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I learned something new today. (Now can I go back to sleep?) I’ll share with you and maybe you’ll learn something new too.
The concept of bartering is not new. Nor are bartering websites. I’ve even had my own experiences with them. But I didn’t know about all the sites that made ecosalon‘s top 20 list.
Here are a few that were new to me…
What’s traded? Books…and book-related gossip.
How does it work? It’s not just a site to swap books back and forth (you list the books you have; other people request them when you’ve posted your list; you get credit to request books yourself). It’s a reading community, with reviews, discussion forums and all sorts of lines of communication at work. That final “Relate” in the tagline is what makes it distinct from its competitors.
What’s traded? Only your home, dude. No biggie.
How does it work? Obviously this is a big deal, in every sense. This site is all about permanent house trading, and so it’s really a sophisticated way of getting in contact with people – no PayPal purchasing here – but the backbone of the site is a very real Real Estate Network.
http://www.makeupalley.com/swap/
What’s traded? Well, now, this should polarize you. Fancy putting on the slightly used makeup of a stranger?
How does it work? You browse the items on offer – you find something of your own that the swapper would be willing to accept in return – and off you go. The FAQ notes that all swapped items should be cleaned with alcohol before swapping, and only unused mascara should be swapped, but even so, there will be some people who will flinch. Since there’s a feedback system and therefore an element of accountability, there’s probably little to fear. Satisfied or disappointed swappers can also air their views on a product review page.
What’s traded? Clothes and books.
How does it work? Rehash is in it for the good of the environment (their recycling-style logo is a big clue). When you “rehash” (i.e. put up for swap) an item, it’s listed as a page in the site’s Trading Post hub, and people make offers that you can flick through and weigh up. Once you’ve confirmed a mutually acceptable deal, the mechanics of getting item to new owner are left completely up to you. The site also has a nice line in community-based activities and reference resources.
What’s traded? Unwanted bags of seeds – anything from vegetables to trees.
How does it work? Unfortunately, by the looks of it, it isn’t working – there’s not much going on in that site right now. But it’s such a fun idea that I felt it worth including for the concept alone. Trading plant seeds has terrific potential (although food-related legislation might be a hurdle to clear) – and postage? Cost of a stamp.
What’s traded? Everything under the sun.
How does it work? Want the push & pull of a negotiated deal? This is the place for you, because you don’t swap based on existing predetermined values – you decide how much your swap is worth, by haggling (using their fancy electronic negotiation system). When you both see eye to eye , the swap can take place – accompanied with the quiet satisfaction of knowing you gave it your best shot.
What’s traded? In theory, anything you like, large or small. (Since it’s new, it’s still sparsely-populated).
How does it work? There are no points, no credits…it’s all about how much you think your swappable item is worth. You use this SF-based site to come to an arrangement on your terms only. It looks nice, there are plenty of great features (such as finding deals within so many miles of your home) – but right now it’s waiting for enough people to bring it alive. One to watch.
What’s traded? In a word, glam. Clothes, accessories, cosmetics, shoes.
How does it work? You build up your swapping potential by gaining a positive feedback score, so that other people can see you’re a trustworthy recipient of their fashion triumphs. You can also go for Address Verification status, which is a physical letter containing a code that once entered, confirms you’re where you say you are. Once you’re trusted and verified, you never have to wear the same thing twice and you can keep your principles intact.
What’s traded? Mainly music, but generally a bit of everything in the realm of the small to medium-sized.
How does it work? This site is much more eBay-esque in that you can offer an item for swapping, but also choose to sell it, transacting via PayPal. There’s no fancy automated bartering engine behind the scenes: you create adverts, you sift through e-mails, and you move items and/or money around. It’s strictly hands-on, so if you’re a control freak, this is the one for you.
What’s traded? Books, music, film & television DVDs, and video games.
How does it work? It’s all about the barcode. Input the UPC or the ISBN from the back of the item you have, and the fancymajiggery behind the scenes at Swaptree will find what items are offered for trade in return, and display them Amazon-style down the screen. What’s more, it’ll keep searching while you’re logged off, meaning you’re faced with a new list of potential swaps every time you log on. Specific to entertainment media – but brilliant at what it does.
What’s traded? Things from the very, very small to the astounding large.
