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?