Trip to Greenville

Just returned from a trip to Greenville, SC, where I spent a really fun and refreshing two days. Saw old friends and teachers, it was fantastic. Had some discussions about this resolution. Apparently it is not a hard one to keep, and that is what I am finding to be true as well. We discussed how, in times of economic crisis, people can tend to pay more sometimes for local products to support the local community that might be suffering. We're in a recession, and I'll be damned if I give my money to Wal-Mart when the local Vegetable Bin employs local cashiers and managers AND also buys from local farmers.

A friend suggested a project for this blog. I'm going to shop like I normally do at a regional grocery store, then I'm going to go to Wal-Mart and do a pricing (and figure tax) to see if it is making a huge financial difference in my life. When the Farmer's Market comes back in warmer weather, I am going to do the project again on a larger scale. I'm going to take a week and make purchases as usual, writing down anything that could also be purchased at Wal-Mart, such as any groceries, clothing, furniture, personal hygiene, car product, etc, the list is scary. I'm then going to go to Wal-Mart and record all of the prices, again taking tax into consideration, and see how much the change is affecting my finances.

Hope you look forward to it! Part One, the just groceries part, should be done, if not posted, by next weekend.

No one is following that yet, but hopefully it doesn't mean that people aren't reading. I'm of a positive attitude.

Love,
Clellan

School and Coffee

They go together. So I've also been trying to shop at the local coffee shops as well. So far no Starbucks. Although I am drinking the coffee from the school's library coffee shop. I guess thats not as good as a place like the real local place, which is fair trade and all, but still better.

And still no Wal-Mart.

Love,
Clellan

First Day Back...

...to school. Undergrad is a mess. Last semester woohoo!

Still no Wal-Mart.

Love,
Clellan

The First Post

Dear Blog,

I've decided to go a whole year without shopping at one of America's great super-chains, Wal-Mart, just to see how and if the experience would change my life. I've never had a blog, or really ever had a reason to blog, and mostly think that blogging is a strange phenomenon. Now that I have this year-long mission, however, I thought if I'm ever going to blog, this is the time to do it.

We'll see how this endeavor goes. I'm hoping to make myself into a more conscious consumer. The other day I went to Publix and about 50% of my groceries were organic, and I wager I only spent 15% more than usual. So far, so good in the battle against You-Know-Where (always evil, always).

If you hadn't gathered, there will be Harry Potter references.

Love,

Clellan