How does it work? “World’s Largest Online Barter Exchange Auction Site”, TradeAway boldly claims. It’s big, we’ll give them that, but that big? Anyway, there’s plenty to see here. Listings range from the so-brief-they-must-be-spam all the way to exhaustively detailed multimillion-dollar property offers, but the theme is bartering. It’s true: this is where hugely expensive real estate gets swapped!
For the full list of 20 be sure to check out the article here.
Sorry, no recipe here. It’s not even about food. Although it is all about the kitchen. Which is quickly becoming my favorite room in the house. Or at least the one I spend the most time in.
I have always had a weakness for china, silver and glassware – blame my grandmother for teaching me the artistry of a well dressed table at a young age. Recently though, I have really taken a hankering to kitchen tools. All the things that a kitchen should have to function at it’s peak. Yes, I know the brush is only as good as the artist holding it. But a girl can dream.
And today I found a place to dream big. Unfortunately it’s not a new thrift store. Cookin’ Stuff is a nearby cooking and bakeware store. If only I had stepped foot in this place before joining the Compact. I either could have already fully stocked my kitchen or avoided today’s denial deluge. If you’re not a kitchen tool kind of person you won’t understand, but just look at all the goodies, stacked row after row…
Okay, so the rainbow of colors isn't really necessary, but they sure are purdy.
I swear, they don't come used. Just ask anyone who owns one if they'll sell it. (And I apologize for the terrible photography, I only had the point and shoot and took this without the flash.)
I don't even know what they're all for, but don't they look cool?
I know this is obnoxiously non-Compact but I will say I was going to the store for wooden skewers and twine, so legitimate purchases by most standards. (If your standards are higher than that, I applaud you. And have no desire to be you.) I just couldn’t help myself wandering the aisles drooling over the possibilities.
Okay, confession time. You knew it was coming. I made purchases beyond my skewers (they didn’t have the twine). I bought a lovely tea cozy and a set of cookie cutters. The tea cozy is something I have thought about for years – again, blame Grandma – but have never seen a used one and am not of the skill level to make one.
The cookie cutters were purchased to fulfill a birthday party design need. What’s a birthday party design need? It’s a designer’s need to have pbj sandwiches cut out with a shape that matches the overall scheme of the party. And to set the style of all future cookie/sandwich and other cutouts. I know cookie cutters can be found at the thrift store, I’ve seen them there. Unfortunately, I haven’t seen any in the last 4 days since I decided to add cutout pbj sandwiches to the menu. I’ll be keeping my purchase in their wrap until the last possible moment in the hopes of replacing them with a borrowed or used set. Although, I really do like having a signature style of cookie cutout, and these would be perfect for a lifetime of cutting.
Have I justified yet?
At least I left all the Le Creuset and Kitchenaids on the shelves.
Actually, the husband did it but I’m not keeping score. We went shopping today – to buy something new. It was an intentional and premeditated purchase. What could make us stray from our hard-core Compact beliefs you ask?
(Okay, you already know they’re not that hard-core but ask anyway.)
We bought baseball cards.
What?
Yup, baseball cards. These weren’t just any old baseball cards though. (Or so I’m told, I really have no clue about these things.) We were buying a 2009 box set to be kept in its original plastic as a commemorative keepsake of Baby S’s birth year.
Apparently for any person who knows anything about baseball cards this is a big deal. I’m not that person. A friend gave Toddler L the same box set at his birth so husband thought it was only right to continue the tradition, Compact be damned. I was just along for the ride.
That’s not entirely true. I fully support any decision the husband makes regarding purchases, Compact or otherwise. I pretty much support him in most any decision, period. I’m just supporting like that.
I’m also a huge fan of traditions. So when husband said he wanted to continue a tradition started with our first son how could I say no? I think it’s sweet and sentimental. My husband is sweet and sentimental. Heck, he can buy anything he wants.
Oh, and I bought sunglasses at Target.
Living in Southern California sunglasses are a health and safety exception. I am certainly a safer driver when wearing them and my eyes have been hurting when I’m outside since my last pair broke. Or should I say, they completely fell apart after previously being broken by Toddler L. My spare pair is currently husband’s only pair as his last two pairs failed the Toddler L strength and durability testing.
But that’s another story.
It was a dark and stormy night… Okay, it wasn’t stormy and it was only kind of dark. But it was an evening of fate back in December of 2008 when I told my husband we should live a year on The Compact. We started the year with our best intentions and a pretty strong resolve. We are almost two thirds of the way through the year and I’d have to say I’m pretty happy with what we’ve accomplished.
