After the month long consumerism binge of December I’m greeting January with my first sustainability challenge of the year- Buy Nothing New for One Month.

January is the perfect month for this because lets face it, we’re all shopped out. It’s a wonder I got anything done besides shopping in December, shopping for others, of course, but also SO MUCH for myself. 

Buying stuff is so fun and easy! Even just thinking about buying stuff is fun. Racking up saved items in my Amazon cart like an e-horder. And I am a full-fledged sucker for the non-stop ads in my news feeds. What can I say; modern life has made buying stuff soooo easy. You don’t even have to get out of bed!

But I know, I know, I know what a huge toll this ease is taking on our planet (not to mention our wallets). Manufacturing creates waste, consumption creates waste, we just buy and accumulate and throw away and need more and more. The story of stuff is a great easy to absorb description of this plight.

 So I enter the new year with this – buying nothing new for a month. Immediately my mind flies to my beloved Amazon cart- but I NEED that stuff! I want it so badly! I can feel my consumer tantrum coming on- my house is in shambles, my wardrobe a mess, I need to buy! What about ecological things like the reusable fork that fits in your wallet- can’t I at least buy that? No.

The truth is I’ve made it this long without whatever it is I think I need, I can make it to the end of January, right?

Taking it a day at a time, I do not buy.

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