I Am Not Hamlet

Buy Nothing month in the Martin household has only about a week left. Here are my observations so far. 1) As predicted I found things I want to buy. The most pressing, however, was a small frying pan, as one of the ones we have is probably coated with teflon (cough--cancer!) and the handle has rotted off--if plastic can rot. I didn't buy a pan, but in another week or two I'm sure I will. I'd like a cast iron one, are those constructed anymore? And, yes, I'll recycle the old pan. I might be able to get $.02 for the metal. 2) I was at a library today doing research for a short paper for my class, Making Modern Science, and passed a Friends of the Library book sale. I thought, well, if I bought some books for my classroom at a deal, that wouldn't be breaking the spirit of the experiment. Then I further thought as I walked that the point is not necessarily to save money or find bargains, the point is to STOP BUYING STUFF. Even used stuff. Even stuff for the ...

I had mentioned this briefly before that my family, more specifically, my wife and I are going to practice a month of buying only essential items--food, toiletries, petroleum for our oil addiction, etc. The object is to curb our consumption. Now, I should say that we are probably well below the average American when it comes to consumer spending. But, even so, we could still squirrel away money. Do I really need that book from Amazon? I have a stack of at least eleven that I need to read, not counting the three listed over on the left there. The idea is to practice restraint and self-discipline (isn't that redundant?) with regard to the wallet. How successful will we be? When exactly are we starting? Questions that will be answered soon, cricket. I did try a spending fast during a Lent two or three years ago; I found my thoughts frequently fixated on things to buy during those 40 days. Maybe it'll be easier with a spouse. Or maybe it'll turn me into a liar--will ...