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The year of living frugally: how 10 friends survived without shopping
The Telegraph UK ^ | 05/01/2007 | Catherine Elsworth

Posted on 01/07/2007 4:48:05 PM PST by fishhound

It started as a pledge over dinner between friends worried about the impact of mass consumerism and today's disposable society.

"Let's see if we can give up shopping for a year," they said. advertisement

Now, at the close of the "12-month flight from the consumer grid" — in which the 10 friends were egged on by thousands of supporters inspired by their idea — some have declared the experiment so revelatory and life-changing that they plan to continue the boycott indefinitely.

The 10 middle-class professionals living in San Francisco dubbed themselves the "Compact" after the Mayflower Compact, drafted by Puritan pilgrims who reached the New World in 1620.

(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: prudence
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To: Alia; potlatch

The best shopping trip I ever took in my life, in terms of fashion and value, was to the Goodwill in Carmel, CA. The most fun visit was to the Goodwill in New Orleans--full of Mardi Gras costumes and masks.

I found I've collected too much stuff, and spend too much time picking up. Lately, I've been shopping in my own home--discovering something ignored, enjoying it one more time, then donating it to the local Salvation Army.


121 posted on 01/07/2007 9:14:07 PM PST by ntnychik
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To: fishhound

So basically they're a bunch of yuppies who've bought some used things.


122 posted on 01/07/2007 9:14:45 PM PST by jordan8
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To: ntnychik

Funny what you wrote because I go to Goodwill for books from time to time.

People would be amazed at what you can find there. The wealthy drop off all their castoffs.


123 posted on 01/07/2007 9:20:29 PM PST by potlatch (Does a clean house indicate that there is a broken computer in it?)
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To: fishhound

ooooh. social engineering!


124 posted on 01/07/2007 9:21:54 PM PST by hedgetrimmer (I'm a millionaire thanks to the WTO and "free trade" system--Hu Jintao top 10 worst dictators)
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To: HamiltonJay
Only idiots in Manhattan/NYC or California would find managing to buy stuff second hand, or bartering for things you need "revolutionary and newsworthy".

My thoughts exactly! 10 "middle class professionals" at a dinner party ... my God! How many of you have ever had a dinner party with 9 other "middle class professionals"? I assume they were couples so that would be 20 people (give or take 10). And they are brilliant coming up with this revolutionary idea to boot!

Now a pig roast would have that many people and more show up around here and more than likely they all would have been practicing these IDIOTS new and revolutionary ideas for years.
125 posted on 01/07/2007 9:27:04 PM PST by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
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To: burroak

This is a play right out of "Your Money or Your Life", which had a very liberal bent, but I admit did get me to banking more cash and led me to other books on personal finance.

http://www.amazon.com/Your-Money-Life-Transforming-Relationship/dp/0140286780/sr=1-1/qid=1168234957/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-8264919-9874348?ie=UTF8&s=books

Speaking of Black Friday, I draw the line at wrapping presents in inside-out potato chip bags. (A tip mentioned in the book.) On the frugal side, however, I crack up when they interview people who've just spent a couple thousand bucks on $hit or gifts and brag about how much they "saved" by getting out at 5 AM.


126 posted on 01/07/2007 9:54:43 PM PST by GnuHere
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To: fishhound
Big deal! My relatives did that of necessity when it wasn't a fad. The old "Methodist work ethic" discouraged store bought things anyway.

I've seen my dad plow behind a mule in my youth. We brought in corn, tomatoes, potatoes, okra, peanuts, peas, beans, squash, cucumbers, lettuce, cabbage, peppers, carrots, and turnips from a garden half the size of a football field. We picked wild blackberries, plums and poke salad from stands in the edges of the pasture. Mom raised chickens and Dad kept cattle and a couple of hogs.

We sat many nights in the kitchen watching the radio when Johnny Dollar or Boston Blackie were rebroadcast in the early Sixties. Yes, without a TV for years in my youth.

My oldest brother has only shopped at thrift stores and flea markets for years and years, nearly all his life. He has always furnished his house with found objects, dumpster diving or cobbled together contrivances. He made a coffee table from an old library table with a broken leg. He cut off the legs and fashioned pedestal legs from scrap two-by-eight boards liberated from a construction site, pegged with hand whittled dowels and stained with shoe polish to almost match the table top.

This New Age frugal living apparently becomes news when Left Coast pious and smug Bay Area socialists reinvent frugality in their own name rather than experience it due to meager circumstances and necessity.

