorite stores and see what deals I could find. So, Saturdays were tough initially. Now, I've decided to take that time to pray, journal, and meditate.
Other than Saturdays, my next test was over the Thanksgiving break. I traveled to Illinois to visit my second family. Usually, Rod and I will travel to the outlet mall and wreak havoc. On Wednesday, I went to the outlet mall with the family and walked in several stores and didn't really feel the urge to buy anything for myself. I did find one inexpensive "happy" for one of my aces and other than that I spent no money at the outlet. On Thursday night, Aunt Barbara and Rod decided they wanted to take part in the Black Friday sales that started on Thursday night. My plan was to stay in and sleep on that turkey and German Chocolate cake I devoured, but someone decided I needed to go and look for birthday and Christmas gifts. Since my shopping ban is only for myself and I am allowed to purchase gifts for others I went along. We went to two stores, Best Buy and JcPenney. In Best Buy, I bought Rod's birthday gift and nothing else. On Friday, we traveled to back to the outlet mall (again), Best Buy (again), Nordstrom Rack, DSW, and Walgreens. I spent $4 on Burt's Bees facial wipes and $10 on a cosmetic bag--both needs and on my approved list because I said I could purchase things when they ran out or were in need of being replaced.
Needless to say, I am proud of myself and I think I got on everyone's nerves because I tried to discourage them from spending as well. I kept asking is this a NEED? Take a minute to think if you really need this item?
I received so much support from the initial blog and even a few that are ready to take on the challenge in a small way. The last thing Kondo shared in The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing was to pass the book along and I did that. Again, when in Illinois my MIL asked that I download a copy of the book to her Kindle. There have been several encounters with persons that want to know more about the ban and are ready to declutter.
We have more than we need. Just ask yourself the next time you are ready to make a purchase..."Is this a need or a want?" I am working on this concept with...let's just call him Ray. So, Ray said he needed a new pair of black Cole Haan shoes. I asked, "Is a new black shoe a need or a want?" He quickly replied, "A need." So, I inquired further, "So you have no black shoes?" He took a second and said, "I do, but, I don't have a pair that lace up." What? "So, you have several pairs of black shoes, but because you don't have pair that lace up, you need another pair?" I will keep this story short and say I wore him down. Prior to my change in thinking I would have been right on board but it was an unnecessary purchase and the "sale" wasn't that great.
I will end with what Whitney Houston sang best, "I didn't know my own strength."
Thank you for reading
aWordfromSmith
