Last minute musings

Now that January 1st looms bright and full of promise, I am, dear reader, giving up the boycott.

I am doing this for many reasons, not the least of which is because with all my efforts and attempts, I still failed to live the whole year without buying anything made in China. I failed several times in fact, as did Luke. If we failed at this together, does that have the potential to make our relationship stronger? Just a random thought on my mind.

My initial reasons for this boycott were not born out of a hatred for China, or Chinese people or products, in fact, this boycott has very little to do with China and nearly everything to do with working for a company that outsourced most of it's jobs to China and a desire to raise my own awareness of just how much stuff I consume from this country. Perhaps if my company had outsourced jobs to Malaysia, I would be boycotting them for a year instead...which would have been much easier to do in many ways.

I hate the flippant attitude I found myself using when I had the drug addicted need to BUY SOMETHING NOW!!! and the only things I could find were made in China. In moments like these, when I found something made outside of the USA, but not in China, I would inwardly, sometimes even vocally shriek, "It's ok to exploit that country!" What a terrible way to think about anything!

This may be an abrupt ending, but dinner is ready and the festivities are about to begin. My boycott will soon be over, and for those of you who are wondering what my first legitimate "Made in China" purchase will be, I have no idea. For months it was going to be a new Silver Bullet...I even dreamed about the day that would happen, but I got one for Christmas, so now I don't know.

Perhaps that will be my next entry.

Happy New Year!

Light at the end of the tunnel

Wow! It's finally here in all it's splendor, the holiday I usually loath...

This New Year's Eve has a special significance to it, not because we have any plans (we're staying at home for a quite celebration) or because we paid off the car or won the lottery or anything nearly that interesting...it is significant because it is the last mandatory day of this boycott.

Despite my complaints and railings against consumerism and product origin, this is a bittersweet event. It is bittersweet because it has been with me for so long it has taken on and identity of it's own. Most people who know me are aware of the boycott, although no one else, save Luke, have joined it. Most people seem to think I am either insane or wasting my time. It has made shopping far more of a burden and far less enjoyable, although I am not sure that I actually saved money as a result. It has kept me up at nights and been a recurring source of arguments between Luke and I and between my mom and I and it has made me painfully aware of how much I consume, from food to useless stuff. I am fearful that I will slip back into a pretty oblivion within a few months of being able to buy whatever I want.

I don't think I've ever boycotted something as long as I did this (although 2008's boycott appears to be the pending landfill expansion in our neighborhood) and it was infinitely more difficult than I ever thought that it would be.

However, there were positives such as an increased awareness of where my cheap consumable products came from and what it might have taken to make them and get them to me at a price I was willing to pay. There were also the rare moments when I was debating over making a purchase only to find out it was made in China and therefore the decision was made for me. Sometimes that was a positive. Sometimes.

Today we prematurely celebrated the end of the boycott by going to the hardware store (a big chain store which probably helped eliminate any independent hardware stores in the area) to buy a "goose neck" and a "1" nipple" for the shower parts I managed to break while attempting to install my new Christmas present, a "Made in China" shower head.

I was all nervous and somewhat dumbstruck to learn that both pieces were made in China and there were no alternatives in the store. We discussed if this violated the boycott or was permissible because I broke something that wasn't mine or if it was an emergency (this was Luke's idea). In the end, we bought the parts because someone is coming to fix it first thing tomorrow morning and I am just fine with my mom not knowing that I broke the shower's nipple. (Just so you know, that is a part which connects the pipes behind the shower wall to the goose neck, or visible piece in the shower which your shower head mounts onto. I did not know any of this a few hours ago.)

In some ways I already feel like I've given up on this boycott. I certainly threatened to do so often enough when I was Christmas shopping! A far more logical way to handle that fiasco, by the way, would have been to give gift cards to everyone, be finished with my shopping in an hour and let their good consciouses choose what to buy. But I didn't do that and it was a miserable experience!

Made in The China

Amidst the frenzy that can be Christmas shopping, my most favorite identifier of a Chinese product was the following: "Made in The China."

As frustrated as I was with this whole boycott, it even managed to make me laugh...is there more than one China? Was the product meant to be made in The United States? Was it just a typo? Are there any other countries which put the word "The" before the country of origin? I mean, we don't say, "Made in The Japan" or "Made in the Malaysia".

Maybe it's just me, I haven't found much to laugh at with regards to this boycott.

Christmas Blues

Well Alvan, it's that time again...Alvan? Alvan....?!?!!??

Oh....I just had a panic attack that I had completely lost my mind and was talking to the chipmunks...you know...Alvan, Simon, Theodore....the..oh, forget it!

I am in fact loosing my mind and I'm sick and tired of Christmas shopping and I hate this boycott and it is killing the Christmas spirit; which obviously is to buy as much useless crap as you cannot afford to hurl at people you won't see again for months in a hopeless effort to get something from them which was cooler and more expensive than the crappy gift you bought.

Does that statement make me sound cynical?

I used to enjoy shopping. I liked Christmas shopping. I almost always started by July or August and was finished before the rest of the lunatics got to the mall.

This year I loath the whole miserable process because everything I can afford or am willing to pay for, is made in China.

That's not the whole reason though, I hate it because it is such a commercial experience.

I am not a very religious person but I do feel conflict and guilt over my desire, or even addiction, to time spent shopping for a gift for someone instead of investing that same amount of time actually interacting with the person I am buying a gift for.

I've spent a lot of time mulling over this issue and wondering why it is that I will subject myself to countless hours of unproductive time spent shopping, time where I am often in a rush, bitter and resentful towards my fellow shoppers who are always in MY WAY and hopelessly frustrated about what to buy. Rarely is gift shopping a pleasant, never mind tolerable experience for me. So why do I do it?

Why would I rather spend my time and money bolstering the economy of some major corporation, regardless of where they make their products, than I would spend that time hanging out with the people I care about? Has it become easier just to buy a mass produced gift instead of having lunch with my friend I've not seen in four months? And since I haven't seen that friend in four months, why do we all the sudden have time to get together when the exchange of gifts is involved?

I spent three or four hours Christmas shopping on Friday night. I canceled plans to go with Luke to a restaurant we've been wanting to go to, shoved some processed food product in my mouth, called it dinner and in an increasingly frustrated, cynical even rageful mood, tried to find "the damn gift" (I've lowered my standards enough to move beyond "the perfect gift").

All this resulted in was wasting a lot of time doing something I did not want to do, resenting that I was doing this, fighting with Luke and eventually buying "the damn gift" I saw when I first got to the mall hours ago.

What was the point?

I don't know that I have answers to any of the questions I've posed. I don't know that I have the strength, the where-with-all or the desire to look closely enough at my actions in order to better understand them. I do know though, that boycott or not, I do not feel very good about the gifts I've purchased so far and I don't think that is what gift giving was ever supposed to be about.

Yet how, even with a boycott that severely limits what you can buy, how do you get out of this consumerist vortex?

The Strangest Experience So Far

Shoe shopping has been one of the most aggravating things about this boycott because so many of them are made in China. Now, if you couple that aggravation with the fun of shoe shopping with a man who truly believes that there is no earthly reason to own more than two pairs of shoes at any given time, you have a recipe for disaster!

Luke, despite his ranting against shoe ownership, needs a pair (or two or three) of new shoes. This is true because about a year ago he insisted on buying a pair of very snazzy men's dress shoes for his interview, which is a very sensible thing to do.

However, he has worn these same snazzy pair of shoes to work EVERY DAY since then and they are falling apart!

Since we live in the middle of nowhere (according to some people) we are often at a loss for what to do on the weekends. One Friday night I thought it would be fun to drag Luke to the mall...to go shoe shopping...for him...on a Friday night....

Yeah, it was a blast! But the point of this blog is not to prattle on about my relationship, it's to talk about not buying stuff made in China, so here I go....

The very first shoe store we went into was some chain thing, Shoe Dept. or Famous Footwear or Super Cheap Shoes R Us. Both of us were assuming that we would be unsuccessful in our efforts to find a pair of shoes not made in China, never mind to find a pair that Mr. Pickypant who scorns shoes would begrudgingly buy.

All was going according to our pessimistic plan when low and behold a bizarre twist of fate occurred!

Luke picked up a pair of shoes, I think they were Sketchers, and I picked up the same pair of shoes...and his were made in China and mine were made in Vietnam. The same pair of shoes!

