Oniomania

Yesterday with a 20% off coupon for Bloodbath & Beyond I bought one of those wacky head massagers that looks like a spider, and a flexible mini muffin pan. Are those things neat? Oh yeah. You bet. Do I need either? No.

I've been trying for years to pare down the amount of stuff I have, but I continue to do things like this. I wear one fifth of my wardrobe. I'm embarrassed by the number of shoes I have, most of which are ouchy. I refuse to sell old cds (yes I still have my copies of School of Fish and MC 900 Ft Jesus – you never ever know). Yet I spend an hour on ebay looking for Snoopy crap. Because, you know, I need more Snoopy crap.

I'm a sucker for the instant gratification of purchasing things, whether it be $1 or $100. I mean, I'm sure we all are to some extent, but ugh. Ick. I feel ashamed and ungrateful. It's so much more practical to find enjoyment in things you already own.

Let's try an experiment:

Starting today, I'm going to try not to buy anything other than food (for me and for my car) for one week. Oh and possibly a demolition derby ticket. Because that was already planned. And a giant beer at the demolition derby. Because that's a given. You think I can do it? I don't. I'm an American. But I can try.

Tick tock.