Judgment day

My friend S is good - she's an avid greenie, recyling anything and everything (including bath water - she doesn't even live in drought-ridden Australia), reusing what can be reused, shopping locally and organically. She's a nutritionist and holistic health counselor who presents wellness seminars and deeply cares about people and the Earth. You may remember that S stopped shopping for clothes for a year as an anti-consumerism protest. She's good.

(See her website and sign up for a session - www.stiggly.com.)

Another friend sent me a link to a blogger who wore the same brown dress (which she handmade) every day for a year. She wrote about most people not noticing what she was wearing, but some did and commented. Was she afraid of reactions? Probably. Was she afraid of not completing her quest? Yes, and she even had an occasion where she wore something else. But she didn't begin the year of wearing the same dress to explore emotions; she wanted an experiment about consumerism.

http://www.littlebrowndress.com

There's another blogger who spent a year not spending at all. I guess she had to buy food at some point, since she wasn't a farmer, but she cut out most everything else. She too wanted to examine her consumerism and save money, both good things to examine. While she wote about I the reaction of her friends and family and I thought that to be more interesting than her experiment, however, especially when she went and bought a house at the end of the year.

Seems like this is all the rage - even actress Thandie Newton speaks to USA Today to discuss her vintage shopping "the way forward in recycling;" another newspaper stating that Australia has become a "nation of hoarders" with clothing being the biggest cause of clutter. (I noted that both papers advertised clothing sales.)

Me? I'm not so good. Sure I recycle and reuse to the best of my ability, but I take long, hot showers, longer and hotter baths (and don't save the water), and I run through paper towels like no one I know (at least they are Seventh Generation). And my hiatus is not about non-consumerism, it's about becoming a BETTER shopper. I'm exploring my own shopping emotions and trying to improve my consumerism by making better choices about what I buy, but in relation to fit, color, style, etc. All these non-consumerism folks seem to be doing things for the greater good while I just want a better wardrobe. Have I discovered yet another reason for therapy?

I'm sure I'll be judged accordingly, but at least I'll be better dressed and emotionally able to handle it.