127 posted on 01/07/2007 10:40:49 PM PST by higgmeister (In the Shadow of The Big Chicken)
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To: msnimje

Gee, I never knew the Puritan's didn't "shop" in "malls." :~)

I am delighted to be able to bring this bit of historical fact to the attention of fellow posters.

My comment was in tandem with yours, adding that most of the people in our society who live frugally are Christians.


128 posted on 01/07/2007 11:28:57 PM PST by Louis Foxwell (here come I, gravitas in tow.)
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To: potlatch

It's been interesting to me for a long time that the wealthy will pay (or lose money) for "convenience" every time - and not just the wealthy, either.

I live well, but within my means, and even though I get called "cheap" for not buying the latest gadgets and clothes and vacation packages and whatever, I have pretty much everything i need/want, and I got it all at a discount, sometimes eye-opening deep, and I'm become very patient about researching big ticket items and finding the best deals or alternatives. I don't mind buying last-years models (besides, version 1.0 of anything is gnerally a bad idea, bug wise) and I could care less what other people think. I see all you MBA types on the plane sneaking looks at each other's laptops, seeing who has the latest and most expensive. I have a 17" Powerbook G4. I got it free, with a broken LCD, was told it was only good for parts. $300 and a few minutes research on Ebay later and some quality time with a micro-driver set and detailed instructions on the web, I have a working, gleaming Powerbook. It's not the new Intel version, but it works, it's practically brand new, and I challenge you to find one of this quality and reliability for $300.

Avoid the 'Gotta have it!"s, research anything over $100 (there are great resources online), and question if you REALLY need it, or just "want" it. Can you wait 6 months, a year for that gadget? Because I guarantee you'll find it at a steep discount later. You pay each month for internet access, the deals are out there, you just have to dig. There are whole stores, those factory outlets, that specifically sell last year's stuff.

The latest loser in my battle to save money and avoid fads: HDTV. Sure, it's cool. Yes, I have an HDTV plasma (got a great deal on it by searching for 6 months online), but the price of entry for a technology that will be pennies on teh dollar a year or two from now, and might change anyway? Pass! Everyone I know who has it dug their claws in me and got me all worked up about it, and I wanted it...then I came down to earth, and simply could'nt justify it. Would I like it? Sure! Do i want to pay hundreds for something I'll watch maybe once or twice a week? (judging by the listings). Nope! Nobody complains when they visit, for not having it. Is the ego boost worth a week's pay? Pfffft.

Less stuff, but the stuff I have is quality, and my Dad raised me to at least try and fix it before replacing it (and fixing it and fixing it and fixing it...). I hate clutter, and if I don't use it, it gets donated or given to friends. Laptops, printers, tvs, vcrs, clothes - they work fine, but I don't use them, they all now live with freinds and coworkers who are very happy with them.

I got some great antiques that were left on the curb when people moved. Just needed refinishing and a little TLC. People look at me wierd, and think picking through trash is beneath them, but most people throw stuff away that has nothing wrong with it, or can't be bothered to order a part or go to a junkyard. I love refinishing furniture, and love old wood - I'll pay for it, but if they're leaving it out for free...it'd be a crime NOT to grab it and take care of it. IKEA is fine, but the old Art Deco secretary desk with a gorgeous wood grain (that some villian painted blue, then yellow, then white) that I found is a more satisfying desk than anything IKEA has, and stripping it and hand sanding and finishing it was a project I loved every minute of, depspite the looks of horror and irritation at the idea of actually working on furniture. "Just go buy one, you can afford it!"

Another good example is picture frames. The raw materials are cheap, but making them is finicky and requires good tools, knowledge and space. Most people would rather spend $2-300 to frame a PRINT - not even original art - when you can go to Goodwill and St. Vincent DePaul or salvage yards and get beautiful, old, well made frames for pennies, that just need a cleaning, maybe some kind of varnish, or paint. Heck, even if you make your own, instead of the cheap raw wood they sell now, cut down an old frame - some of them were made with wood you can't get anymore. A piece of glass for a couple of bucks (acrylic if it's a print), and viola.

I spend money, but c'mon. Most of what people buy is junk, they won't use, and there's whole industries built on selling people more junk to store the junk they don't use.

Half the drawers and cabinets in my kitchen are empty, and I take great pride in that. Freeing yourself from junk is an experience I urge everyone to try, it's an elightening experience. It's not anti-American, it's common sense. The fact that i do not own an Ipod, nor plan to (I listen to music mostly in the car or while working, external drives and iTunes is fine) will not drive the economy down, and I resent anyone that even hints at it. That $400 is better spent in my 401K or a savings account generating interest.

