Health & Fitness

Out With The Old And In With The Old

I can't remember the last time I bought something new. I confess: I'm an upcycler, a thrift store junkie, a bargain hound.

My hippy parents are partially to blame. I grew up wearing second-hand clothes and living amid mismatched furniture. My mum was such a regular at the local "charity shops" (as we call them in England), that they would telephone her when new items arrived. Meanwhile, my dad hoarded paperbacks like he was a one-man library.

But it went the other way too: when we were done with our old things, they went right back to the thrift store and the cycle of hand-me-downs continued.

We went to "jumble sales" (the English equivalent of garage and yard sales, since owning a garage in England is rare and it's too wet for an outdoor sale), which took place in the town hall or at local schools. We never passed by "free" items on the side of the road. We saved old food containers and reused them for storage, lunch boxes and toy drum sets. I was taught that "new" is wasteful, especially when society is so aptly designed that one man's trash is another man's treasure.

We all move through phases in our lives. We are children, we grow, we have our own children. We move, we go on diets, we follow certain fashion trends, we take up a hobby. All of these phases come with "stuff" attached, and when it comes time for you to need that certain "stuff," you can bet that someone else has just finished with it.

Having grown up a second-hand kid, you'd think that I might be inclined in my adult life to buck the trend and fill my life with bright, shiny newness. But bargain hunting is so ingrained in me that I can't morally justify going to the mall and paying $200 for a pair of sunglasses or even $50 for a pair of jeans. Furniture stores are the worst. A lamp for $100? A side table for $150? A rug for $300? I know I'll see all these items at thrift stores and garage sales for 10 percent of that price, and my cash contribution is often going to charity or helping a local family pay for a much-needed vacation.

There's something else about reusing other people's goods that I appreciate. It builds a sense of community. It reminds us that we're not so different. You may have been through a stage in your life that I will soon be going through, and your "old" becomes my "new." Life is seasonal, and it's a beautiful and humbling thought that we're all in it together.

On Saturday, more than 170 households in Pleasant Hill hosted garage and yard sales as part of a citywide event. I drove around the different neighborhoods and met people in all stages of life. Some were young parents, cleaning out the baby clothes. Others had children who had flown the nest and left behind a house full of memories to sort through. They were happy at the chance to clean out the old and prepare for the new.

And I was happy to help.


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