Buy Nothing check-in number 2, or what should I be doing in today's economic climate?

Oh February, you wet and weary month (Thank you, Oscars.  Thank you birthday).  It's a hard month in which not to spend money.  I mean, it's not as if you can spend all that free time picnicking and riding ponies.  No, you are pretty much trapped indoors while the rain tap, tap, taps on your window.  And sometimes indoors means, for example, a mall. Or perhaps a boutique.  Sometimes it means Target.

Yes, this is all just preamble to my admission that I was less than perfect during BUY NOTHING: MONTH 2. It wasn't that bad, but there were a couple of incidents of shopping-as-entertainment.

I'm not going to bore you with another purchase-by-purchase list, but I will say that I did score a couple incredible consignment beauties (not new, and thus totally acceptable under the terms of agreement) like this purse in gray from Rachel Nasvik for $26 (please note that it retails for $595). 

 

All-in-all I spent:

$19 on a vinyl "M" for above Maggie's bed.

$43 on above mentioned purse plus a pair of pants

$60 on a pair of jeans marked down from $200, so, you know, not so bad.  Unfortunately, they are a size too big.

$8 on more lip gloss.  This time on the actual color worn by Drew Barrymore.

$45 on various baby gifts for all of our reproducing friends.

$15 on an amazingly beautiful Calvin Klein dress found on the clearance rack at Marshalls (I know, I shouldn't have been there. But aren't you glad I was?)

$16 white t-shirt with becoming gathers

$24 on 20 pairs of socks for the kids (because it was getting ridiculous). 

$25 on more plastic bins from Target

Total: $255.  

Yikes (but still less than the retail price of the new purse).

Up next: Restaurant-free March.  That's right, we are eating every meal in this month.  Starting on the 2nd because we forgot it was the first and we ordered in sushi.  But now we're serious. Stay tuned to see how we do it. 

And please, comment and let me know if you are cutting back this recession season.  Sometimes I think I am only helping to make the economic downturn worse.  But I can't help it.  I'm nervous.

A thing I like

Grammar Girl.  What exactly is a comma splice and why is it bad?  She knows.  Who or whom?  She also knows that.  She even knows the answer to the whole diphthong debate.  I could spend hours.  Really.

Kim Carnes is the most exciting thing in my life right now

I know, I know, it's been an age.  I wish I had a good excuse but really I've just been wandering around in a sort of daze punctuated by moments spent watching music videos from the '80s (hello, Rick Springfield!) on You Tube.  A few things happened: My dad came back from a meditation retreat in Patzcuaro, Mexico; I went out to a bar and got totally blottoed on two drinks (it's been a while since I've found myself in a bar), I finished reading a novel that I thought I was going to love but didn't, I lost four pounds on Weight Watchers. But, as you can see, they lack a certain, um, narrative cohesion.  Unless the story they are trying to tell is one about arriving at a plodding middle age.  Here's the thing: I have no idea what's going to happen next.  I'm not even sure what to look forward to.  I know that's supposed to be a sign of depression, but I'm not depressed.  I'm just really, really sleepy a lot of the time.  But obviously I need to shake things up a bit, no?  Now that the Oscars are over and my birthday is behind me I need something to look forward to.

Tell me what you are looking forward to.  Maybe I'll get some good ideas.

But here's something: my children have been lovely this past week.  We've had our battles, but on the whole it's been quite pleasant.  Maybe our endless disciplining is paying off?  Or maybe they got together and decided to give the old lady a break.  She just seems so sleepy and all. 

A thing I like

Betty Davis Eyes, which, let's be honest, is a fantastic song that has really withstood the test of time. I miss the days when you could just rent a wind machine and a get together in your friend's basement and make a video.  Although I have no complaints about Thriller either.