Buy Nothing Day

[MOW]

Several years ago ,there was a special on PBS on Affluenza(addiction to consumerism). Kalle Lasn ,the editor for Adbusters magazine was on that special. He had come up with the idea of a Buy Nothing Day, which would occur on the day after Thanksgiving . That day is usually the start of the holiday shopping season. Those who participate put their wallets away for 24 hours and don't spend any money at all for the entire day. I have done this ,although I usually do buy one cup of coffee in the morning.

 

Has anyone else ever heard of this , or tried this ?

 

 

MOW

[Realspiritik]

Whew. For a minute there I thought you meant that today is Buy Nothing Day, and here I just came home with a load of groceries.

 

Love Jen

[MOW]

Whew. For a minute there I thought you meant that today is Buy Nothing Day, and here I just came home with a load of groceries.

 

Love Jen

 

OK Jen, Buy Nothing Day is next week on November 24th. Are you going to buy nothing? LOL

Seriously, I've never been able to do that. I just try to limit my spending on that day as a personal protest to the consumerism of Christmas.

 

BTW Macy's opened a store here in Chicago ,on State street. People have been staying away in droves. They took over the old Carson Prerie Scott's , that had been there for years.

 

 

MOW

[flowperson]

OK Jen, Buy Nothing Day is next week on November 24th. Are you going to buy nothing? LOL

Seriously, I've never been able to do that. I just try to limit my spending on that day as a personal protest to the consumerism of Christmas.

 

BTW Macy's opened a store here in Chicago ,on State street. People have been staying away in droves. They took over the old Carson Prerie Scott's , that had been there for years.

MOW

 

MOW:

 

LOL: Stan Freeberg would be awfully proud of you. Since I usually shop on line these days, it will be easy for me to refrain. I don't think that I'll ever be back to Chitown . The loop without Field's, Carson's, and The Berghof just can't be as wonderful as it used to be. Glitzy...yes...but meaningful...not likely.

 

flow...

[des]

No Berghoffs?!?! I didn't know that! That's horrible. My family would come visit

me when I lived in Chicago. We had a ritual, first the Art Institute (I hope that's still

there!) then we'd all eat sauerbraten and creamed spinach at Berghoffs.

 

 

--des

[MOW]

hi Flow and des and all

 

Yes Berghoff's has been gone for several months.

 

I did make a mistake however. Macy's bought the Marshall Field building not Carson's. Carson Prairie Scott's will close after January too .This will be their last Christmas downtown. I don't know who if anyone is going to buy that building. As I said Macy's, has had a hard time getting Chicagoans to shop there. I've heard some people are planning to picket them during the holidays , because they wouldn't keep the Marshall Field name.

 

 

MOW

[Realspiritik]

OK Jen, Buy Nothing Day is next week on November 24th. Are you going to buy nothing? LOL

Seriously, I've never been able to do that. I just try to limit my spending on that day as a personal protest to the consumerism of Christmas.

 

Hi MOW,

 

Just checked my calendar, and figured out that Nov. 24th is the day after American Thanksgiving, a day which (judging from the ads we get via American TV channels) is a huge pre-Christmas shopping blitz-o'-rama. In Canada, Thanksgiving is much more quiet family celebration held on the second Monday of October, when the autumn sky is beautiful and the harvest foods taste awesome.

 

I'm working on Friday the 24th, so probably won't be doing any shopping. But I don't have a moral objection to the principle of shopping. I only mind when individuals buy things that don't make their soul sing.

 

Love Jen

 

P.S. Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate on Nov. 23rd. May your day be filled with the simple joys of family love.

[des]

Thanksgiving, though it has the Football games and Macy's parade (which was, I just saw, a celebration of

diversity put on by Macy's employees), is pretty much a family day in the US. Of course there are quite

traditional foods that are served and overeating is kind of a sport activity. :-)

What more ruins Thanksgiving, imo, is the rush to start Christmas shopping, and stores have capitalized

on the day after Thanksgiving as the biggest retail day in the US.

 

 

--des

[mystictrek]

Several years ago ,there was a special on PBS on Affluenza(addiction to consumerism). Kalle Lasn ,the editor for Adbusters magazine was on that special. He had come up with the idea of a Buy Nothing Day, which would occur on the day after Thanksgiving . That day is usually the start of the holiday shopping season. Those who participate put their wallets away for 24 hours and don't spend any money at all for the entire day. I have done this ,although I usually do buy one cup of coffee in the morning.

 

Has anyone else ever heard of this , or tried this ?

MOW

 

I bought a pizza yesterday for our family gathering. But otherwise I just enjoyed getting some things done around the house and listening to XM 50, the Loft and its eclectic music. They wre really on! The sun was shining. It was mild for the season.

 

Nearby, the mall was too busy and I didn't pay any attention at all to the hype. Christmas commercialism is way out of control here in the USA. It starts so early. People must be ready to move on to the next holiday by December 15! People put up their tree before or on Thanksgiving and some take it down on December 25 or 26! The twelve days of Christams are co-opted by Madison Avenue and most people think that the 12 days end on December 25 rather than begin on December 25. Many Christmas parties or holiday parties occur in the first week of December. Ever hear of Advent as a period of Fasting and Preparation?

[Realspiritik]

I did end up buying something on Nov. 24th after all. I bought a children's toy for the local toy drive, and put it in a donation bin.

 

The number of shoppers in the U.S. put such a demand on the lines that carry credit card and debit transactions that in parts of Canada the credit card/debit lines collapsed for more than an hour.

 

Love Jen

[MOW]

I did go into downtown Chicago, but I didn't buy anything. As I said there were a number of protesters at the new Macy's department store , that used to be Marshall Field's. They were dressed like charecters from "It's a Wonderful Life". They had signs that read " Macy's is Pottersville" and " Fields is Chicago, Boycott Macy's". I don't know if they will be out there the whole Christmas season.

 

 

MOW

[flowperson]

Confession is said to be good for the soul. I confess that I bought a NY Times on the 24th. There...all done.

 

flow....