Living Simply

Living Simply: A Personal Choice

Each of us have a choice how we live our lives. Simplicity suits me and was relatively easy for us. Since 1983 my personal ’statement’ to save our planet was to shop carefully. I have found that clothing, household items, cooking utensils, decorating items, shampoo, cosmetics, or anything else can be foraged outside of a conventional store for a fraction of the cost. So I shop yard sales when they are in season, decent thrift shops, community sales and auctions... and sometimes you are rewarded.

At yard sales I meet new people, chat, and look at gardens while I browse, often coming away with the gift of a plant or cutting. I enjoy the limited selection and the feeling I am shopping an outdoor bazaar. I also find it amusing to ‘study’ people conducting a sale by looking at their books, which are a profile of their personality… like the little old lady who was selling the 'Harrad Experiment' or the Bible thumpers who read nothing but Satanic novels. Often I am amazed. The man who sold his great-grandmother’s rocking chair for $40 was an enigma, the one who sold the canon ball that removed his great grandfather's leg in a Civil War battle for $5 was as well. A clock belonging to a deceased maiden aunt and her 1930's Cuban Crocodile purse, both for $10 were a surprise as was the signed Houdon statue for $50.  

When I shop this way, I (purposefully) don’t pay taxes since taxes have already been paid on what I buy, which is a statement unto itself... and I pay about 5 cents on the dollar.
We can each make a difference in our own way… and sometimes, after many, many years...the garage sale gods may reward you as they did us with our Houdon, a once in a lifetime find.