Cheaterpants

So, October - now nearly-over - was No-Buy Month (if you're unfamiliar with No-Buy Month, click here for more info). And I have to say, I did better than in July, but not as well as in January or April.

Here are the things I bought.

A pair of pants, a pair of socks, two pens, and two Halloween cards.

Being green, as I've mentioned before, means being intentional. And being intentional implies, you know, intention. Unfortunately, a lack of foresight tripped up my intentionality.

Mid-month I had to attend a conference in Chicago (I live in Houston, where the sun shines and the palm trees sway, even on October 30th). And I failed to think about the fact that it might be, say, a few degrees colder in Chicago than in Houston.

You see, common sense sometimes fails a deep thinker.

I realized the day before flying out that I had only ONE pair of work pants (I wear capris every day, March through October). That was not going to get me through five days in Chicago, due to my propensity for spilling coffee on myself semi-regularly.

So, I had to buy another pair of pants. I was feeling guilty, but then I remembered that although it's a goal to buy no non-consumables during No-Buy Month, we have to consider purpose over process. The purpose is to cut back on unnecessary consumption, to save money, and to spend less time on materialistic pursuits. And that I did. Having more than one pair of pants, while an American-style luxury in many parts of the world, is hardly unnecessary in our country's professional world.

The other purchases? The socks and the pens were also conference-related (again, I didn't realize that a person has to wear socks in October in some climes). The cards? They were a totally trivial purchase, but did make someone smile.

No-Buy Month has made me realize that I really do need to put some time into my work wardrobe, but that I can do it in a sensible way.

Nevertheless, I'm totally going shopping on Sunday.