Now, I've seen companies export all of one type of product, say purple rubber ducky boots, to China and export the neon green stilletos to Brazil, but I've never seen the size 12.5 sneakers being made in China and the 13.5 made in Vietnam.

What do you suppose is the rationale behind this? Is it significantly cheaper to make the slightly larger sized shoes in yet another country? Was there a misprint in the shoes? Did my eyes deceive me? Does it matter?

In this case, no, not really, because despite finding a few pairs of shoes not made in China, Luke has not yet found the holy grail of "super awesome incredibly redeeming and super styling yet comfortably functional shoes" he is pretending to look for.

Do I need to tell you what the rest of the shoe not shopping experience was like?

Post note-
We did manage to find New Balance sneakers at Kohls which proclaimed that they are made in America. They even come with a thought provoking blurb about what it means to be made in America. A refreshing find in these turbulent times, and yet not enough for my honey...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Do you know where your Halloween candy, treats and costumes were made?

The gummy worms, eyeballs, mice, etc. that my mom is giving out are made in China. The pretzels are made in PA and the chocolate I already ate, so too bad for the goblins that come our way.

My "treat" is to be stuck in class all night wearing a Halloween shirt from Old Navy which was probably made in El Salvador and a pair of kick ass calf-high patent leather black spider web boots. I don't know where they were made, but I bought them at a thrift shop in Chicago last Halloween so they are safe.

I'm going to look hot for my "made in PA" presentation tonight!

If you have any leftover chocolate candy that is not made in China, please feel free to send it my way.

What I Learned in School

In my graduate environmental health class on Monday, I learned that 90-95% of all apple juice and apple cider contains apples imported from China.

To "test" this theory, on our break, I went to the Wawa across the street and two out of the three bottles of apple juice listed apples from China, Chile, the US and a variety of other countries on the label.

This is worrisome for many reasons, the two biggest being:

1) Lack of universal environmental standards when growing or producing food products
2) If individuals become ill due to drinking apple juice, how do you ever trace back where the apples came from? I suppose this is less of a problem if a few people become ill, but what about a "Mad Cow Disease" equivalent problem?

FYI- the Tom's Juice Company (0r whatever they are called) were the only brand sold at Wawa to not list where their apples came from.

Too bad we already opened our bottle of A&P Apple Cider, which of course, after we opened it, we noticed it contains "apple concentrate from China."

I didn't even know they grew apples in China!!

I also learned that most of the garlic sold in the US comes from China instead of California.

Apparently you can tell by looking at the bottom of the garlic bulb.

If the bulb is flat, without any stringy roots hanging off it, then it was grown in China.

If there are small, scraggly roots hanging off it, then it came from California.

One more thing...

Apparently China does not have to process/refine the toxins and chemicals in the fertilizer (read treated sewage sludge...what we flush down the toilet) before feeding it to the fish raised in the fish farms which are then imported all over the world, and duh! people are getting sick from eating this fish.

Who knew the grocery store was such a minefield?

On a positive (?) note, every Monday night my classmates tell me of another product I can't buy because it is made in China.

As far as I know, none of them have read my bog, but they are thinking about my boycott. That's a bittersweet victory.

Another Thing I Never Check

I am on a role right now about my foibles!

In case you were wondering, I do not consistently check to see where the parts necessary for my auto repairs are made, even though I have chastised Luke for not checking where the windshield wipers he bought were made.

When I was completely and utterly out of oil while down the shore over the summer, I couldn't care less where the oil was made, so long as I could get enough of it into my car to keep the engine from seizing while I drove back and pondered where the hell all the oil went.

We've checked a few things, such as the new sensors for my Saturn, and even bought the more expensive gas cap to stop a vacuum seal leak because the cheaper one was made in China.

Yet when it comes to taking our cars to the mechanic, I do not ask him to find out the origins of whatever part I need.

I don't know that I am able to justify why this is. I don't think that it is out of embarrassment, I've certainly done a lot of that during this boycott. Maybe it is out of a sheer desire to get out of the mechanics as quickly as possible while spending as little money as possible. Maybe it is a realization that we can't afford to replace two cars right now and that makes these repairs an "emergency".

Whatever the reasons are, I took Luke's car in for an oil change on Friday only to learn that it needs a catalytic converter seal and a new exhaust pipe. When this work is done on Tuesday, I will have no idea where the parts were made, and even though I have plenty of time to call and ask before the work is done, I know I will not do so.

The Origins of Edamame

Apparently Saturday night was my turn to cook dinner, a task I've come to loath even more now that I moved back home and the kitchen is a shared domain. I further loath having to cook when I am really hungry, as my brain shuts down and is completely incapable of making intelligent decisions about what constitutes a well balanced meal (What do you mean Dairy Queen blizzards don't make a great dinner?).

This particular evening I decided to make shrimp, with brown rice and edamame. All I really wanted were chocolate brownies, a side of ice cream and maybe some edamame on the side, for protein. Edamame,in case you didn't know, is a fancy name for soybeans. They are often served in Japanese Restaurants and are wonderful steamed with sea salt sprinkled on top (Wonderturtle introduced me to them and we're a great match).

Re-reading this post, my meal sounds rather healthy. However, since it is blog worthy, there must be a problem.

The problem here is not the freezer burnt shrimp imported from Thailand, nor the 90 second microwave in the bag, Uncle Ben's brown rice with enough sodium to keep me afloat in a freshwater lake. The problem is the delicious Edamame purchased at my local Shoprite, by me, and, oh, that's right, MADE IN CHINA!

Never, ever did it cross my mind to check the origins of my frozen food!

This might seem ridiculous, given the fact that the garlic we used to buy in Chicago came from China; however, it truly never crossed my bleary, "I hate grocery shopping, even though this is probably easier than hunting a woolly mammoth for dinner", mind, to see where the food I eat at an Asian restaurant is made.

By all rights I had to return the food to the store and get my money back, if that was even possible.

I did not return it though. I continued to cook dinner, microwaved the Edamame instead of steaming it and instead fumed about how ridiculous it was to check where everything you want to buy is made.

Dinner was lousy, by the way. There's not much you can do, that I'm aware of, to make freezer burnt shrimp taste, well, even edible. Luke claims it was good but I suspect he was trying to end an earlier argument and was relived that he wasn't the one cooking tonight.

We had Dairy Queen Blizzards for dessert. I don't know where the contents of my blizzard were made and I didn't ask!

I wonder if all Edamame comes from China, or just the store versions. I sure do love to eat it.

Candy Bras

Last month my sister and I went to an adult store in Maine. This may be too much information for some people, but I don't see the big deal, besides, if this is too much information, you've probably skipped a lot of my blog altogether!

At any rate, I rarely say anything positive about my miserable existence in Chicago, BUT, that frozen tundra has terrific adult stores (my favorites include Tulip and The Pleasure Chest, if you are curious.)

Condom Sense has a catchy name, an ok website, and a fabulous location on the cobbled streets of Portland, Maine. They even have a few items made in America, such as the edible, glow in the dark body paint. I was even tempted to replace my long mourned Silver Bullet with a knock -off version that failed to list where it was made (Alas, however, the knock-off versions were missing some key features of the real Silver Bullet and remained in the store).

What most intrigued me about the experience though, aside from the lone salesperson who refused to get off the phone and assist curious, spend happy customers, were the candy bras and underwear.

I've seen these items before our boycott and never purchased them, for practical reasons, of course...they don't look the slightest bit comfortable. If you've never seen a candy bra before, imagine the colorful, Cheerio like candy bracelets you'd get as a kid, the kind on a flimsy string which would sometimes get caught between your teeth as you'd try to bite off your favorite sugary sweet color first. Unfortunately doing this usually resulted in you biting the crappy yellow "bead" next to the one you wanted while simultaneously creating a huge pool of drool careening down your chin and wrist.

Now imagine that same concept turned into a "bra" and, or underwear. Hot huh?

Good thing they are made in China and had to stay in the store. It saved me from trying to think of reasons why pools of sticky drool in "delicate places" were not a good idea! Monistat might like the end result, but I wouldn't!

Shades of Gray?

Hmm, I thought I was finished writing for today, but it turns out to be untrue.

I have a matter I need opinions on....

After taking my nephew for a walk today, we stopped by the local pharmacy to get some insertable notebook dividers, because, presumably, the more organized I am, the smarter I will be and the harder I will work.

Well, it sounds good anyway!

I asked my sister and her husband to pick me up some on the way home, because I wanted more. There is a limit of one per customer and the store manager was not pleased when I said my nephew was a valid customer so that I could buy two.