Much to his own surprise I think, the husband has become a true clothes hunter. He runs for the children’s section of any thrift store we enter. I am happy to let him shop while I peruse kitchen and housewares. All of the birthday gifts we have needed thus far have been purchased second hand. That’s not to say they were all used items, just that they were purchased at a consignment or thrift store. But that issue is for another post. Today I’m looking at what came from the other stores. You know the ones. They have shelves chock full of stuff that has never been outside it’s packaging. Yup, those stores.
What have I bought?
And why?
clear plastic bins – We needed to store the clothes Toddler L has grown out of. I don’t like cardboard boxes for a myriad of reasons and I couldn’t find anything close to this by the usual “used goods” route. These allow me to sort the clothes by size, see the contents and they will make moving easy. They will also be with us for many, many years to come.
glassware & pizza peel – I broke one of our juice glasses (the short glass in the picture). This was a pretty big deal for me because I like things to match and I like complete sets. I’m kind of OCD about it. I know it and I’m okay with it. So the missing glass bugged me. As soon as I was given a Crate & Barrel gift card I ran over to replace my broken glass. And I bought the pizza peel which gets used every Wednesday for pizza night. It’s a must have. I love gift cards.
shelves & brackets – This one is a bit harder to justify. If that’s what I’m doing. We needed shelves in the nursery to store Baby S’s stuff. Babies have a lot of stuff. Diapers, cloths, creams, clothes… We had these brackets already in the room for Toddler L’s stuff. Toddlers have a lot of stuff too. I like things to match, see above. I decided I would prefer to go back to the source and get the same brackets even though it would be a non-Compact purchase. I’m still okay with that decision. And the room looks nice too.
Cambro container – I searched for almost two months in all of our thrift stores for a container that would hold my Artisan Bread dough. I kept coming up empty handed. It was really quite frustrating. I even searched online for used restaurant supplies. With all the restaurants that don’t seem to make it I still couldn’t find a used Cambro. Considering I finally bought a new 6 quart one for about $4 with the lid I guess there wasn’t much profit in selling used ones. Too bad, I would have been happy to put my dough where someone had once stored coleslaw. I had been using a large glass container (it was actually a flower/candle holder vase thingy) with a pot lid. It worked but was incredibly heavy and not terribly safe since Toddler L learned how to open the fridge to get whatever he thought he needed.
tank tops – I will be nursing Baby S for at least another year. That means nursing bras every day. Since I also have him in a wrap most days the easiest thing to wear is a tank top. It’s not easy to find stretchy tank tops that haven’t lost their stretch at the Goodwill. At Christmas I got a gift card for Banana Republic (thanks Grandma and Grandpa!). I saved it to splurge on post maternity clothes. Finally, I’m post maternity. So I splurged. I bought a couple new tops which I will wear almost every single day for the next year. Then I got an offer for 30% off and another offer of free shipping. As the tanks were already on sale at a huge discount I went off Compact and bought 2 more. Since I will be wearing them almost every single day for the next year I’m okay with that. (and no, that is not me modeling my new tank top. But I do have brown hair.)
wedding gift – I claim no real responsibility for this purchase. The husband’s family decided to do a group gift for a family wedding. The choice was his & hers gift cards from the wedding couples registry, we chipped in our share and were grateful to pass on the shopping. At least the idea of his and hers is cute right?
So these are my “not used” purchases for the past 7 months. Am I a perfect Compacter? No. Am I perfectly happy with my Compact year so far? Yup. Tell me if you think I should get kicked off the island.
Sometimes things just work out. I wasn’t expecting it but today was one of those days. Okay, Toddler L has a fever. That wasn’t expected or hoped for. But other things were better.
If you’ve been here before you probably know I am an AB5MD convert. (That’s Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day for those of you who aren’t so hip to be squared.) Although I love having the bread machine and make all the bread we eat (okay, maybe not ALL, I can’t be responsible for the husband’s addiction to Thomas English Muffins), I have truly fallen for the ease with which one can have divine, crusty, almost-quasi-nearly-Old World French loaves on the table with dinner. And such a cute little loaf for when it’s just the two of you. (Okay, it’s never just the two of us anymore, but the other mouths don’t eat dinner with us so I’m discounting them for the sake of this discussion.)
