As one of my Compacting Exceptions I am allowed to buy the craft magazines that I regularly purchase. Normally I buy them from the Newsagents, but I worked out last night that if I subscribe then it costs less. So, I reached for the credit card…. and then realised that because of the Money Makeover I’m not allowed to use credit!!! Argh!!!! I have to save and pay cash…. All I can say is thank heavens it’s payday on thursday, although one subscription will literally take all my spending money for the fortnight… so I will have to put away half this week and half next pay… I wonder if I could negotiate with Eddie to sell some stuff on ebay and use the money from that?????

To spend money!!!!! I had to buy some embroidery floss today (comes under my exceptions!) and saw some gorgeous fabric. It’s just lovely! And some stunning knitting patterns that I could make for winter next year. And the woollen mills here are having a sale and I want to stock up before we leave. And I need to buy a gift to send to a friend, and I can’t buy it because I could actually make her something from what I have here, but I WANT TO BUY SOMETHING!!!! Oh, I also want a big stock pot for making stock as my biggest pot only makes about two litres at a time…

And yet I’ve CHOSEN to put myself through this torture and denial! What was I thinking????? I must be just about ready to be committed to an insane asylum…

The point is, although it’s no comfort to me right now, that Compacting is about doing without, or finding a way other than buying new. So by denying myself, I’m actually following in the compact. It doesn’t feel good! I don’t feel any self-righteousness, doing good for the planet and my wallet feelings, right now I am feeling like such a drongo for actually choosing to do this!!!! Bah humbug!!!

Back to the embroidery thread this morning, I had to replace some that I left in Canberra a few weeks ago. I’m in the middle of a smocking project with it so I couldn’t substitute a similar shade from my other threads. So I went into my favourite shop, full of fabric, threads, wool, patterns, ribbons, it’s like a treasure trove! I normally go in for one small thing and come out $100 later…. and my fabric/thread/wool/pattern stash increases! Not today, I bought the thread, paid 90c and left. That was hard.

Reading what I’ve just written, I sound like a little kid stamping their feet and throwing a tantrum in frustration at not getting their own way! Well, that’s what I feel like!!!! Thankfully, I’m a wee bit more mature than that and can deal with this a bit better, but yeah, I wouldn’t mind stamping my feet! Anyone want to watch me throw a tanty???? LOLOL!!!