So, the conundrum is, I never checked to see where the dividers were made. It took me so long to find them and to deter my nephew from wanting the mascara, batteries, ribbons, whatever he saw, that I forgot to check.

Ok, that's not fair to blame a one year old. Fairly often I forget to check where something is made, even after eight months of doing this.

Go figure, they are made in China!

I didn't even have to look very hard to find that out, it was right there in medium sized letters on the front of the package, which I discovered after searching the teeny tiny print on the back of the package, where it usually says the country of origin!

By rules, they should go back to the store.

The catch, because there must be one to keep this interesting, is that the dividers were essentially free. The sale price was a dollar but there was a dollar off coupon in the paper, which, being as cheap as I am, is why I went there in the first damn place. In microscopic print, the coupon said I am responsible for the sales tax. However, due to a computer glitch, my stunning good looks or an oversight on the salesperson's part, both inserts rang up free. Sans sales tax. Free. Maybe it was my nephew's good looks that did it.

So, since I did not pay anything for what I got, is that essentially the same as a gift? A free gift from Brooks?

Hey, welcome to a glimpse of life inside my head, a beautiful, poignant world where even the most ridiculous detail can be analyzed from every painstaking angle!

Thanks for reading. Please leave feedback.

Traitor! Traitor! Traitor!

Well, the accusations in my title might seem redundant, but they do actually refer to three separate, yet lumped together in my blog, incidents of traitorism.

The first incident occurs as a result of my blog on Sunday, July 8th.
Now, I freely admit that it was really crappy of me to wait so long to buy my lover's birthday card. I'm guilty as charged. In fact, I've done a really poor job of getting and giving gifts to anyone all year long. It's like I gave up or just got really friggin' tired of trying to find stuff not made in China, and of the entire gift giving process altogether.

However, I will, with a great degree of arrogance (especially considering the last part of this entry), publicly chastise my lover for posting the following comment on Sunday's blog "It is good to know that you spent so much time on my birthday card! I spent hours in the store, unable to pick which one to purchase. Finally I saw the perfect card, but guess what? It was made in China. So I grabbed the first card I could find that was made elsewhere and purchased it for you."

See, dear reader, this is a lie. This anniversary card not only depicted the two of us as dogs, (yes, the card showed two dogs celebrating their anniversary), it is also made in China. Now, according to the rules of the boycott, Luke must take this card back, even though he claims he did not know where it was made. Too bad, so sad, I said.

I'm really being a brat here. I think it has more to do with getting a card where I am presumably a dog (and a friggin' poodle to boot!!); then it does with being made in China. I thought I had left behind all the nightmares of being called a dog by my loving sisters. It was not the way I wanted to celebrate my anniversary...not that Luke would have known any of this.

Still, there is a part of me which thrills at calling him a traitor. It's really very sad.

The second, and still sad, traitorous incident occurred at Staples.

I had a return to make and thought that I'd by myself a back to school treat of my favorite pencils, because, while much of the world has moved towards taking notes on a laptop or even with the old school pen and paper, I prefer my Ticonderogas.

Yes, they must be Ticonderogas. I can be a label snob. This snobbishness used to be ameliorated by the fact that Ticonderogas are, correction, were, made in America. That justified the price increase in my eyes, especially now.

Much to my horrified eyes, however, I learned that my beloved pencils are now made in America, Mexico and, yup, China!

What the hell? How do I buy them now?

Technically the made in Mexico ones are fine, but how does the company know that I bought the made in America or made in Mexico box versus the made in China ones?
An how the hell can you call them "America's finest pencil" if they aren't even made here?

I worked myself up into such a state of annoyance, rage and disgust that I left the store without returning my return. As petty as it may seem, I am really pissed off that not even my favorite "American pencils" are made in America anymore!

Which brings me to the third traitorous event.

A second trip to Staples, to return the unreturned return, led me back to the pencil aisle. At this particular store, ALL of the Ticonderoga's were made outside of the USA. ALL OF THEM! What the hell happened to the few boxes at the other staples which still depicted the American flag?

I was pissed.

I went for a walk.

I walked into the chair section and sat on every chair under $300. I was looking for a non-made in China chair for my desk at home so I could stop paying my chiropractor for the increasingly awful pain in my lower back. Since I fell last October, it is very difficult and painful for me to sit for long periods of time, which is a problem in our sedentary society.

To make an already lenghty blog shorter, I narrowed it down to two choices, the made in Canada drafting chair, which I did not like, and the red, fake leather executive Sealy brand chair, which also happened to be on clearance for $70. It was comfortable, it is a light red, it's made by a mattress company, the woman next to me encouraged me to buy it and the tag said I saved $100.

What more did I need?

I didn't have to flip the chair over to know where it was made. I had done enough comparison shopping by now. My gut told me it came from China.

I could have looked some more. I could have gone to a flea market/yard sale. I could have bought the made in Canada chair I did not like. I could have continued to see my chiropractor. I could have done a lot of things.

I bought the chair and the extended warranty. I love my chair. I'm comfortable when I sit in it. My back hurts less.

I am a traitor.

Guess I can't chastise Luke as much anymore, now that I have a more comfortable ass and back.

So Much to Blog About

Good grief, it's been over a month since I last wrote anything (well, anything not related to school anyway!) and now I sound like a Charlie Brown character! Who says good grief anyway?

My lack of writing is not because I lack things to blog about, not by far!

I haven't written because even though I dream about my blog, compose entries in my head throughout the day and even respond (in my head) to imaginary postings from faithful readers, I am scared.

I find myself in long periods of fear induced paralysis, which usually hits me after I've received two or more new postings, especially when they are from people I've never met.

Writing in your head is so much less terrifying than actually putting something out in this great Internet vortex and waiting, gnawing on nails, or on your partner if they happen to be around, to see what people's reactions are...if there are any reactions at all!

I'm fighting off another bout of paralysis now, because there are things I want to say and once you say them you can't take them back. That's disconcerting!

I am trying to use the knowledge that my nephew is upstairs asleep, for about another half hour, to motivate me to blog about traitors, birthday shopping, hypocritical patriotism, a new kind of callousness, adult stores and other fun topics.

Let's see how far I get. Let's see if I have any readers left!

(As an aside, I never want kids but I'm considering borrowing a nephew or two whenever I need the motivation to write...trying to accomplish anything while they are napping is a rewarding and exhausting feat!)

China is Not the Enemy

Given the nature of this boycott, it may seem absurd to claim that China is not the enemy; however, I wholeheartedly believe this statement to be true.

While I believe that there is value to this boycott and I am concerned with the massive outsourcing of jobs overseas, as well as the quality of goods which we import and consume, and the little bit I understand about our burgeoning trade deficit with China, this boycott has forced me to open my eyes to the fact that our tenuous relationship with China has far deeper roots than mere cheap goods.

I will not even pretend that I know how exactly how this relationship evolved, and yet taking a painful, closer look at my own consumer habits, shows me that I am, in part, a participant in the evolution of the "Made in China" label.

Despite the fact that I have been unemployed for the entire time I have been conducting this boycott, I still manage to consume more, well, crap, than I will ever need. I won't even use some of what I've purchased, but that was almost irrelevant to me when I went shopping.

I am a cheap shopper. Unless it is "urgent", I rarely buy anything that is not on sale. My whole day is better when I am able to buy something I "need" on sale AND I have a coupon for it!

The fact is, three bottle of shampoo, six black tops, ten pairs of jeans and an assortment of high heels I have only because I'm told women wear these awful things, ultimately sit under my bed, in my closet or on the floor until the next thing I buy forces me to find a new home for my old stuff.

I am not alone in this overconsumption. My stuff is a sign that I'm not as broke as I used to be, it's a sign of me, it's a sign of...it's a sign of a lot of things and it is part of the reason jobs in this country are headed overseas, where human beings in poorer countries make the stuff we buy inexpensive enough that we can have disposable everything.

I know my assertion that we all bear a part in the loss of jobs and the inferior quality of the things we buy will not win me many friends, but it is the truth as I see it.

I've tried the "blame big business", "blame the politicians", "blame the Chinese", "blame everyone but me" game and I just can't do it any longer.

Yes, there is a great deal of truth to the outrage that our government should have better regulations in place. Yes, it is true that big business is making ridiculous profits off of cheaper international labor, without passing the money on to the consumer. Yes, it is true that there are Chinese workers who work for a fraction of what most Americans are willing to work for.