All digressions aside, I have been doing a regular and somewhat extensive search for a used copy of the AB5MD book in the thrift stores and online. No luck. Apparently I am not the only one. I am currently 573 of 623 on the wait list at Paperback Swap. Some time ago (think months) I put a request in at the library. Finally, it’s waiting to be picked up.
But that’s not the best part. I haven’t made it to the library yet and now I don’t have to. A package arrived today. As we have a new baby that’s not completely unexpected. But that this package contained adult books was. No, not those kind of adult books. What do you take me for? One book doesn’t have any pictures or nursery rhymes and the other one has recipes that don’t include home-made play dough or bubbles. My in-laws gifted us a copy of the first Artisan Bread book. How cool is that? They know all about the Compact and my newest obsession and I guess they took pity on me. Whatever the reason, I couldn’t be happier. I feel like a 16 year old boy who just got handed the keys to the car. I can’t wait to dive in and see what it can do. And I hope that’s the only time I ever feel like a 16 year old boy. That’s kinda weird.
I think everyone should be part of the Compact. It makes getting gifts even better.
. . .
I did have another Compact revelation this week. I have mentioned before about my frustrations with Freecycle. I know it is a staple of the true Compact lifestyle. The concept of getting used items from others when they are done with them and putting your own items into circulation is what keeps the Compact a viable entity. I wanted to be part of the circle. I had even collected a bag of miscellaneous items to post on the local site. Unfortunately I never prioritized to get the posts actually written. (I know, they only need to be one sentence each.) After Baby S arrived I really needed to make some space in our room so the bag ended up going to Goodwill. Still the used goods bandwagon so not a terrible loss but I wouldn’t be getting my “shop now” card from Freecycle.
When our air mattress developed yet another slow leak I refused to take it out of the living room until I had posted it on Freecycle. I didn’t think I’d actually get any takers for an air mattress that had 3 patches and needed yet another but I hated the idea of sending all that vinyl to the landfill.
I spent over two hours corresponding with 7 or 8 interested parties and coordinating pick-up with the lucky taker. If I had actually posted all the items I had previously collected I couldn’t have possibly handled the response time based on what I got for an air mattress that leaves you on the hard floor by morning. I’m not cut out for Freecycle. I accept it.
Before I get comments about how the system works let me say again, I’m okay not being a Freecycler. Really. I am much happier about the 2 hours I spent making my own envelopes out of pages from old magazines. And then printing the prettiest little address labels for them. I even made my own stickers to seal them up with. (I’m not bragging, really, just remembering fondly.) That’s time well spent to me. And it’s all part of the Compact. Take what works and build a life to be enjoyed. That’s what I say.
There are a couple of books I would really like to get my hands on. One is Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day which I have talked (at length) about before. This book is hugely popular right now and probably not going to make it to my local thrift or used book store anytime soon. I’m a member of Paperback Swap (which I love) and have it on my wish list. My position on the waiting list? 588 out of 607. I don’t think I’ll be getting it there soon either.
So off to Amazon I go. As a last resort I will consider paying for shipping to buy a used book. Amazon claims to have 18 copies that are used. Okay, now we’re talking. First copy, less than a two dollar savings over the new book. The remaining “used” copies actually cost more than I can get the new book for. Plus shipping. Now I know it’s not all about money. This is a Compact issue. Why buy new when there are used available? Upon further inspection, what has been categorized as “Used – Like New Condition” is listed as “Brand New” in the comments. Isn’t that false advertising or something? I want used. You said you had used. Now you tell me they’re actually new. Like that’s a good thing. I said I want used dangit.
I haven’t handed over payment to Amazon or anyone else yet. I’m still debating the issue. I’m not a huge fan of owning books, why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free? But there are exceptions. I have about a dozen books I’m looking for right now that I’d like to own. Unfortunately I’m not the only one. (You should see the wait list for In Defense of Food!) Halfway through the year and I’m making a mental list of what might change about our Compacting next year. Of course that does nothing for my current dilemma.
If you follow the Compact or just don’t like to buy new I’d love to hear how you have handled similar issues. Do you spend more money to buy used? Do you buy “new” if it claims to be used? Do you simply do without for things you’d like to have if they aren’t available used? Please comment, I’d really like to know. Really.
We have officially started the second phase of this Compact adventure. (It’s a coincidence that we’re also halfway through it.)
