Anyhow, back to the radio. They were chatting on air about a few friends of one of the announcers who went to the US last night, stayed over in a hotel, JUST so they could hit the sales first thing this morning - some stores are opening today as early as 5 a.m.!

Anyhow, Buy Nothing Day really means a lot more to me now. I didn't realize that this day is traditionally a big "sale day" in the US, where stores really count on EXTRA shoppers.

The other thing that bugs me about this shopping day in the US is that I think it's a real class issue. Middle-class Americans, or at least Americans with medium to high incomes, and white collar workers, will mostly get the day off today. From what I understand, most offices let their workers have today off in order to make Thanksgiving a 4 day weekend.

Well, somehow I'm thinking retail clerks aren't getting a 4 day weekend. No, that's because they have to work so that all the middle-class and upper class yuppies can go shopping today and take advantage of those sales.

quote:

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Here are 11 FLY Sense Commandments for shopping:

1. Plan your meals before you get into the grocery store! Make your menus, clean out your refrigerator and make a grocery list. Only buy
food at the grocery store!

2. A shopping list is your best financial friend. It produces focused shoppers, not mindless wandering and mindless buying with virtual money!

3. If you can't handle malls, catalogs, shopping television, those 800 numbers or internet stores go cold turkey and turn them off or toss them out and stay away from them.

4. To reduce spending stay out of the stores as much as possible. Limit your trips by planning your errands. Every time you walk through the door they have you! Don't fall victim to their marketing traps! You are strong! You can do this!

5. When you do go to the stores, set a timer and only spend a few minutes going in and getting what is on your list. STAY FOCUSED! You can do anything for 15 minutes! Wear a watch and be aware of your spending: Time and money!

6. If you take the children with you shopping bring water bottles from home and fruit snacks. This will keep you from having to stop and buy. Happy children help you. Hungry children whine and want impulse purchases. Retail merchandisers prey on children too. Just look at the cereal aisle! All the sugar filled stuff is on the lowest aisle! Lay down the ground rules before you shop with your children, give them the hope of reward for helping you after the groceries get put away at home. Also tell them the consequences if they whine and nag. There is nothing more satisfying than telling the kids you will leave if they nag for stuff, and then actually leaving! A good reward is time with them playing a game.

7. Sales are not really sales if they go on your credit card! The interest rate eats up your savings. With the price of gas, if you have to drive any distance the bargain is no bargain!

8. While shopping get into the habit of questioning your purchases: Do I need you? Do I love you? Do I have a place for you? Am I going to fling you soon? Do I have another one of you? Are you a clutter-free gift for my friends or family? Am I setting a good example by giving clutter-free gifts?

9. Quit using your debit card; it is too easy and you are a SHE and you forget to post your purchases in your check register. Knowledge
is power! Credit cards are virtual money you have to pay them with tangible money; when we over spend the stress of the credit card debt keeps us from FLYing!

10. While shopping with a cart; do a 27 fling boogie before you get to the check out lane. Be sure and put back your impulse purchases. Let your children help you by policing your list and what is in your cart! Be aware that there are traps on every aisle. Those traps are set by retailers to take your disposable income. Guess what? Your money is not something to be flushed down the toilet. Your money has a value to you and your family. Let it be a tool, not a flush!

11. To help you curb your purchases with a credit card, debit card, check book or cash: put a FLYLADY Cling [I don't know what this is] on your plastic card, checks, and your money. This will make it harder to use. Each time you use them this will bring your spending into your awareness. Put all your receipts in your control journal. Scotch tape them on a sheet of
paper. Know each day how much you are spending!

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I know these admonitions for responsible spending aren't really politically motivated. But I've noticed that a lot of the stuff I receive from her fits in well with less consumerism. Basically, the less crap you buy, the less you have cluttering your home.

I'm starting to see a real connection between getting your home organized and getting rid of the clutter that surrounds you, and getting your personal life and financial life in order. For me, this fits in really well with dropping out of the consumerist rat race.

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BM: G'day, eh? I'm Bob and this is my brother Doug.

DM: How's it going, eh?

BM: okay, so like today’s topic is, wait I wrote it down on a pack of smokes, here it is today’s topic is what if there was a 'buy nothing day', eh?