These claims all have truth to them, but they also avoid the truth that at the end of the day, we are the consumers and we are the ones who are ultimately responsible for what we buy and how we use our money.

This boycott has been a far larger pain in my ass than I ever imagined it would be. It has frustrated me, caused fights, infuriated me, helped me feel alienated from people, even brought me to tears and yet the fact remains that I "need" very little of what I continue to buy and that there has always been other options for the things I "could not buy."

The fact remains that all over the world human beings like myself slave away in conditions I would never subject myself to, in order to bring me more and more crap at lower and lower prices so it can temporarily fill some void, some need in my life.

Pesticides and Birthday Cards

In the ongoing battle to not buy Chinese made products, I have discovered two unlikely items to be leery of, pesticides and greeting cards.

I discovered the pesticides while helping my mom do yard work. I was getting ready to apply weedkiller around her pool (something which the environmentalist in me was not pleased to be doing) when I noticed that the pump nozzle for this weedkiller was made in China.

In this particular case, I was spared from having to return the product (if that is even possible once you've opened it) because my mom was the one who paid for it, and despite my best efforts, she is, to say the least, disinterested in boycotting anything made in China.

What would she shop for, she asks me? I am cynically thinking that she wouldn't be able to shop for much!

At any rate, I had never considered that we would be unable to buy pesticides, or have to check the packaging of lawn care products prior to purchase. This was never an issue for us when we lived in Chicago and unfortunately, it does not get us out of yard work at my mom's.

When I pointed out to her where the nozzle was made, she told me, "Well, I bought the stuff, not you and I don't boycott stuff made in China, so go down to the pool and spray it on the weeds!"

Wow, it's tough to find compassion in this protest.

Apparently it is also necessary to check the origins of the greeting cards you are about to purchase. A friend of Luke's had warned me that an increasing amount of printed materials where being outsourced to China, but I must confess that until this particular day, I don't recall flipping over the card I was about to buy to see where it was made. Now it appears I will have to.

Good thing I did not put off buying that birthday card until the absolute last minute...I think I had about five minutes left to find a card before I had to leave the store and fortunately there were a few decent "Made in America" cards to choose from, so the birthday was not ruined.

(Aren't you happy to know about the effort I put into your birthday card, honey?)

Denying My Cats

Yes, folks, that's right! I am denying my cats as a result of this boycott.

We used to have this spiffy laser pointer, courtesy of Luke's mom, which the cats went nuts over. It was, in fact, the only way we could get Jezebella to exercise. Sahti is far more curious and will play with anything for 30 seconds and the laser pointer held her interest for several minutes or more!

The laser pointer died before we moved to the East Coast and we spent a few fleeting moments in between preparing for the big move, looking for a new one.

It would appear that they are all made in China.

Correction, all the cheap ones that run on batteries so small that they cost more than the laser pointer itself, are made in China.

We are now halfheartedly on the lookout for a laser pointer that takes AA or AAA batteries and is not made in China.

In the meantime, when Jezebella and Sahti are not driving me crazy by refusing to get along with Thomas, who is native to our new home and my most favorite cat, I feel guilty that I am depriving them of a toy they love and some hilarious entertainment for ourselves.

Crazy for a Cell Phone?

I may be one of the few holdouts in this country to say that a cell phone is not a necessary object. I rarely ever have mine on, when I can even remember to take it with me, and when it isn't with me, I rarely remember where I left it.

Having said all that, I lost my cell in Vegas while trying on the sweatshirt I bought Luke (it might have been poetic justice for coveting his old sweatshirt that I was hoping to replace with a new and improved "Not made in China" Vegas CSI one). I did not realize that I lost the phone until the next day as we were packing to leave and simultaneously tearing apart the hotel room in a desperate attempt to find this nonessential device.

It should have been no big deal that I lost it in the first place, after all, I rarely used it and I had been meaning to switch to a prepaid plan eventually.

But the fear set in! The, "What if our flight is late, how will Luke know?" or the "What if someone really important is trying to call me now?" or "What if I'm bored at the airport despite the three books I brought with me?" or, the original (?) reason for getting a cell in the first place, "What if my car breaks down late at night and I am surrounded by a pack of starving wolves in the wilderness of a major East Coast highway?" Whatever will I do?

It was so ridiculous! I drove cross country without a cell phone (after WonderTurtle and I parted ways) and did a zillion other everyday things without one...even broke down late at night several times without a cell phone.

Now, about to leave Vegas, I was angry and inconvenienced. Oh, and there is this damn boycott to consider!

It took me weeks to make up my mind about a prepaid phone and conversations ad nauseum with Luke about it. Before the boycott, I would have purchased the cheapest, shinniest red one without any regard for where it was made. Not so much luck this time.

Now, the fact that we live in a rather rural area, on top of a mountain off an interstate means that we get spotty coverage at best, unless you have a Boost mobile phone, as my lover does.
That would seem to solve the problem, right? Get a Boost phone and get over it.

Do I need to mention that they are all made in China? We discovered this by going above and beyond the rules of the boycott, which state that the packaging must declare where the product is made and/or reasonable efforts must made made to discern its origins. None of the exterior packaging stated where the Boost phones were made.

We discovered where they were made as the sales associate, who did not laugh at my dilemma, was calling Boost to see where the phone I was considering was made. To pass the time, I suggested that we look at the battery inside the phone. I promptly became angry at what I discovered. Irrelevant are the facts that I did not like the phone in the first place, I would rarely, if ever, use it in the basement where Luke's phone gets great coverage, and, oh, yeah, I don't need the damn thing in the first place!

Further investigation on my own consisted of calling Boost and discovering that all their phones are made in China. I was pleasantly surprised however, that the person helping me did not think my boycott was a laughing matter. This was not the case at the T-Mobile store. The salesperson there thought the concept was quite laughable. Offended, I left the store.

I wish I could say that I gave up the quest for a phone altogether, but that would be a lie.

I kept the search going for weeks (I think it helped me avoid thinking about the more serious issues in my life, such as finding a job!).

My sister offered to put me on her family plan where I knew I'd have coverage and a free phone, therefore not technically subject to the rules of the boycott, since I wasn't buying the phone.

Luke and I went to several stores looking for the elusive "Made in Mexico" or "Made someplace other than China" phone. We discussed my options late at night while lying in bed (and people think I'm a nympho!) we fought about it, or rather, I yelled at him a lot about it since he has a working, purchased before the boycott, made in China phone.

The entire situation was ridiculous! I wanted a red, prepaid flip phone made in Mexico or Korea and all I could find were red flip phones made in China or Taiwan (which I boycott and Luke does not) or a few castoff old phones made in Mexico or Korea that I did not like.

I am embarrassed to admit that in the end I did not have the guts, the wherewithal, the something to forgo the cell phone altogether. I think part of that is because I don't want to be seen as a bigger weirdo than I all ready am. Crazy boycott or not, I still crave some level of social acceptance...isn't that what drives consumerism in the first place?

I'm even more embarrassed to admit that I went back to the same T-Mobile store where I was laughed at and purchased my silver, prepaid, not a flip phone, there. I don't even really like this phone but, but, but it has the cheapest minutes even though it gets spotty coverage where I live and this salesperson was very helpful, if slightly amused at the boycott. I also got the car charger for free because I did enough research before hand to know that T-Mobile.com was giving away an additional $25 in air time if you bought a phone over the Internet. They didn't have the same deal at the store, but the manager was willing to give me the car charger for free, which is $25. The associate and I looked over the external packaging and checked the computer to see where the car charger was made and found nothing.

I left the store with a phone I don't like, the included $10 in air time, of which I've used less than half the minutes nearly a month later and a free car charger for my dying car that has "Made in China" sticker inconspicuously stuck inside the packaging. My phone is probably downstairs right now, I think, and I've made a whopping two calls on it since I bought it.

Did I do all of this for social acceptance?

Again...He is Inconvenienced

Luke is trying to buy some fancy shmansy part for his computer so that he can have wireless access on his desktop computer.
Do we need to have a wireless desktop card?
Only if you are a huge World of Warcraft fan and want to fiendishly play the game late at night in the basement where we now live.

Apparently his ginormous laptop doesn't have the memory space to hold the game and so "we need wireless access downstairs on the desktop computer."
I tried to be supportive about something I really don't care about, and we discussed many other options, even tried a few, to no avail.

