With only 6 days to go till the 1st of June and the beginning of the GSD 09, it is becoming more and more apparent that I have a shopping problem. It's actually a little bit embarrassing. I went shopping for 15 minutes today and bought a stereo. Yesterday I ventured to the shops to buy a jacket and/or jeans and walked out with shoes, a top and a jacket. And I was so irritated that I did not find a pair of jeans, I went to another shopping mall to get some. So. It is clear that there is no better time than now to go cold turkey and begin finding my way back to "Conscious Spending" (oh gosh, it just sounds so dirty!)
- Credit cards OUT of the wallet
- Only take keys and membership card to the gym (two out of three of my semi-local GloboGyms are located in shopping centres)
- When grocery shopping - stick to the list! NO additional beauty products to 'try'. NO buying things just because they're on sale or a multi-buy. NO impulse magazine purchases.
- Only buy new issues of the following magazines; Cleo; Cosmo; and WeightWatchers. Under no circumstances am I allowed to buy Shop Till You Drop.
- I will not enter any of the following stores (unless under the direct supervision of a supportive friendly):
- Bookstores (The smell of books is so utterly intoxicating)
- CD/DVD shops
- Department Stores
- Hardware Stores
- Ikea
- Spotlight or any other sewing/craft store
- Any shop in Paddington specialising in accessories, particularly vintage accessories.
- I am ABSOLUTELY NOT allowed near any kind of shopping venue when experiencing any of the following:
- Boredom
- A hangover
- An emotional crisis
- Hormone-related mood swings
- IF I require something specific, i.e. a fancy hat for a costume party, only take the cash for the particular item, and a supportive friendly if available. Leave all cards at home.
- NO, no, no, no! Impulse Cocktails!
What I can do instead of shopping . . .
- Spend time cultivating my other hobbies i.e. Sewing and learning to ride a bike.
- Tackle the small section of my granny flat known only as 'The Scary Corner'.
- Do a jigsaw puzzle.
- Call a friend, and pump them for juicy gossip.
- Generate my own juicy gossip.
- Play Nintendo
- Read a book (starting with my new copy of "The Thrift Book: Live well and spend less", which I impulse bought today whilst standing in line to order Chai at a bookshop cafe).
- Find that scarf I started knitting last year and finish it.
- Bake things.
- Blog, blog, blog.
Okay sure, that list makes me sound about 45, but they are all things I enjoy doing and would like to do more of. Perhaps I should rename the GSD 09 to something like - "Embracing Your Inner Nanna"? Although, I do not think that really strikes at the heart of the issue. The issue being my rising credit card debt and bulging wardrobe/granny flat.
