Quote:
Originally Posted by Alphagamuga
Centaur, it's great that you do that!
Do you find yourself getting obsessive about it? I mean, do you question "should I buy a Starbuck's coffee or just make it at home?" or is there a price cut off?
For me, it kind of comes down the price and usefulness. I have a hard time buying expensive luxury items because I stop and think about better uses for the money, but I waste a ton of money buying little stuff I don't really need.
I never bought any Tiffany silver jewelry, but I do have a Tiffany sterling silver swiss army knife keychain that struck me as really funny. It came in all the Tiffany blue packaging. (It was a gift, but I did show it to the person who got it for me, and oddly, I don't worry about it I'm wasting money when I buy stuff for other people.)
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I don't drink Starbucks coffee at all. I'm all about Fair Trade Coffee. I'm as meticulous about it as a vegetarian is about not eating meat.
Well, my example-right after the tsunami, I had money from christmas. I wanted this really nice leather jacket that was on sale, but I knew I couldn't justify spending $100 on something I wanted but didn't need when there were people who'd just had their entire lives wiped out halfway around the world.
It's not a price cutoff, it's just how my conscience feels on a particular day
This christmas I didn't know what I wanted from my parents and they kept asking, so finally I showed my mother this website :
http://www.oxfamamericaunwrapped.com/ and spent $50 investing in a fair trade coffee collaborative.
I am a privileged westerner as is. I have clean water, clothes, food and shelter. I have a cell phone and a computer with internet access. I drive a decent car which I can fill with gas whenever I want, no problem.
Don't get me wrong-I do not begrudge people for wanting and buying expensive items (except Paris Hilton etc. she disgusts me!). It's all a matter of perspective.
Occasionally I do remind myself that I am allowed to spend large amounts of money on things I want because the cost of living is so different over here. Also I can't save the world, as much as I'd like to.
Oh, on topic-I own a fake Tiffany necklace. It looks pretty real, not very, but real enough. I'm not sure where it is actually.