Luke did some research and found a wireless card on Newegg.com, only to learn that it was made in China. In fact, it took Vincent about 1/10th of a second to confirm that is where it is made.

I, being ever supportive, cheered and threw a party when he hung up the phone.
The party and the cheering were very brief though, once I realized that we would have to keep discussing this ad nauseum until we found another solution.
I'm torn between feeling happy that he feels the sting of this boycott and annoyed that we aren't finished with this "problem."

Luke is Affected....

Or rather, he should have been affected if he was paying attention.

We had to take the car he uses in for the yearly inspection, something which is unheard of in Illinois, and the car needed new windshield wiper blades and a side light bulb and cover.

I took the phone call and agreed to have the work done and neither of us ever asked where the parts were made.

Perhaps this was just a mistake, but I suspect that that this makes us hypocrites because we vowed to check where everything was made and return it if it was made in China.

The most we've done is go to an auto parts store to see that the wiper blades there were made in Mexico or Belgium. Belgium? I thought they only made really great chocolate!

Oh the things I am learning!

Neither of us checked on the light thingy. It was just replaced yesterday.

Does Taiwan Count?

Luke and I have an ongoing debate, sometimes argument about the validity of banning Taiwan from our purchases this year.

I think any country that includes the words, "Republic of China" on its products deserves to be boycotted.

Luke asserts that Taiwan is no longer controlled by, politically connected with or vested in China.

I don't really care. If Uzbekistan wanted to slap the words, "Republic of China" or "R.O.C" on their goods, I feel that they should by boycotted by association this year.

I don't really know why he cares if we boycott Taiwan in the first place, since this boycott hardly affects him (unless I am in a rage about something I can't buy, then he bears the brunt of my frustrations!).

I am curious how others would see this, boycott or not? And if Taiwan is not in anyway vested in China, why are those letters on their goods?

Does anyone have any answers for me?

Butter...Jeans?

Why in the great green world would anyone name their jeans "Butter Jeans?"

I swear these jeans exist! I saw them at Nordstrom Rack when I was trying to find anything I could buy that was not made in China and would fill my longing to BUY SOMETHING!!!

The jeans are made in America with the following tag lines plastered all over the hang tags:

"Proud to Keep America Going."

"Made in USA: Pants for Real Women with Real Curves"

and a picture (in case you did not know what it looks like) of a stick of butter emblazoned with the words, "Buttery Softness".

Okay, I was thrilled that the jeans were made in America, not so thrilled and a bit horrified by the name, I mean, was I about to buy food or pants? I was also not thrilled with the way that they did not fit (too much butter consumption on my part?) even though they were, indeed, very soft.

I don't think "Cottage Cheese Jeans" would fair so well on the market, but DairyAir Jeans, if they were tight enough in the right places might sell like hotcakes.

Ohhh, I know Forbidden Chocolate super slim jeans for real American women who deny themselves the pleasures of actually eating chocolate, those might sell well!

Vegas, Baby....

....is made in China!

Okay, so the actual city of Las Vegas is not made in China, I almost need to believe that something so colossally difficult to absorb, so glitzy and contradictory must be made mostly in America.

The souvenirs are another story all together.

My mom and I went to Vegas for the first time last month, she for business and me for my birthday and this trip may have been one of the first endeavors where this China boycott is really paying off.

Perhaps I'm cheap, or ungrateful, but I don't understand spending your precious vacation time buying cheap trinkets for the people who stayed behind. Is it a subtle "in your face I went on vacation and you didn't?" Is it a sign that the person on vacation was really bored, or has too much money to spend? Or is a plastic, glow in the dark bendable shot glass from Death Valley really a gift that made you think of me? If so, please have amnesia on your next vacation!

As a general rule, I avoid buying souvenirs for people unless I really believe that it will somehow, even in a small way, enhance their lives. People usually only get stories as gifts from me when I travel.

My Vegas story is that almost every gift, every trinket, bauble and bendable shot glass is made in China. I was terribly frustrated for the few hours that I spent looking for useless "I went to Vegas and you didn't" gifts before it hit me that I had one hell of an excuse for not buying anything. Who is going to argue with, "I'm sorry I did not buy you anything on my trip, but I've got this boycott and my principles to stand by. And, heck, next time you go on vacation, feel free not to get me anything." It sounds like a win-win situation to me!

Ok, truth be told, I did buy Luke a "Vegas CSI" hoodie, which seems to have been desirable to everyone from other countries visiting Vegas.

I ignored the fact that we don't watch TV.

It is made in Pakistan and one of the few allowable trinkets, plus, he has this old blue hoodie from a vacation we went on in Florida many moons ago that I love, and he can't possibly wear both simultaneously.....

Oh, and I did leave him to house sit our three cats and my mom's dog by himself three days after we moved back to the East Coast. There was some guilt on my mind when I bought that gift!

When people from China go on vacation to other countries, do they bother buying the souvenirs if they are made in China?

Environmentally Friendly?

Before we moved, we decided that we were going to give these newfangled "environmentally friendly light bulbs" a shot. We justified the additional expense because they are supposed to outlast traditional light bulbs by several years, a savings for the environment and my wallet! How win-win!

I imagine this is the reason must people switch to these light bulbs, as it seems unlikely to me that friends and neighbors actually inquire about the types of light bulbs one uses; and until light bulbs come brandished with some easy to identify label, symbol or one word logo, only the really curious or really nosey visitors will be able to identify what is illuminating your living space.

I installed the light bulb and was instantly converted by the indoor sunshine radiating from our hallway lamp. It was like a rare sunny day in Chicago in the midst of winter! I wanted to buy dozens of them and give them as gifts to everyone who suffers from lack of sun or joy in their lives. Luke, who was nearly blinded by the new light source, was less enthusiastic.

For some ridiculous reason, I made a flippant remark about how it was a good thing we did not check where these bulbs were made. Perhaps it was out of curiosity (or spite) Luke leaped to the kitchen garbage can and eagerly scanned the discarded packaging.

Back to Walgreens went the light bulbs.

I've been on a vendetta, er, mission, ever since, to find "environmentally friendly light bulbs" which are made anywhere but in China. Visits to Lowe's, Home Depot, grocery stores, pharmacies, all have proved a failure.

Will someone, anyone, please explain to me how it is "environmentally friendly" to produce light bulbs halfway around the world and then consume massive amounts of fossil fuels and other natural resources to ship them to retailers all across America?

Will someone please explain to me why it is only the "environmentally friendly" light bulbs that are made in China? Regular light bulbs are still made somewhere in America.

What, exactly, does the term, "environmentally friendly" mean, anyway? Whose environment are we being friendly to in the first place? China does not have the environmental protection laws that we have here, so is there a chance that we are unwittingly buy a "green product" that blackens the Chinese environment?

Why else aren't these light bulbs made in America? It would seem the most "green" to me to make products as close to home as possible.

While I wait for answers, I dwell in a basement which would be far more invigorating if it were illuminated by the "environmentally friendly" natural sunshine in a light bulb!

The Pleasure Chest

In an act of desperation, due to the sudden and untimely death of my Silver Bullet, Luke and I went to The Pleasure Chest in Chicago (this was before we moved...I'm a bit behind here) in hopes of finding a comparable source of pleasure.

I was hoping to be able to buy myself a memorable, "Turning 30 is not so bad" gift.

If you've never been to The Pleasure Chest, I highly recommend a trip to one of their three locations or to the website, or both. The staff was incredibly knowledgeable and friendly, the store is a delight to shop in, unlike many "adult stores" and the dominant color theme is red, my favorite color. Furthermore, the salespeople did not laugh at me when I asked if they had anything comparable to the Silver Bullet which was not made in China.

The person who assisted me searched the store trying to find a suitable alternative. He certainly understands that people are attached to their objects of pleasure!

Unfortunately we were unable to find any vibrators even remotely resembling the Silver Bullet. The salesperson told me that almost all of the inexpensive toys are made in China and are not designed to last very long. I've had, and used mine for about 5 years and more than delighted in the $20 I spent on it, but he did have a valid point when comparing the quality of vibes made in China, or even Japan as they are starting to be made, versus those made in Germany or America.

The price difference between the vibes made in China or Japan and those made in Germany or America helped illustrate why outsourcing is occurring on such a grand scale. It's a difficult sell to convince someone to spend $50-$200 on a toy that you can't try out in the store or return if you are unhappy with it. That is part of why it is so much more appealing to lay out $10-$40, or the cost of dinner (and maybe less hassle) for a made in China toy. Even if you don't like your new toy, there wasn't much of an investment, financial or emotional, on your part.

