Dead Batteries and Waste.

A little bit ago I talked about how I had several items in my junk drawer that were now useless because it's cheaper to buy a new one than to buy the batteries it takes to power some of the items. Since then I've come to a sort of paradigm shift in the way I think, the way I buy, and my attitude toward my possessions. Every time I think about this, I can't help but to recall the movie Fight Club. The main point of the movie is that consumerism has gone out of control. Even though it's in a very guerilla and violent fashion the movie's message is that of resourcefulness. Is your bicycle tire flat? Are your spokes loose? Fix it! Don't buy another bicycle just because it needs a little work.

The trouble with this is that anymore it is cheaper to buy new in many cases. This is why we are some of the most wasteful people in the world. We throw away a LOT of trash. Or at least it is perceived to be trash. There is a place for everything other than in a landfill. Recycle all that you can, have a yard sale, and give away the stuff that doesn't sell. Now I realize that a lot of folks have a problem with clutter in their house.

This is usually due to the fact that many people buy a lot of things they don't really need, and among other things to the fact that they may need only a small portion of, for example, popsicle sticks. Stores often sell them in bulk and that's the only choice when all that's needed is a small portion. Now that may seem like a bad example but it leads me to my point. The first thing you are probably thinking is, why don't you just buy some popsicles and just use them once you have eaten the popsicles.

Well, that would only make too much sense! Think about what you buy and think of ways you can get around having to buy in bulk. I recently needed a piece of plexi-glass and a clock motor for two seperate projects I'm doing. I didn't need to buy a large piece pf plexi-glass and an individually wrapped clock motor. I just bought a clock for $5 and use the motor and the plex-glass from it instead.

And you don't even necessarily need to do that. Call and ask your family if they have any spare parts lying around. Then, not only are you being resourceful, you're also recycling what is to another person only junk parts. And furthermore, you'd brighten someone's day by giving them a phone call. They haven't heard from you in a while anyway, I'm sure they'd be glad to talk to you.

Ponder this for a while.