NOT BUYING IT! 2015 - A consumer holiday

Lynplatinum

Hi folks

NBI this week is a case of friends a) being kind and b) repaying old favours. The first was a friend who organises theatre trips for his workmates - one of them cancelled and he offered me the ticket for free! The kind thought meant that it was a lovely free trip to theatre and the ticket was used (I offered to pay but the workmate said that she was just happy her place was being used) Then today another friend kindly bought me a coffee after our long walk - saying it repaid all of the coffees and foods he had eaten at my house when he was a teenager (he is/was a friend of my sons and is one of my surrogate children - as I call them!! He reports back to them on how I doing - both of my boys live away from home now!).
People can be so kind! :-)

117pauline

Back from sunny France having had a peaceful break, if that isn't odd to say about a trip to an area decimated by wars....

So I have been musing on various things which link into Lyn's post - do you think that as we get older we find it easier to spot kindnesses in others as well as noticing where we can do kindnesses for others too?

Not particularly a clear way of saying it but I hope you all understand what I mean.

When you are younger life is a rush from families, jobs and all that other "stuff". As I have got older it is just so much easier to take time to smell the flowers and for me that is definitely all about reducing the "stuff", in my mind as well as around me.

So back to mindful spending and planning the next little jaunt in the "keep P's mind off his age" plan.

Lynplatinum

Hi Pauline

I agree with you - it is easier to spot kindness and consideration. Sometimes, like our dear Capt. Slowdown (who started this thread) that is exactly what we need to do - slow down - take a step back and breathe! Everyday I wake up and try to count my blessings before I get out of bed. I stop after the first 10 - otherwise I would be there all day!! Some more usually drift across my mind while getting breakfast etc.

I dont earn much; live in a house that is old and needs lots doing to it; my jewellery is mostly gifts as are my ornaments and books and DVDs; my clothes I have had for years or are second hand from friends or chazzers (save for underwear - bought each year with T!sco vouchers earned from petrol for car and decent shoes - I do pay a lot for shoes) and people dont understand why or how I can be happy! :rotfl:

At one time I was in a high flying job - very stressed and then I got made redundant - best thing that happened to me (apart from my boys!). I went to counselling and one thing they said and Buddhist recommendations are: To at the beginning and end of each day count your blessings! You know - I have got food in my belly; my kids are well; I am in a nice comfy bed; I have clean sheets etc - we take so much of our life for granted. (whatever the politics, for example, you cant help but feel for the ordinary people in war zones or fleeing war zones or in big natural disasters - they do not have our luxuries of a clean bed etc)

Not only am I NBI in 2015 - thanks to this thread and the above habit (which after a bit of a lapse I am trying to get back into) I dont want to Buy Stuff in 2015!!!! How about you folks??

vulpix

I have got rid of so much stuff in the past year as i knew we would be moving house.What i have boxed so far almost fills the conservatory.Seeing it all there in one lump makes you realise how much "stuff" we have.When we unpack I am hoping that we can cull more.
When we moved here we had 2 vans.my aim is to move out with 1.This is a 5 bed with huge loft and garage,we are going to a 3 bed with no garage or loft.
Not trying to pass the buck here but most of the boxes do belong to my husband.I have packed so much of his stuff with tags still on,unused for at least the past 5 years.He has halved his workload and I have given up work so we do need to keep it for the future.
I am overwhelmed with it all to be honest.Vx

agnesjr

Lynplatinum, such a lovely post. For the past 2 years or so each night, I write down in a small notebook beside my bed things things I am grateful for that day. No matter how awful the day, there are always many things. A great reality check. Started off with idea of just 3 things, but always far more than that.

This thread and its merry crew do encourage a journey toward a simpler life. My circumstances now and in the future have been altered work wise, money wise, true friends wise etc. And yet having 'enforced' time to reflect, reorganise and reassess is eye opening. Always thought I was organised, careful with money, not too much stuff. And actually was....to an extent.

But this thread has helped me really look at things, and do some sorting out. So have rearranged household paperwork, more stuff to cs, more mindful with money, tried easy cheap recipes, and take pleasure and truly value the simple things in life.

Do any of you ever wonder what you actually spent your money on? For someone who thought they were careful (but not mean)....I must have been daft, young, not thinking or maybe thought stuff = happiness. It sure doesn't.

Toddlepip ship mates....off to make some spicy parsnip soup. Yes, it is June...but it is wet, windy and cold.

[Deleted User]

Hi everyone, I need to catch up on posts but I hope you are all happy and well!

I've been doing quite well on the no buy front, aside from a Burt's Bees order last week which, in fairness, was heavily discounted.

