Hello, all.... And thank you so much for reading and sharing!
Here we are, actually in the final stages of this project... And while very very hard, I have to say, I am learning a few things about myself and my thought processes. And I have absolutely learned that I can still have fun without buying my way through a mall. I proved that today.
Today is Black Friday. I had promised my daughter (of course) and another close family friend/relative before this project that we would go. I could not cancel, even with an explanation of my 30 day commitment, for a variety of reasons. So, the alarm rang at 6am, and off to the mall we went. This time I was prepared. I am learning that when I have an opportunity to plan, when I have notice, and I have an opportunity to think through bumps in the road that I might hit, the odds of my success are greatly raised. For example, when I was planning for this day, I knew I would be hungry while out and so I brought beef jerky and granola bars in my backpack. This way, I did not have to buy any snacks, or smoothies, or anything....It is when I have been hit with surprises, that I jump immediately to the purchase. And so today, we went through the mall to experience the madness of Black Friday, which really wasn't mad at all... And I took pictures of all the things that Julia wants, so that I can buy a selection of them online - after the month of zero spending!
So you see - today was actually a metaphor for the crux of my problem. When I am faced with a "bump", or a crisis, or a major stressor, I always turn to what I know will ease the discomfort.... Not unlike the mall smoothie, the first thing I see/think of to make me feel better... When things are smooth sailing, less of a need for the purchases.
Now that I am seeing that, I have to set up a better system of identifying these situations earlier, and planning for them ahead of time... And ultimately, finding something better to do than spend my way from one end of the mall to the other... But that does exaggerate my spending habits, it's not like that it was I really do.... On the other hand, I have done it once or twice.... But you get the point.
The only worry that I have next for this weekend is the family tradition of putting up the Christmas Tree on the weekend of Thanksgiving. Had I still owned my pre-lit pre lit tree, this would be no issue, but thank you Hurricane Sandy! We do like the real trees, and even though we had the fake tree, usually got a real tree anyway. But this year, I could have really used that darn fake tree! However, we have to get a tree... and somehow, I have to convince them to wait another week. This could be a challenge... this could indeed be a big challenge....
Ok, that is all for today... Thank you so much for reading, I really appreciate your suggestions and feedback.... xo
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