While I enjoy the consumption of things like coffee and endless hours of test match cricket. I’m not so fond of consumption of material possessions, or maybe the act of consumption.
Recently my Dad asked me about going overseas to see relatives, neither he or I have met from my Grandfathers side. Dad is pushing 70, so I see it as an opportunity to travel but also give him some assistance in being on the first plane in 30 years or so.
But when you’re asked if you want to go to Scotland, the first thing that comes to mind is “fuck, it’s gonna be cold”, and rightly true. To put this in perspective, I’ve been trimming down my clothes slowly. I’d rather have a few good items that do it well, than a lot that I might use occasionally. A jacket is one I’ve struggled with, I’ve thrown out several in the process that no longer fit, never wore or don’t like and I’m left with mainly hoodies. I went and bought a cheap jacket for $25 as it was Winter, and my previous one was broken. I needed to not be wet or cold given I’m in and out the car a lot. It was ok, but not particularly warm. I start searching and find a good quality jacket that will do all of the above. Warm, waterproof, durable. Like any jacket should be, and also more expensive but I’ll consider it a long term investment. While continuing my search for a jacket Mrs.E find me one that’s good on sale, fantastic! Warm, comfy, looks good and fits nicely.
But I still look for a jacket that’s a bit more suiting. I find another jacket on sale cheaply while looking for jeans and pick that up, I’m not sure why and now it feels like useless consumption. It fitted when I tried it on, but wasn’t the greatest fit when I started wearing it and needing to do something in it. Not everyone is built the same.
The disappointing thing was during this time I was also making a lot of purchases, I’m not entirely sure how necessary they were. But I was on a roll with the trigger finger and watching my bank balance deplete quicker than an Aus Post overnight express delivery. A shower caddy for the (little) stuff I have in my shower, my justification? Picking them off the floor with a dodgy back and a chronic illness starts to get a bit tiring. I’ve noticed it more going off my medication lately. My choice was to buy something a little more earth-friendly, so I got one made of Bamboo.
A new dish rack for when I wash my dishes, the old one is funky and falling apart and leaves crap on the sink. So I got one made of bamboo. I bought first aid kits as I keep cutting myself lately and running upstairs for a band-aid while bleeding isn’t a great idea in a rental. A second to go in the office, because I cut myself at work. More books as gifts, tea infusers so I stop using tea bags and also other people I know. Random gifts for shits and giggles. I also bought a vintage cricket bat, which well… I like looking at them. Cricket is something I’ve always valued.
I’m still trudging my way through The Minimalists book, and I’m up to a part about where Joshua got to a point where he stopped buying things and tried to see how he lived without them. Which I think maybe is something I need to try. Less buying, and more selling of the crap I don’t use around the house (I also refurb old PC’s from work and sell them off and they are everywhere at the moment). I think long term, I need to buy less, offload shit, and reassess my funds. I’ve dipped into my savings account too much lately for purchases, and also some that have come back to bite me in the backside (like a laptop that was gutless). I’ll need to be more thoughtful with my choices for purchases, I guess I “fell off the wagon” when it came to it recently.
Maybe I’ll give that no purchase thing a go for a while… except for coffee.