And so, as I stated in The Ultimate Test of My Willpower, I will be looking forward to 2008 when I can stock up on the Silver Bullet. The only things currently interfering with my future enjoyment are my frustration and guilt that this great product is not made here and a lingering curiosity to see what it would take to develop my very own line of sex positive, made in America toys.

Would it be easier than this boycott?

Surely my readers would consider buying these products, right?

Moving is HELL!

Dear Readers,

Please accept my sincere apologies for not writing sooner. The past month has been filled with the unique kind of hell that is moving.

I still can't find most of the things I own and I can't remember what it is I think I'm missing, so that makes me wonder why we put so much time and effort into acquiring "stuff" in the first place.

We moved in with a family member and most of our stuff is in storage or en route to storage once we figure out what lurks in the depths of the moving boxes. We rented a truck that was too big for all of our stuff and have argued quite a bit about what to keep and what to store and why the heck we have so much of it in the first place.

In keeping with the spirit of the boycott, we were able to re-use boxes from Timeless Toys in Chicago as well as from my former co-workers. People gave us packing tape and the tape gun as well as packing paper and so on.

The one thing we were unable to buy? Moving pads. The only moving pads Penske sold were made in China. Some fate must have been on our side however, because when we opened up the truck outside of our apartment, the previous renters had left 13 grey, scratchy, made in China moving pads behind.

What a blessing that was!

The Ultimate Test of My Willpower

In the three months that I have been enmeshed in this boycott, there have been a number of unforeseen snafus, as well as a few positive experiences.

This experience takes the prize for the worst, most frustrating and quite possibly most difficult challenge until January 1, 2008.

You are forewarned!

I was reading a blog from a friend which linked to another blog which then linked to some guy's blog about his sexploits, which may or may not be true; it really doesn't matter. The point is, the stories got me all aroused in the wee hours of the morning, which is all well and good except that my lover was at work.

So, being the sex loving, self-pleasing feminist that I am, I figured I would go to bed and take care of this intense desire myself.

Things were going along well, the pleasurable feelings were flowing...and then...and then...the unthinkable happened!

My most favorite vibrator, the steadfastly reliable Silver Bullet, became completely unreliable.

In fact, the f'ing thing died on me!

Right in the middle of things!

It died!

Now, I don't mean "the batteries are dead, gotta get out of bed with sticky fingers to find a new set" kind of died, I mean the "it ain't never gonna work again" kind of died!

At first I tried to tell myself that the Silver Bullet had a variable speed setting and the spurts and sputters were normal.

This was crap though and no matter how good things were feeling I couldn't bring myself to believe that line. I've had this trusty vibe for about five years now and it never spurted and sputtered.

This certainly was not the time for it to start now!

I was beside myself and the erotic desires of the moment were rapidly fading away, cackling at my intense misfortune.

Now, I am well aware of the fact that there are endless, non-vibrator induced ways of having an orgasm, but that was not what I was looking for at this particular moment!

I WANTED THE GODDAMN SILVER BULLET TO WORK AND I WANTED IT TO WORK NOW!!!!

It wasn't happening and neither was that orgasm.

Do I need to mention that this vibrator is made in China?

Isn't goddamn everything made in China?????

Well, no. The Fun Factory vibes are made in Germany but they cost about as much as a year's worth of batteries and as far as I know, they don't make the Silver Bullet! Besides, I have several others. The point is I wanted this one to work and it took the great and final sleep.

Worse than that, if I am going to adhere to this miserable boycott, I won't have a new one until January 1, 2008!!!!!!

I know second had/previously used purchases are OK, and I do consider myself to be an open-minded individual, but in this case, I'll hold out until I am the sole owner/user!

I'm beginning the countdown to a new vibrator, 'er, new year right now.....

A Big Friggin' Tiara

Hello! Did anyone miss me? I've been caught in a desperate vortex with getting ready to move and avoiding my birthday being the two largest usurpers of my time. I hope you will forgive me.

I'm going to be 30 on the 30th (my golden year...yippee) and to celebrate/flaunt/regress- I want a big friggin' tiara to wear all day long.

The only problem?

You guessed it!

Made in China!

Granted, I did not spend an enormous amount of time looking for the big friggin' tiara, but they seem as elusive as a unicorn, or as elusive as an item not made in China.

I spent about two hours in a mall in Northbrook, Illinois looking for a tiara, and the only place I could find them were at Claire's. I used to love that store when I was a wee teen, way back in my younger days. Now however, I am unable to purchase just about everything that they sell. All of the tiaras which would fit on my humble, goddess head were on the banned list. (As were the ones made for little girls, in case you were curious!)

My solution?

Why, Ebay of course!

In a matter of a half hour or so, I had managed to procure a rather decent looking tiara for less than $5 (remember, second hand purchases are ok) in the lovely town of Schamburg, which I am told is somewhere near Chicago.

The unfortunate part?

Either I changed my address at the post office too soon or the big friggin' tiara was not yet mailed and it appears that I will not have it in time for my birthday.

Now how the hell is the world supposed to know what is so special about me?

No Luck at Best Buy, Staples

Today we went looking for two seemingly random items.

1) A CD organizer

2) A laser pointer

As we are preparing to move, Luke seems to finally agree with me that it is a grand idea to put all of your CDs in a book or small organizer instead of in all those damn plastic cases. I wish he had this epiphany last year. Every single possible combination we could come up with for organizing CDs were made in China; the zip up books, the secret agent lock boxes, even the clear sleeves that you can store in a 3 ring binder. Granted we only checked two stores so far, but the outlook isn't promising.

In case you are wondering, my two year old child side did make an appearance when I proclaimed that it was about time he was effected by this boycott as well. I only said it once, with a smile on my face and then we moved on to trying to find the next random item.

We've been looking for a laser pointer for our cats since the one Luke's mom gave us at Thanksgiving died. Our cats go crazy for this toy and we find it hilarious to watch. It is also the only way to really get Jezebella to exercise (perhaps she looks at us with disdain, since we could use a lot of exercise ourselves!).

We were able to find a few laser pointers made in Taiwan, but we are specifically looking for one that takes AAA sized batteries or larger, since we don't want to spend more money on the ridiculously small batteries than we did on the pointer.

If anyone knows were to buy either of these items not made in China, I'd love to hear about it. Until then, the CDs will be a mess and our cats will look like shorter, hairier versions of our unexercised selves.

Cheers!

Buying Gifts for Friends

Monday I went to the Brookfield Zoo with my friend Adam. It was a beautiful day, which can be rare in Chicago in March. As far as the boycott goes, this was an uneventful day, until we went to the gift shops.

I've already ranted plenty about how everything is made in China, but this was my first experience putting my boycott into effect when buying something for someone who was right there with me. Adam and I like to buy small souvenirs of the places we visit, which is all well and good, until you limit what you can buy.

It's a good thing that he already knows about this project, because it was very embarrassing to look at something I wanted to buy him and have to admit, out loud, that no matter how much he liked it, I couldn't buy it. I was frustrated and repeatedly questioned myself about why I was doing this. Almost all of the trinkets were "off-limits" and with each new item I found that I thought he might like, it became increasingly difficult to admit to him that I couldn't buy it.

So much of how we interact with and judge other people is based upon what we can afford to purchase as well as the goods that we buy. Sometimes, admitting to not being able to buy something feels like a weakness, a personality flaw and a failure all rolled into one. These are never feelings I enjoy.

In the end, I was able to buy Adam a small sculpture of two elephants, his favorite zoo animal. This was made possible by the fact that the "where it was made" sticker/identifier was missing off of all of the little statues, therefore, there is no obvious proof that I may have committed a violation. The flexible pencils also were without identifying origins and the candy was made in America.

Since Luke and I are the only ones subject to this boycott, I think Adam had an easier time buying me a small aardvark toy, a key chain and the Monkeys in a Barrel game.

Sticking to your principals is difficult enough in private, it can me almost mortifying when others are around to witness it. This was not something I really considered when I came up with this idea.

Thank you Julie!

Sometimes inspiration comes in mysterious ways.

My inspiration to carry on with this questionably effective act of rebellion came in the form of a maraca.

Who knew maracas were made in China? Why do I continue to be surprised by where things are made?

My best friend delivered this cheap plastic (?) object to me when we met for dinner. The object was a parting party favor from Julie. Unfortunately I was not invited to the party, but I will attribute this oversight to the fact that I live a time zone away.

