Whether it’s walking around the Plateau and hitting up all the cute little shops or scouring eBay for vintage magazines and toys, I love shopping. I love things! Shopping is one of my only coping strategies for stress and anxiety. Fear not, I do have some self-awareness. I know that I need better coping strategies/mechanisms. The high of a new purchase wears off so quickly and I am left no better off than I was pre-purchase. Materialism is not self-care! (Even though, in the moment, it’s so fun and feels so good!) I also realize that I may have over-done it with the spending last year. I usually justify my shopping by telling myself “well… the world is ending.” I’m not in any kind of debt, so the situation is not out of control, but I could have spent less and saved more in 2023. Does a thirty-something independent woman really need eight Furbies? (Debatable.)
Most of my money is spent on frivolities. I don’t even want to know how much money I spent on vinyl last year. The 25th anniversary triple-vinyl deluxe box set of Cher’s Believe album was not cheap and I was so pissed when, last month, I saw it discounted for 30 dollars less. I should have waited but I need immediate gratification. If I want something, I need to have it immediately. I also splurged on a pair of Manolo Blahniks at the end of last year. I admit that I’m a label whore and trust me, I know how dumb that is (I blame Sex and the City) but I’ve always wanted a pair. In my defense they were 70% off and I was probably never going to find a price like that again.
I currently have the complete set of Flintstones (1994) Happy Meal toys in my eBay cart but I’m not allowed to buy it because my BFF and I challenged each other to not shop for the entire month of January (the longest, most depressing month of the year) and there is still one more day to go. Not shopping has been a challenge, let me tell you. By January 4th I was foaming at the mouth, dying to buy some nostalgic stupidity to make me feel like everything is okay for five minutes.
The no shopping challenge has made me re-examine my relationship to things. A few years ago I read Marie Kondo’s book, Spark Joy, and loved it. I think her message got muddled and confused on the Netflix series, but the book is great and so useful. This month of depravation was a reset; a reminder to only buy what truly sparks joy. Every purchase I make should be intentional and even special. Purchases shouldn’t be made thoughtlessly, especially not in this economy, especially when there is virtually no ethical consumption under capitalism (I’ve been boycotting all businesses that support Israel). I don’t think I can totally cut shopping out of my life permanently because I love going around and looking at things, especially thrifting, but I look forward to shopping more consciously—to picking something up or adding something to my digital cart and deciding “no, don’t need it.”
When you have less, you appreciate things more. When you carefully, thoughtfully curate the items that inhabit your home, you enjoy them more. The line between you and joy isn’t blocked by a bunch of unnecessary crap. So here’s to a new year of less spending, more saving, and maybe just one more Furby.