I've also embraced some OS ways as I have been using distilled white vinegar to clean the washing machine and as a fabric softener which is just as effective as specific products.

I also resisted having lunch out the other day; some girls from work decided to go and eat out at a cafe but I had already packed myself a tasty pesto pasta pot so I declined their offer and my purse if very grateful!

I will have to make one spend soon - a new watch. This will only be a cheapo type one as my current one has stopped working and a battery replacement isn't worth it as it already has a chip in the face and has been exposed to all manor of things like bleach, water and dirt as it's a watch I use for work and was bought for about £17 3/4 years ago so Ii's had a good run!

Hugs to all that need them!

Lynplatinum

Hi All

Bird nerdsophie - I recently bought a watch in the Avo! sale cos it was gonna cost me only £2 more than buying a battery for an old one which was on the verge of needing a new strap too. That one only cost £8 off the market 3 years ago and folk kept on saying 'how lovely - where did you get it?" I had to say a friend bought me it - did not want to reveal to work companions that I had got it off the market - where I worked they would have thought that v peculiar behaviour! Also tended to say 'oh its a little shop I know in Cornwall' when complimented on second had jackets etc !! To be fair they have some brilliant chazzers in Truro (I come form Cornwall and used to go home each year to visit me Mum for a summer hols!)

Does/did anyone else do this?
My motives were not snobbishness but just that it would have taken so much explaining!! Now I boast of my second- hand -roses! :rotfl:

Lynplatinum

PS glad folks liked my reflective post last nite - and that I am not the only one counting my blessings each day - amongst which I include you folks :-)

Sleep well!

pm2326

Lynplatinum wrote: »

Hi All

Bird nerdsophie - I recently bought a watch in the Avo! sale cos it was gonna cost me only £2 more than buying a battery for an old one which was on the verge of needing a new strap too. That one only cost £8 off the market 3 years ago and folk kept on saying 'how lovely - where did you get it?" I had to say a friend bought me it - did not want to reveal to work companions that I had got it off the market - where I worked they would have thought that v peculiar behaviour! Also tended to say 'oh its a little shop I know in Cornwall' when complimented on second had jackets etc !! To be fair they have some brilliant chazzers in Truro (I come form Cornwall and used to go home each year to visit me Mum for a summer hols!)

Does/did anyone else do this?
My motives were not snobbishness but just that it would have taken so much explaining!! Now I boast of my second- hand -roses! :rotfl:

I do this but not for the same reasons, I'm laughed at for my frugal ways.

My mum makes fun of me to her friend and they have a good laugh at my expense. I shop around for best prices and stock up on offers, for instance i normally have a years supply of teabags, I top them up whenever I find them on half price or less....mum and friend think this is odd. these are the same 2 people who couldn't understand how I could afford to pay for a very good quality winter coat......:o

At work it's a standing 'joke' about how I only use heating between November and March, people come up to me and say things like 'you're going to have a fit...i used my heating last night....ha ha' ....ha ha jokes on you mate for wasting your money!

Also at work 2 women I work closely with have a thing about throwing food away either on BB date or before :eek: one says she automatically throws milk away on day 3 whether it's off or not...she also threw sliced meat away last week as it had reached BB date...so she had to go to canteen for lunch and spent £4 :eek: I got laughed at again as I automatically asked if it smelt off, comments were 'oh god, here she goes again'.

I find it's easier to not talk about it to anyone and then people wonder why I don't tell them much about my private life. I will however be quite open when I tell them in 5 years time that I'm completely debt free and try not to laugh at their huge debts and mortgages!! :rotfl:

GreyQueen

I'm a part-timer and a singleton (part-time due to several chronic health problems, not a willing choice) in a department which is comprised of full-timers in partnership with other full-timers or married women with comfortably-off hubbies who earn money for the little extras.

As a result, I can feel a little like the poor relation, in terms of what they can afford to do, and what I can afford to do. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going cold or hungry, but I haven't got the wherewithal to spend casually on food from the many takeaway emporiums near our city-centre offices, or on other things like new clothes and socialising.

I tend to make a joke of it, and told the woman who was admiring my coat (one of the comfortably-off wives) how much it'd cost (50p). She told me if I ever decided I didn't want it, she'd gladly give me 50p for it, lol.

Yesterday, I came back for the sole paid-for entertainment (archery class) and nipped into several shops at YS time. I was pleased as punch with my bagful of bread etc for 42p and have had ham sarnies for brekkie (17p yesterday).

I regard living comfortably on less-than-the-average bear to be a challenge which I engage with, and get cross on behalf of those whose efforts are being treated disrespectfully by those around them.

You'll have the last laugh, one day, I'm sure. And more power to your elbow.