At any rate, Julie, who apparently reads this blog but does not leave comments, thought I would enjoy this subtle reminder that everything is made in China.

I must admit, had I not been informed that this was a Mexican themed party, I would have had to struggle to identify this object, as it looks far more like an old fashioned colored Christmas light bulb, the kind you screw in to a large metal socket. What separated the maraca from the light bulb was the oddly shaped pseudo-wooden handle projecting out of the base.

I tried to shake the weird green and brown object, to see if it made noise, and it fell apart in my hands.

If Krazy Glue isn't banned, maybe I will adhere the two pieces better so it will be easier for others to discern what it is.

In the meantime, the plastic, made in China maraca sits on my dresser as a reminder that I may not be changing the world, but some where people are reading this and at least having an elevated awareness about where their purchases and party toys are made.

Thanks for the inspiration Julie.

(When I move back to your time zone, do I get invited to the next party?)

Shopping Used to be FUN!!

I really miss the days when shopping was fun.

When I thought about this boycott, I knew it would be a challenge. However, I did not ever seriously think that it would usurp the fun from shopping.

I went to the mall yesterday and damn near everything is made in China...I mean bras, picture frames, clothing, books, bedding, towels...

While I don't think I found anything new on this trip that was made in China, I was growing increasingly more disgusted with the idea of this boycott, as well as the nagging knowledge that my own desires to pay as little as possible for stuff I don't need anyway, is fueling this vortex of overseas manufacturing.

For awhile, I am able to temper this disgust with smug satisfaction that I can't buy the really cool shirt I thought would be perfect for Luke. Two stores later, I am debating the merits of lying about the origins of the waterproof boots I want to buy. Even though they really aren't what I'm looking for, I like the $10 price tag. If it weren't for the ban, I would have bought them just for the "bargain" factor.

I was in Kohl's for a bit and even found a few things made in America. I didn't really like any of it, but there was this disconcerting feeling that I SHOULD BUY IT because it is made here.

An even more disturbing reaction I am having is the, "Where is this made? Oh, not in China. Okay. It's okay to exploit that country!" feeling. It started out as sort of a joke at the Lincoln Park Zoo when we were exploring this boycott idea, and I fear that it is rapidly becoming a second mantra.

I never really gave much thought to the idea that this project would open my eyes to the various places where my merchandise is made. I have never even heard of some of these places until I started obsessively reading labels.

Have you ever heard of the Northern Marianna Islands? Do you know where they are?

I answer "no" to both questions.

I have no idea where some of the countries are, never mind what the capitol of that country is, and yet the people who live there toil to make one more product for myself and millions of other faceless consumers.

What are their working environments like? Do they have health care? Do they enjoy what they are doing? Why do I care? Why doesn't this shirt fit?

What happened to the fun of shopping?

A Flooring Dilema

Today I was feeling particularly frustrated by this f'ing boycott.

When I first brainstormed this idea, I never planned on buying major household items, which seem to almost exclusively be made in China.

Things have changed in a few short weeks and I promised my mom I would pay for the flooring in my old bedroom. It dawned on me today that it is made in China.

This wasn't such a big deal when she was paying for it (and my bedroom was not going to be re-floored) but now, purchasing the flooring would be another violation of my self-imposed ban.

We tried to find something that wasn't made in China and was along the lines of what we were looking for. It wasn't happening.

How on earth can it be more cost effective to import laminate like flooring all the way from China? The boxes are ridiculously heavy!

Perhaps it isn't just about being cheaper. I imagine China's environmental laws are considerably more lax than American laws.

Oy vey! Maybe we will have to go with carpeting instead. No one seems to know where that is made, not even the knowledgeable staff at Lowe's.

I felt all the emotions I've talked about well up inside me. Again, I wanted to give up this idea, I mean, it is one thing to have my principles, but another thing when they effect someone else's home.

I don't know what I will do about the flooring yet, but dinner with my best friend, and a gift from Julie, helped put some things in perspective.

Days and Night of Life in Hotels

I've been home for two weeks now, dealing with a family emergency that resulted in an almost two week stay in hotels.

Hotels are cool places, sometimes, when you are on vacation. They are not so cool when situations render you unable to get back into your house.

Since this was an unexpected trip and there were a lot of phone calls to make and endless details to take care of, I did not do much shopping. I did take note of the origins of things in our various hotel rooms however.

1) Down comforters-made in China (I forgot to see where the pillows were made)

2) Alarm clock, telephone, hair dryer- all made in China

3) USA Today-a rather crappy paper, but delivered outside your door each day, made in America

4) Fresh baked chocolate chip cookies at the front desk each night (except when someone foolishly put peanut butter cookies out instead)-made in America

5) Daily fresh, hot breakfast-made in America

6) Television-I never did turn it around to see where it was made. Luke and I don't watch t.v., but my mom does, which, by default of a small hotel room, meant I watched it as well. I was too mesmerized by the pretty moving pictures to care where it was made.

Okay, so this list makes hotel life sound pretty sweet and in retrospect, it wasn't so bad. This was due in large part, to the great staff at the Holiday Inn Express in Easton, PA. I highly recommend this hotel, even if they do buy their incredibly comfortable bedding from China.

When we had to check out of the Holiday Inn and went to a motel down the shore, I was too excited to be by the ocean and too sick with a cold or something to care where things were made, unless of course, it was my next meal.

My mom and I did spend several hours accumulating points on the boardwalk, where I feel it is safe to speculate that most of the prizes there were made in China.

My friend Tracey cashed her points in for a wall hanging of a buoy with a scene of tropical fish swimming in the center. It has an optical illusion or something, so the fish appear to be swimming. She plans to hang it in her boat.

It was made in China.

I meant to look for a laser pointer for our cats, but I forgot.

Instead, I relocated two authentic wooden ski balls to my coat pockets since they were not available to "win" with my tickets. If you've never played ski ball, you might not understand the importance of the history behind these balls, which are now being made in plastic to look like wood.

The new balls suck.

They don't have the same feel in your hands.

I could not continue to live a peaceful life knowing I had passed up the chance to own a piece of history. I have no idea where the wooden balls were made, but I'll tell myself they were made in New Jersey.

Ahhh, V'day

Well, it's been awhile since I last wrote and I thought to myself, "Why not get back to that blog on one of the most commercial holidays around?"

I also intensely loath this day, regardless of whether I am in a relationship or not.

One of the fun things about this ban is that you can't buy most of the cheesy hearts and crap that fill the stores to the point of bursting, threatening to spew forth "one size fits all" definitions of love and romance. Even the corny "romantic" coupon books, you know, the one some one buys you in a last ditch effort to seem romantic, are printed in China.

Luke and I are apart for V'day, due to a family emergency on my side. This gives us yet another reprieve from having to look for gifts until they go on clearance. Who ever said distance was a bad thing?

My mom bought me potted roses. I don't really care for the overpriced roses in abundance this time of year and my most favorite flowers, dandelions, are not growing yet, or if they are, they are buried beneath the ample snow outside. The potted roses are lovely and the "how to care for your plant" tag says it is printed in the USA. I assume the roses were grown here as well, but then again, I assumed that about our garlic and was wrong.

Tomorrow all the romance crap will be on clearance. How interesting...does that mean we only need to show our love once a year? At full price?

Banned Goods: What We Can't Buy

January 26, 2007

"There's always going to be some necessity that you never knew you needed, but you absolutely can't live without." - Ron Ponpeiel, 1982, Chicago History Museum

This list is an ongoing attempt to keep track of the "necessities" we had to do without this year:

1) An brand new exercise ball for physical therapy

2) Garlic. Or at least not the garlic we used to buy at Harvestime. It is made in China.

3) Sweaters from Express, and just about every other store we've visited.

4) A new cordless phone. The ones we've looked at, the ones we've schlepped all over the place to try and find in our price range, are made in China.

5) A body puff for making body wash last longer. Currently we share the same one which does not please me. Some things are not meant to be shared and we did not realize that buying a body puff would be a problem when we saw the great sale on Dove body wash, which was cheaper than bar soap.

February 22

6) The bedding from the Holiday Inn Express. Okay, realistically, I probably never would have purchased this anyway, but it is the most comfortable hotel bedding I've ever experienced. The down comforter at least, was made in China. I don't know where the sheets and pillow cases were made.