If I really wanted one, I could go buy one tomorrow, because I don't buy junk, and have no debt, and that feels great too!

This country throws away better stuff than people own with pride in other countries, or sell it cheap to get rid of it, to make room for new stuff. Sporting goods, computer gear, and cameras are excellent areas to find GREAT deals, if you look, or ask. Need a starter lens for a digital SLR? Ask anyone who bought one the last few years, most take off the stock lens and stuff it in a drawer.


129 posted on 01/08/2007 12:08:49 AM PST by ByDesign
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To: DainBramage
She has a problem but Im sticking with her through it.

Whatta guy!

130 posted on 01/08/2007 12:14:25 AM PST by SuziQ
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To: higgmeister
This New Age frugal living apparently becomes news when Left Coast pious and smug Bay Area socialists reinvent frugality in their own name rather than experience it due to meager circumstances and necessity.

They'd probably be shocked and digusted if anyone called them 'conservative', but that is the way they are acting, conserving resources by not buying things that are unnecessary. Ironic, isn't it?

131 posted on 01/08/2007 12:37:49 AM PST by SuziQ
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To: rabscuttle385
The U.S. has morphed into such a consumer-driven culture where there's a lot of pressure to keep up with the Joneses, even if it means taking on debt.

I buy alot of "stuff" but never to "keep up with the Joneses." I think it can honestly be said that most people are in the same boat. They buy a certain item because they saw others with it or and ad...and liked it.

132 posted on 01/08/2007 12:50:31 AM PST by torchthemummy (Romney 2008)
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To: Archie Bunker on steroids; Theresawithanh
No doubts. But I lived this way because I needed to; not because it was an experiment.

I've lived very comfortably; I've lived very not comfortably. In America, there's always a way to live and live well without making a emotive production out of one's economic/financial circumstances. Living comfortably is definitely preferred. :)

133 posted on 01/08/2007 3:57:49 AM PST by Alia
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To: ntnychik
Lately, I've been shopping in my own home--discovering something ignored, enjoying it one more time, then donating it to the local Salvation Army.

That's the ticket to keeping your life streamlined. :) I do it too.

134 posted on 01/08/2007 4:00:07 AM PST by Alia
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To: Smokin' Joe

I am saving to pay cash for a halfway decent used car (no more than 2-3 years old), the problem with the really old junkers here is that the more winters a vehicle is driven, the more damage to the undercarriage because of salt on the road.


135 posted on 01/08/2007 4:07:18 AM PST by Alouette (Psalms of the Day: 88-89)
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To: submarinerswife
once we bought the home I had to have new rugs, drapes, matching towels and pot rack. That was also gratifying. :)

How fun! :) Worth saving up for!

136 posted on 01/08/2007 4:14:25 AM PST by Alia
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bookmark for later read


137 posted on 01/08/2007 4:15:41 AM PST by codercpc
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To: fishhound
I think these folks have a good idea, although a bit of extreme. There is nothing wrong with being frugal. Remember many of our parents were/are frugal.

This past Christmas I worked a little gift shop at a nature center. I have to admit I was deeply troubled by the direct line from the front door to the gift shop that children under the age of 5 made. I see kids come in for the daily classes (many home-schooled)that demand, demand something every visit. These spoiled children are either appeased with a purchase(most likely) or are pulled from the shop kicking and screaming at the top of their lungs. Or the older children telling the parent that they(the parents)can afford the purchase! Ah....?

No, one of the values that needs to be restored is the concept of the penny.

A penny saved is a penny earned. Or the other one...a fool and his money are soon parted.
138 posted on 01/08/2007 4:25:03 AM PST by EBH (May God Save Our Country)
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To: fishhound
There would be no new clothes, gadgets, computers, car parts, mobile phones,

Not a single luxury.


139 posted on 01/08/2007 4:32:35 AM PST by Tribune7 (Conservatives hold bad behavior against their leaders. Dims don't.)
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To: Alouette
...the problem with the really old junkers here is that the more winters a vehicle is driven, the more damage to the undercarriage because of salt on the road.

Shame on me for not thinking of that.

The road crews here do not use salt (too cold to be effective) so cars last a lot longer.

Our 'herd' goes back to as far as '41 (that one does need a little work).

140 posted on 01/08/2007 5:17:36 AM PST by Smokin' Joe (How often God must weep at humans' folly.)
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