Voting with My Dollar

Should I or shouldn't I? That is always the question.

In her pursuit of decluttering, a friend offered a stack of books to anyone who would take them. Among them was “Living With Less: How to Downsize to 100 Personal Possessions” by Mary Lambert. It brought to mind a book I read several years ago, “The 100 Thing Challenge: How I Got Rid Of Almost Everything, Remade My Life, And Regained My Soul” by Dave Bruno. It’s an interesting read.

If you know me, you know I do not hoard. When my daughter cannot find an object, she automatically accuses me of tossing it. I dislike clutter. But living with 100 items? That’s tough.

Being an anti-hoarder is convenient for a shopping-hater. Window shopping is one thing, appreciating fine handiwork and novel creations. But I don’t need to own everything that I admire. I also hate housework, so when considering a purchase, I weigh the joy of owning it against the tedium of dusting it.

In my childhood home, my mother’s criteria for where to shop were bargains. She and my dad perused newspaper ads then drove from store to store to get chicken here, ice cream there, and so on, assured of the best deal. I don’t have that patience and reason the 20¢ I saved here would be spent on gas to get there.

I try to vote with my dollars, boycotting companies with anti-gay policies and unfair labor wages but willing to spend a little more to support companies practicing environmental conservation and human rights. It is getting difficult though.

For one thing, companies change their policies. How often should I check the news or websites before I shop? How many stores should I visit, unable to find what I need, before I relent and order from Amazon? Conveniently delivered before I get home.

If one location displays “Epoch Times” (does not deserve a link on this page) by the register, do I boycott every store in the chain? To be clear, I acknowledge a business’s right to offer any publication it wants. That it’s by the register tells me that the manager agrees with its perspective.

Garrison Keillor described voting with dollars before I was acquainted with the term. In Lake Wobegon, the Catholics buy Chevies from Florian Krebsbach and the Lutherans prefer Fords sold by the Bunsens. Woe to anyone who crosses the line or, worse, buys a foreign car from a dealer in another town. I wish it were so easy.

We become addicted to products before learning of the negative consequences. Who would give up a cellphone now, despite the contamination of the environment? Plastic water bottles? Our household does not use them, but how much does our meager effort impact the oceans when many people drink only single-use bottled water?

If we ever move out of this house, I will enjoy the opportunity to purge. Until then, I will continue to recycle and be conscious of my purchasing choices, considering need vs. want, including eating out when a cheaper, healthier alternative is at home, which is most of the time.

Starting tomorrow.