7) Hair accessories. There was a "buy one get one" sale on Goody hair clips and such at a local drug store. These kind of sales always get my attention, even if, sometimes especially if, I don't need the product. It makes sense really...why not have twice as much of something you don't need. Isn't that patriotic? They were made in China. All of them. They are still in the store. Apparently, they used to be made in America, as evidenced by the old Goody hair products packaging my mom had around the house.

8) Flooring for my old bedroom. The flooring I agreed to pay for is made in China. Crap!

March 13

9) Most of the trinkets sold at the Brookfield Zoo. This is the first time I have to admit to someone as they stand next to me, that I can't buy something. It was an uncomfortable experience!

March 14

10) Luke wants to buy a CD organizer so he is better able to sort through stuff for our move. Every single one we've found is made in China.

11) Laser pointers for our cats. We are looking for the kind that take AAA or larger batteries. I think that the cats might get their laser pointer workout next year.

Luke Feels the Boycott Burn

January 20, 2007

Well, he sorta felt the burn.

We went to the vertical mall in Lincoln Park (I can never remember what the mall is really called, but it is vertical instead of horizontal and sprawling like I'm used to) for the big sale at Express, one of his most favorite stores.

On the way to the mall, I tried not to fantasize about the things he won't be able to buy. I realize that I must sound like the most self-absorbed partner on the planet, but it isn't true, I swear! You'd get tired of being wrong too sometimes!

At any rate, it came back to bite me, this fantasizing about Luke not being able to buy anything. I would have liked for him to expand his sweater collection, but they were all made in China. Every one of 'em!

There were a lot of tee shirts he could have purchased, but he already has several dozen. He doesn't see the need for a scarf in the frigid winter ensnaring Chicago, and he hates the jeans that are on sale.

I do wonder if I've been rubbing off on him, since he scrutinizes the price of everything, tries it all on and reassesses the price again before buying two long sleeved cotton button-downs, in which, he looks very sexy. They are made in Indonesia.

Perhaps as punishment for thinking about what Luke won't be able to buy, I agree to see a movie he wants to see, even though this has been disastrous in the past. I agree, in part, because the vertical structure of the mall makes it very easy to sneak into a second film, and this is why we each get to pick out a movie.

The irony of our choices are that they are both made in China. This does not even dawn on us until we are back at the apartment late that night, despite the fact that we read the reviews before hand!

First we suffer through "Curse of the Golden Flower," which sounded good to both of us and was TERRIBLE!!!!! The only redeeming things I am able to say about the movie are, Luke paid and we saw my movie for free. Even Luke hated the movie. It is rare that we both hate the same movie.

After that punishment, we slip into "The Painted Veil," which was not terrible. It did not move mountains or exceed my expectations, but it was not terrible and the views of China were breathtaking. Clearly these are not the parts of the country which are being gobbled up in a race to export the most crap to the rest of the world.

When we finally realize that we payed to see movies which were, by the credits listed in the film themselves, made in China, I declare that this is a violation of the not made in China boycott. Luke doesn't agree. We go round and round on this issue for an insufferably long time, and it verges on an argument.

"If we ban movies made in China, should we also ban Chinese food?" "How are we the primary consumers?" Luke queries. He postulates that the movie theatre bought the film and we just paid for the tickets. I counter that if we look at things this way, the department stores buy the merchandise first, we just take it off their hands. It doesn't add up. The film industry keeps tabs on who pays to see which movies and the purchase of a ticket is our contribution to something in this case, made in China.

Eventually we agree to add yet another shackle, er, rule to the list, "no movies made in China" (see Additional Rules, Rules, Rules, posted on January 26, 2007).

After all, it is only a year.

A Phone Call from My Sister

January 18, 2007

Kathy called today and in the midst of our usual sister bonding, she remembered ask me about the boycott. I told her that we are sticking with it but it has been difficult and there were a few mistakes.

She told me that she went our shopping with her friend, "Jen" and was complaining to her that Christmas was going to suck this year and that she hoped Luke and I did not draw her and her husband's name for gift giving.

"Jen" was surprised and asked Kathy how she already knew that Christmas, almost a year from now was going to suck.

Kathy told "Jen" about our boycott and "Jen", not believing that so many things could be made in China, tried to find something in the store that we could buy for them at Christmas time. Eventually they got tired of looking and gave up. Everything they found was made in China.

I am delighted to know that we are impacting the lives of people we've never met, even if it is just to frustrate them!

The Glories of Ebay...I Sing You Praises!

January 12, 2007

I wake up and am still not pleased with our new agreement. It would just be so much easier to pretend, to ignore, to forget about, to...my, god I need to stop whining! This was my idea after all!

I stumble around my once again banned purchases littered in the apartment and turn on the laptop to search Ebay for all her hidden treasures.

What to my surprised eyes should appear but a mountain of pages all selling these balls!

It's a glorious sight indeed. I sent out 11 e-mails asking the sellers where their exercise balls and foam rollers were made. Eleven messages asking where a product was made. I wonder what these good souls must think of me. I wonder if Luke's parents, who are passionate Ebay sellers, are asked such seemingly random questions. I think about calling them to check.

Of the eleven e-mails I sent out, nine people actually responded to me. I am shocked and quite pleased. All of the balls are made in China and one of the foam rollers is made in America.

I almost become frustrated again when I remember that it is ok to buy used items made in China since we are not the primary consumers. What delight, since there is a seller on E-bay who lives in Chicago.

We e-mail back and forth and he agrees to wave the $10 shipping if I pick up the item. Fortune must have smiled on me. Not only do I win the exercise ball for $.99, he even agrees to drop it off to me on his way home from work, which isn't far from where we live, for an extra penny.

Now, I'm not completely nuts, I did agree to meet him in the middle of Lincoln Square on a day when Luke is able to go with me (I hope this makes you feel better, mom!) and the extra penny was a whole lot cheaper than taking the CTA to meet him at his place.

I love my "new" silver (my second favorite color) exercise ball which cost me a dollar! Hell, that's a better deal than the sale at Kmart. I even use it almost every day. (I did forget to bid on the foam roller though, and the auction has ended.) Now my original purchases can go back to Kmart.

Ebay, you saved the day!

What Constitutes Health care?

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Today I had the bright idea to go to Kmart and buy an exercise ball, one of those giant things that look like they would have been fun to play with in gym class.

My reasons for doing this are three-fold:

1) I fell down a flight of stairs in late October and injured my back. I had been in physical therapy up until the day I went home for Christmas. I used one of these giant red balls in PT and it was fun, helped strengthen my back and it was red, my favorite color.

2) My $500 insurance deductible for PT started again January and the cost, in addition to the co-pays, was prohibitive, so I figured I'd buy the exercise ball and a foam roller, which I also used, and do the additional exercises in the apartment, discontinue PT and save a lot of money.

3) The balls were on sale at Kmart, which merged with Sears, where I have a credit card.

Problem solved, right?

Not so fast!

All but one of the exercise balls were made in China and the Kmart version of the foam roller, which was filled with air instead, was also made in China.

I fretted. I panicked. I paced up and down the aisles. I checked almost every bloody box trying to find something that wasn't made in China. I thought about forgetting the boycott, about going back to PT just so I wouldn't have to deal with this. I thought about crying.

I thought I found a loophole in our rules. Did we ever discuss buying things that were medically necessary? I couldn't, or didn't want to, remember.

In the end, I bought two exercise balls, one that was made in China and one that was made in the Philippians, the stand to hold the ball (made in China) and the air roller (made in China).

I was angry and frustrated. Good thing the laundry detergent, which was also on sale, was made in America. At least I didn't screw that up.

That night, over dinner, I brought the health care issue up with Luke. In an attempt to be nonchalant, I listed the pro's of my point of view, "it saves me money," "we never discussed this before, so it is ok," "it's my health after all." I tried to ignore the con's in my thinking, hoping Luke would ignore them too.

He heard me out but did not agree. He cited the "good faith rule" (see Rules, Rules, Rules posted January 16, 2007) and thought that I needed to make more of an effort to find equipment not made in China, after all, he pointed out, one of the balls was made in the Philippians. I was not pleased with what he was saying and a long, drawn-out discussion took place.

In the end, I agreed that if the situation were reversed, I would have wanted him to make more of an effort to try and find something that did not violate the ban. I agreed to continue looking, but I wasn't happy with this agreement. I felt like I had failed again, and this whole damn mess was my idea!

We agreed to add the "good faith rule" to the ever growing list of restrictions (see Additional Rules, Rules, Rules posted on January 26, 2007).