Saturday consumption and Sunday reading

Last updated on: January 10, 2010 at 3:34 pm by Justin Whitaker

Saturday consumption and Sunday reading 2010-01-10T15:34:00-07:00 Justin Whitaker

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Falling off the wagon, but hopefully not too far, from my adventures in local living…

Last night I tried to take my girlfriend to a movie and, well, I did take her, but it was sold out. The movie in question was Avatar 3D. The idea to see it came from a recent “Call for Papers” on a philosophy listserv for a book called (cleverly), “Avatar and Philosophy.” A great discussion/debate ensued, academics being great discussants and debaters, and finally I decided I should see what all the fuss is about.

The movie being sold out wasn’t a total loss though. Since we were on the bad side of town (Reserve St, land of box stores), Julie suggested that we – and by we, she means she – get some shopping out of the way. First the discount stores: Ross and TJMax, then Target. “Oh joy,” I thought, “more opportunity for mindful consumption.”

First Ross. Lots of cheap stuff: exercise equipment, electronics, clothes, English Language Immersion CDs on sale (I was tempted)… I wanted a lot of it, I need… None. But I did let myself wander into the men’s designer-shirt-ridiculously-marked-down area, reasoning that I could use a couple dress shirts for my upcoming teaching gig. Here’s what I got:

Calvin Klein, grey, was $52, now $9.99; made in Thailand.
Alfani, black with stripes, was $55, now $14.99; made in Sri Lanka.

I looked, but found nothing made in the US, Canada, Mexico, or the western hemisphere in general.

Next, TJMax. Not quite so cheap, but still cheap. And lots. One item that tempted me was a clearance marked large coffee mug that said, “What Deadline?” on it; only, as Julie pointed out when I showed her, it really said, “What Deadliue?” Hence the $3 sale price. Ohhh… “Do you want it?” Julie asked. “No…” I replied. But that was a lie. Or was it? I had already done the calculation in my head:

I want it + I don’t need it = I don’t want it. (hmm…)

Part of why I don’t need it is because I have a coffee cup that I absolutely adore (pictured). A Christmas present from my sister several years ago, it is a work of art, literally (artist webpage). It is not cheap. It is not disposable. And it is not replaceable (even if the other one is oh so cute).

But, stepping down from my high horse, I did buy something dubious: a shoe accessory organizer, $7.99 marked down from who-knows-what. Useful, yes. Needed? No. So why’d I buy it? (Psychological coping techniques 101: scapegoating) Julie’s fault! She bought one, talked it up, and suggested I could get one too… (sign of relative maturity: taking responsibility) Okay, I still could have passed it up. I’m not terribly sure why I didn’t. Discount dementia? And yes, it’s Made in China – did I check? No. The one plus-side I can think of in terms of consumption was that it wasn’t over-packaged most of that was recyclable.

Target was unexciting; just some Brita water filters, $14 for three.

Then it was off to home, some wine, and Sunshine Cleaning (2D).

Now – finishing up a lazy Sunday morning of coffee, bagels and lox, and much reading: great NYTimes articles on the low-fat lie (recommended by Patia), Michael Pollan’s latest book on food, and the wrap-up of Tara Parker-Pope’s training and experience with the NYC Marathon last year. Oh, and this from the fashion and style section, on some New Yorkers taking up a “cave man” diet… Mmm…

Off for a run now myself in the frigid Montana sunshine. Perhaps I’ll chase down a deer or woolly mammoth for supper. Now that would be local living.

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