12/28/09

Another 30 Days of Nothing

We got our utility bill last week. It... was... not... pretty. It has been very cold in Colorado this winter, and although we're not keeping our house at sweat lodge temperatures, it turns out our beautiful vaulted ceilings come with a price. Heat escaping through the roof. Thankfully we are blessed with employment, a home, food, and coats--more than some can say this year. So I don't bemoan the utility bill; I feel thankful we can pay it. But it reminds me that heat and shelter and food are what comes first in our lives. Clothes and DVDs and ice cream come last.

Participating in 30 Days of Nothing in November was so thrilling because I felt in control of the little things. Being able to say no and doing without is a good practice for anyone at any time in their life. I want to participate again in January because it seems like a fabulous way to kick off the year, and it will jump-start some of our savings goals. Mostly, vacations. We don't take a lot of them and we want to.

I know there were several of you who mentioned you wanted to try 30 Days of Nothing and if you do, please let me know. I will link your posts here and I would love to discuss what your thoughts are. If your blog is private, I'll cut and paste your thoughts without having to link you. I won't talk about myself as much--since you already had to slog through it with me in November and you're probably rolling your eyes at the thought of another 30 days of reading my anti-buying propaganda!

One of the most amazing mommies I am blessed to know, Melodie, is already talking about gearing up for her month of nothing. You can read about it here.

9 comments:

Bridget said...

I am strongly considering...and have been for the last week. I may no Jan. 7- Feb. 7 weird. yes. but still a month, right?!

jayme said...

We're definitely participating. Already the stress of it is setting in for me. Which is indicative of exactly why I need to do this. I wrote down every single penny that I spent in December, and when I subtract out the absolute necessities the amount that is spent on random purchases and impulse buys is *insane*.

I think vacations are the perfect use for your savings!

Leah said...

I'm in for the month of January...
Only spending money on Groceries and gas/train tickets

This should be interesting

Melodie Monberg said...

So I'm getting ready and took a lesson from you. Getting my hair cut tomorrow. smile

Melodie

Bekka-Reeeeeeee said...

I am participating as well. I haven't gotten my hubs on the band wagon just yet, but he may decide to try it after he sees how it goes for me. When I start blogging about it, I will send you the link. It's pretty amazing to me just how many people you've influenced!

Courtney O. said...

we're doing it but i don't know how much i'll be blogging about it. Probably at least once a week, but right now I'm overwhelmed with other things to do!

rebekah said...

We started considering the month, then realized what we need is a whole new approach of how to best use the resources that we have. I haven't formulated a post about it yet, but when I do I'll let you know. It'll be our own version of torture:)

Mark and Sarah said...

We've been participating in this for a week now...started on Christmas Day ;-) Already learning a lot and loving the new freedom found in anti-consumerism. Have found myself in a couple difficult situations too. I dont' think I'm going to blog about it, but I wanted to let you know how much you inspired me! This is also kicking off a whole new saving strategy for 2010 which we're really excited about.

Julia said...

Rebekah sent me. I'm giving it a go.