DM: There's a buy nothing day every second week, you hoser, it's called the day before payday.

BM: Take off, you got fired from the brewery for drinking too many of the beers.

DM: Don't listen to my brother, eh, there's no such thing as drinking too much beer.

BM: Ya well when the old man finds out you didn't buy his beer today he's going to freak. Anyway, back to the topic, eh. What would it be like if there was a day you couldn't buy anything, no gas, no food, no donuts, no beer, no smokes, nothing.

DM: Take off, everyone would just buy stuff the day before or the day after. It's like when there was a law against Sunday shopping, eh. Remember that? It was beauty.

BM: Yeah, it was in the Canadian criminal code: No Sunday shopping for hosers. Hey, have you been horking my smokes? The pack with the topic only has one left!

DM: No way, eh, you smoke those wussy ultra-light things. But, like, what if today was buy nothing day then you couldn't buy more smokes today you'd have to wait until tomorrow.

BM: I’d just borrow some from you, eh.

DM: I couldn't do that, eh, I could get arrested for manslaughter if I gave you a real cigarette. I'm not a wuss like my brother, eh, I smoke "death" cigarettes.

BM: Take off, you do not!

DM: I do too, I just hide them in players packages because they're smuggled into Canada, eh.

BM: You're such a liar.

DM: am not.

BM: are too.

DM: am not

BM: are too.

DM: yeah, well what you say bounces off me and sticks to you.

BM: Well since my brother won't admit he's a liar, just like the time he was nine and wet his bed and then said it was me, let's look at how this would affect other things, like donuts.

DM: well, obviously the donut industry would take a hit but I think that it could survive it. The majority of donuts are sold Monday to Friday with the morning coffee, eh. So unless the buy nothing day was on like a weekday - which would be crazy, because if you've ever stood in line at Tim Horton’s you know what Canadians are like if you try and delay them from their morning coffee and donut - the donut industry would weather the lost sales.

BM: They're be a Tim Horton’s riot, eh?

DM: Yeah, except that no cop is going to allow donut stores to shut down

BM: I'm sure the government would declare coffee and donuts essential services.

DM: same with beer and cigarettes.

BM: Okay, so if there was a buy nothing day, except for coffee, donuts, beer, and smokes, how does that sound to you?

DM: Sounds beauty, that's like 80% of the Canadian economy. Only igloo and dog-sled sales would stop.

BM: Okay, so we've decided that buy-nothing day is okay as long as we can get coffee, donuts, beer, and smokes, eh. Tune in next week when we'll talk about how my brother has lied and got me in trouble since we were kids, eh.

DM: Take off , eh.

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[ 01 December 2003: Message edited by: Mick ]

quote:

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Originally posted by Mick:
The title of this thread made me think of a no-existent show by Bob and Doug Mackenzie on Great White North (SCTV). Here's the transcript.

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It was supposed to.

In fact, I was thinking of that line from their Christmas carol, where they get to the 12th day of Christmas, and they're saying something like, "What day are we on?" And then the "angel chorus" sings, "TWELVE!" And then they say, "Oh...well, g'day, eh? And welcome to Day 12."

P.S. That transcript is awesome. Very nice!

[ 29 November 2003: Message edited by: Michelle ]

quote:

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What do you think, Audra and Zoot and windymustang and whoever else is doing FlyLady?

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Flylady and clutter... Well, during their "bathroom week", I cleared out the medicine cabinet for clutter. The blond guy is still mad that I threw out a medicated ointment thingy that expired in 1991.

I'm not buying less, but I'm throwing out more... (edited to add: Actually not entirely true -- I spent the morning at a really big art/craft show today and spent much less than I normally would have. I had to either need it or love it, or it stayed behind.)

I have actually had to buy some storage bins and a new shelf for Ms T's room, but it's much improved the situation.

All told, the clutter is diminishing in most areas of the house, which means less time devoted to cleaning, which means things actually get cleaned. I'm getting a little annoyed at the testimonials, though.

[ 29 November 2003: Message edited by: Zoot Capri ]

[ 29 November 2003: Message edited by: Zoot Capri ]