Around the Sun: A Blog About Saving Money in Portland, Oregon, and beyond

My New Favorite Blog

April 25th, 2007

I added a couple of new links to my blogroll, and I want to highlight one blog in particular.

Fix: http://fixproject.squarespace.com/

Fix chronicles artist Megan Metcalf’s one-year experiment in non-consumption.

As she explains:

Disgusted and alarmed by the proximity of unlimited shopping and unlimited garbage in Manhattan, as well as the disposable mentality I live and work in – “just throw it out and get a new one” – I’ve decided to make a little experiment in non-consumption. Now, I already live a pretty marginal existence as far as materiality is concerned: I’d like to see what happens if I make the commitment to reducing my participation in the buying cycle to zero this year.

You can read more about the impetus for Fix here: http://fixproject.squarespace.com/fix-background/

She has 4 rules: 

1. I’m not buying new manufactured consumer goods in 2007.

2. I’m not buying food from restaurants in 2007.

3. I will allow myself to buy coffee and drinks, which I could easily make at home.

4. I’d like to take better advantage of the free and community-based resources available in New York City.

More detail on the rules can be found here: http://fixproject.squarespace.com/the-rules/

And she catalogs her “transgressions”: http://fixproject.squarespace.com/transgressions/

I find this experiment inspiring. (And the blog’s minimalist design is soothing and easy to read.) I too aspire to live a less consumptive lifestyle, not only for my pocketbook but for environmental reasons as well. But can I make such a sweeping commitment? Do I need to? I see the power in putting a plan in writing and documenting one’s progress (privately or publicly). Is it enough to try to do the best I can day to day? For now, it’s enough. But I can’t say enough about how much it helps to be able to draw motivation and ideas from blogs like Megan’s.

Entry Filed under: Resources