DAY 310
Hello! Had a great talk with the Rochester Chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction about Nothing New this week - excellent meal, inspiring conversation and fun evening in spite of the snowy trek.
They had some great questions about my Year of (Mostly) Nothing New...thank you all for a nice chat!
Who else in my household is participating?
Curtis and Buddy (meow). We talked about it being more difficult if I had to get others on board with this. Oh yes. My friend Terry who gave me the idea - engaged her husband and kids into a year of this!!!
What's next after March 19, 2011?
I will continue some form of Nothing New...I will be careful to continue on this peaceful path of living within my means...I am thinking a bigger garden, better compost system, and maybe a swim suit.
Some other things I WANT:
Cross country ski boots - and new skis if I cannot find the right boots
Snow shoes
Cardigan (not black)
Pantsuit - for upcoming conference
Cell phone - I have a coupon!
ToGoWare - my fork broke
Light (or ceiling fan) for dining room
A sauna - what? Well, maybe someday...
Has this year affected my health?
Yes! for the good - the eating habits are great, award winning cholesterol score (good genes too - thanks Mom and Dad) - and except for Coca Cola, no real food vices...which with the NAWIC group as my witness, starting Feb 2, I removed all soda out of my life and therefore a huge chunk of my diet that is the evil....High Fructose Corn Syrup. A can of Coke has 140 calories and a 20oz bottle has 240! Today is my second day of NO COKE and so far, I crave sugar...not even the caffeine (as far as I know or can tell anyway...)
Have you saved money?
Good question - tough to answer! It is hard to measure what I did NOT spend money on...what I do know is how much debt I have been able to pay off...call me if you want details!
Here are my spending numbers as I make sense of them...what I bought new or would have bought new if I were not doing this:
$54 Wanted but did not buy
$30 Saved by getting item free or cheaper
$248 Bought new (caved to nephews, sunglasses I ran over, travel mug, plants)
$321 Christmas presents for 17 people
$64 Paint and supplies for painting bedroom "Frozen Pond"
$717 TOTAL (the amount I will be donating...)
PLUS these items which I did NEED:
$800 Snow tires
$350 Roof shingles for leaking back porch roof
$52 Plastic for winterizing old windows
$1919 GRAND TOTAL
Another INTERESTING Number...I spent $2501 on clothing March 2009-February 2010 and ONLY $194 March 2010-February 2011...WOW. Really??? Maybe I did have some kind of a problem...well. Yay for $194!!! Not only did I stay out of the MALL to get that and other A+ Scores, I did not set foot in Pier One, Bed, Bath and Beyond, Marshalls or Target (except for my great tasty Vitamin D with Calcium), etc...
More to come - I have some interesting gigs coming up where I get to talk more about Nothing New with smart cool and fun people in Georgia, Texas, and Maryland - what fun!
Have a Nothing New Day! Kristin
Hi! I was at this meeting and first I wanted to say that you are an amazing speaker and very inspirational! You had me at hello and I have decided to start take control of my spending, make a difference in my community (hopefully by not contributing as much as I was before to landfills), have a positive affect on the environment around me and who knows maybe inspire someone like you have inspired me. Good luck!! And Take Care!
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