Early Monday morning (so early most people would consider it Sunday night) Baby X joined the family and officially became Baby S. Now that we’re all back home and setting up a routine I have started to think about how the Compact will affect our newest family member.
When I decided we would follow the guidelines of the Compact this year we had a toddler. All in all, toddlers don’t need that much stuff. At least, this one doesn’t. Or at least he doesn’t know he doesn’t have or need much. We have had great success finding clothes and other necessities for Toddler L at the thrift and kids’ consignment stores.
Since we have said toddler we already had most of the baby items we needed. Bonus that they are both boys so I don’t have to dye pink bedding or traumatize a boy with a Strawberry Shortcake car seat. Are there other baby needs I don’t remember or am too tired to realize yet that we can’t meet in a Compact world? I don’t think so but I guess it’s all part of the adventure to find out.
I was very happy to see some changes in what the hospital thought we needed too. As we were at the same place Toddler L was born I remembered them being so nice and wanting to give us so many goodies when we were checking out. It wasn’t until I started to go through it that I realized there were at least three diaper bags and numerous cans and samples of formula. I already had a diaper bag and these “freebies” were all heavily branded by the formula companies. Another product I wasn’t really in need of. More than anything I remember the nurse’s surprise when I tried telling her I didn’t want any of it.
Just because something is free doesn’t mean I need it. (That goes for you too husband.) Other families might, so I will happily leave my share for them.
This time the bag of goodies arrived and I was the surprised one. The bag was full of diapers. Now that is something every new baby needs. (Yes, yes, I know all about cloth diapers and am a huge supporter, we just can’t use them – a story for another day.)
I only hope they re-distribute the many papers and pamphlets we were given that I carefully left behind after reading. Re-use comes before recycle.
On a completely different train…
If you have any suggestions for watermelon I’d love to hear them. We were given a good size one for the 4th that I assume needs to be cut into soon and with only the husband, Toddler L and I I’m not sure how we’ll get through it all.
I love the sentiment of this poster. It’s the mantra of many Compactors and frugalistas. In fact I love this poster. The color just screams creative to me. It’s a hand pulled print on recycled card stock by Bold&Noble available at their Etsy shop.
Does handmade by an artist fit within your Compact confines? Or does the quote itself (a reference from a much earlier wartime motto) contain the answer?
Then there’s this one. How great is that? This piece is from the Dec/Jan issue of ReadyMade:
The magazine asked five designers to use The Great Depression’s populist poster art as inspiration for depicting our current economic and cultural times. Link to the posters online to download PDFs for free.
This is what Nick Dewar had to say about his Simplicity piece:
“I hope that America is entering a post-’greed is good’ period. I can’t think of a single step that would change the nature of our society more than everyone abandoning their automobiles and cycling instead. There would be less dependence on oil, obesity levels would drop dramatically, and reflective bike clips would replace fancy ladies’ purses as the current must-have fashion accessory.” {see more of Nick’s work at nickdewar.com}
Free, cool and funny. I’ll take two.
Well, I can’t say anything unexpected happened this past week. But it was a good week. I finally got around to making the mobile for the nursery I’ve been thinking about doing for almost two years. Better late than never. The husband and Toddler L both seem to really like it and I think it worked out quite well. In true artist fashion I can’t get overly effusive about my work, it could always be better but it’s good enough to put up in the house.
I can’t say the same for Sunday’s dinner. It was supposed to be crock pot brisket from a chuck roast. I liked the idea of it but unfortunately didn’t quite get the proportions right. Because I cook smaller quantities as it’s just husband and I, I’m usually adjusting recipe amounts and cooking times. Unfortunately, leaving the house to go watch the Lakers’ game threw off my cooking time adjustment. What was supposed to be brisket was headed towards beef jerky. Not that I don’t like beef jerky, it just wasn’t what I was planning for supper. Good thing we were having mashed cauliflower with it, that can save just about any meal. Hopefully this week’s experiments will have better results.
