For those of you looking at ways to vote with your money-- which is one of the most powerful and impactful ways we can actually vote-- I am adding my voice and my list of ideas on ways to keep one's wallet fuller and have a positive impact on your local community and economy. If we want thriving local economies, we need to make the effort to walk away from the computer and enter brick and mortar establishments.
(Aside from the record player, everything in the above picture (including the hutch) is sourced locally and secondhand, supporting local business and circular economy.)
First, to quote Pete Seeger,
"If it can't be reducedReused, repaired - REUSED REPAIREDRebuilt, refurbished, refinished, resoldRecycled or composted - OR COMPOSTEDThen it should be - THEN IT SHOULD BERestricted, redesigned - RESTRICTEDREDESIGNED or removed - REMOVED!From production."
That said, when you inevitably need something you cannot produce yourself, look local. Start with joining a Buy Nothing group and searching posts for what you need, or put a request out for what it is you need (people are so generous). Then take a look at local businesses with a quick search near you. We had a fantastic local hardware store (that is sadly shuttering b/c the owners are selling out to big money to tear down and build another mixed use huge building) where one could find nearly all of the necessities one needed, à la a general store.
I used to make all these little purchases on Amazon Prime (like batteries, pencils, light bulbs, etc.), but during a month-long fast from Prime, I had to get creative, so I started saving up a list of things we needed (new carbon monoxide detector, AAA batteries, etc.) and found all of them at the afore mentioned hardware store. Previously, I would plunk them in my Amazon cart and maybe add that pack of sparkly gel pens and a design book that looked pretty and then maybe some other little thing we didn't need that I hadn't been thinking about but saw and suddenly wanted before purchasing and likely selecting FREE next day shipping. (As a small business owner, I can tell you, shipping is never free, ever. Someone is paying for it, somewhere, in some way.)
Keeping an analogue list of little things you need as you encounter those needs, rather than dropping a bunch of stuff in your Amazon shopping cart, will reduce your exposure to ads, recommendations from Amazon, and other tempting things to unnecessarily purchase with a few clicks. It is the exposure to and easiness of adding these things that you were not even in the market for, that steals money from your bank account and encourages you to consume more than you need to. This is what got me, and this has been instrumental in saving us so much money each month. Furthermore, spending less on Amazon sends a direct and very powerful message to Amazon that you do not support them, their monopoly, nor their unfair business practices and poor treatment of their low-level employees.
Regarding books: start at your local library. If you must own it, check your local secondhand shop. If you still can't find it and must own it, or must own it new, check out your local book store. Often, if they don't have it, they can order it for you and get it faster than even Prime can, delivered to their store. But let's do try to be patient and appreciate that all good things take time; instant gratification to you is at the cost of someone(s) else.
Regarding beauty: this one is trickier. I highly encourage you to embrace the body and skin you have, eat whole foods, exercise regularly, and hydrate well. Always put an SPF on your face every morning (I love le Prunier; I wish I could get it at my local drugstore, along with...), and moisturize every night with a deeply moisturizing cream (like Ursa Major). I am not the best at hair and makeup, but I can tell you that I love Boreal Folk for their Horsetail Shampoo Bar, as well as for their Fireweed Face Oil (that I put on before my SPF). I will be deeply honest and confess I have thought about Botox, ultimately coming to the conclusion that I can neither afford it, nor keep up with the frequency of appointments needed. That said, wrinkles bother me a little, so I have tried Frownies (meh), reusable silicon patches (better), and Gua Sha tools (best, but require the most effort at home). I started with Wildling's tools (I still have their cupping tools and love them for softening deeper lines), but broke the Empress Stone I had, and I think I may still prefer it to the Mount Lai (Asian woman owned business) tool I currently have.
Ultimately, I hope to find brands I can love or at least live with at my local drug store (which is admittedly CVS, so not ideal as it is not truly local), so that I can shop more locally and reduce shipping costs on my wallet and the environment. I would love it if my CVS carried the things I already love, I will let you know if I see any of them there.
Regarding art and office supplies: start by checking your Buy Nothing group, estate sales, or your local thrift shops - they are often teeming with unused or partially used supplies (I have found crayons, markers, paper, stationary, staplers, tape dispensers and more at thrift shops; I have found amazing canvases and oil painting supplies at estate sales). If that is a bust, then use your computer to locate shops with supplies near you. I have found almost everything I need office-wise at the nearby Staples (not a "local" shop, but we do not seem to support small-scale businesses enough for them to have brick and mortar). I am on the hunt for a local art shop (I have located a few, I just need to get out to them to check them out).
Regarding food: when you do not want to cook (this will happen), try to make a pledge to go to your preferred restaurant. This will not only support your local economy by giving them direct business and not costing them delivery and disposables, but it may also cause you to decide not to actually go out. Again, it is the ease and convenience of getting takeout/delivery that enables us to spend our money on extras. While this does support local economy a bit, it is still better for local restaurants to have people come to their brick and mortar location to partake, using washable dishes and building a sense of community.
We used to eat dinner out (usually delivery over takeout) at least once a week, but the same month that we fasted from Amazon Prime, we decided not to do any dinners dining out (we don't really eat any other meals out, except very sparingly). I thought I would not last the month (I am the cook), but with some extra planning, and with some really easy meals as fall-backs to enable eating at home, we not only lasted the month, but reaped the health benefits. Personally, my troublesome gut has not been happier. This has been the positive feedback loop I needed to sustain the habit.
As to where to source your food, consider a CSA or shopping at local farmers' markets if it make sense, shop smaller groceries like Aldi, Trader Joe's, H Mart, Lidl, ethnic grocers like Halal markets or Asian markets, or even regional (rather than huge national - think Walmart, Kroger) grocers like Giant Eagle, Harris Teeter, Safeway, Rouses. Do yourself a favor and find one location where you can get at least most of your needs. Our preference has been Trader Joe's, as it mostly has some version of everything we need and is much less expensive than typical grocers.
The big takeaways I hope you walk away with are:
- A little extra planning up front will enable you to spend less down the line (keep lists of needs, make weekly menus with at least a few really easy meals - even prepared freezer meals (!), etc.);
- Check your local Buy Nothing Group first for needs and wants;
- Buy from local brick and mortar businesses, considering secondhand first;
- Take care of your body; and
- Enable yourself to make and keep these habits by making them as easy on yourself as possible.