Let’s see what we’ll be eating…
Monday: chicken strips, chicken rice-a-roni (I know this isn’t even real food but I love it, so about once a year I make it)
Tuesday: yellow curry
Wednesday: pizza (not sure if I’ll be going thin crust or deep dish yet)
Thursday: penne w/ spinach and sausage, artisan bread
Friday: whole wheat pancakes (didn’t get to these last week)
Saturday: we’ll be out at an adults-only birthday party (probably my last for a while, so I’ll savor it)
Sunday: HOHO (husband on his own)
I got a great deal on a used pizza stone on Ebay (you’d be surprised how hard it is to find used stones), so I’m really looking forward to starting a home-made pizza tradition. And I’m even going to make more bread in the oven. I’m not sure I won’t use the artisan bread dough or bread machine for the kneading but it will come out of the oven and maybe even be the shape of a loaf pan.
I think that’s my only complaint about the bread machine. Bread just isn’t a square block that’s 9 inches tall. Well, mine is. But it kinda rubs me the wrong way. The husband already knows I’m keeping my eyes open for another machine with a horizontal pan. You may have no idea what I’m talking about. That’s okay. Sometimes I just talk for the sake of it.
In the continuing ups and downs of our budget, we are under this week. I’m feeling really good about that but I’m also wondering at what expense am I doing this? Let me explain.
Our budget was $80, we spent…
Sprouts Farmers Market – $47.42 (savings = $0.15)
Vons – $17.44 (savings = $8.58)
Trader Joe’s – $13.78
A grand total of $78.64. This week I didn’t buy any meat and I didn’t even buy several things I had coupons for. Now, they weren’t things we specifically needed this week but they were good deals on things we would use. If I had purchased them, along with a couple of things I would have liked to buy I would have been over budget. So I didn’t get the frozen peaches to make smoothies with. I didn’t get the Nutella that both husband and I love to indulge with occasionally.
How do I get everything we need plus allow a few (not over the top) indulgences and still feel good about the money we’re spending – or not spending? I have said before, there are a few things I’ve decided are worth the extra money. Typically that’s buying organic when I can. We buy only organic milk and eggs. A gallon of whole milk (for Toddler L), a gallon of 1% milk (for the husband and cooking) and a carton of eggs is $15 of any given week’s budget, if they’re not on sale. Ouch! I’d like to buy organic produce more often but it’s just not financially feasible.
How do you justify what you spend versus what you buy? Or do you not bother and wonder what I’m tying myself up in knots over?
I don’t have an art budget because my projects just don’t happen as frequently as I’d like. That’s probably a good thing, at least as far as the checkbook goes. My creative energy can get a little backed up though without an outlet. I’m sure it helps that I rearrange the furniture every 3 months. (I blame Toddler L and his ever changing needs, but it’s probably just my needs.)
What I’m trying (slowly) to get at is my need for another project. A project that requires fabric. Fabric that I can create and custom print. I don’t really sew but I’d like to change that too.
I know it’s not entirely Compact to have more fabric made than already exists, but sometimes what can be had at the local thrift store just isn’t going to meet the needs. When that’s the case, turn to Spoonflower. Upload your napkin doodles, illustrations or patterns and get your own custom fabric in the mail in a few days. There’s no minimum order and a price per yard higher than I would typically pay ($18-32), but within reason for a truly special project.
Would you consider having your own custom fabric made or is this just my design voice locking my Compact voice in a dark room and telling it to shut-up?
I love a good idea.
Maybe not as much as I love good chocolate, but that’s temporary. Or so I tell myself.
For those of you saying “remember the Compact? We don’t buy new stuff”. I say, do you eat out? Do you shop at a local thrift store? Do you buy handmade products from artists in your community? Do you get your shoes repaired or your clothes dry cleaned?
When Cinda Baxter first dreamed up the 3/50 Project I imagine she wasn’t considering people who had put Compact style buying restrictions on their lives. This shouldn’t stop you from participating. I don’t believe the Compact was begun to say “don’t spend money”. It’s about being considerate of how much money you spend and what that spending in turn means to the environment.
And if you’re not a Compacter, just think of all the establishments you could be saving. As Cinda said:
It’s about funneling revenue back into local business. You know-—the folks that pour money back into the community via commercial property taxes, payroll taxes, sales tax, and salaries (not to mention all that good will by way of volunteer time, silent auctions, sponsored softball teams, workshops, book signings, etc.).
Many people who are community minded, or live in a small town, may take an idea like this for granted. But for those in the big city, and especially those who are used to shopping by convenience, it’s a great reminder that who we choose to patronize has bigger implications than what we walk out the door with. (Even if it’s just a full belly.)
Even if you don’t shop or eat out often why not do it at independent, local places?
WHAT’S BEEN SAID