tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712913.post8381297532116391710..comments2008-09-25T12:42:17.832-04:00Anthony Triolonoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712913.post-32412614683595571752008-09-25T12:41:00.000-04:002008-09-25T12:41:00.000-04:00You might also try <A HREF="http://www.freecycle.org" REL="nofollow"> freecycle</A> for some more "hand-me-down" items.Tonyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10892372426398634572noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5712913.post-59246329996205324632008-09-24T16:09:00.000-04:002008-09-24T16:09:00.000-04:00I agree with what you're saying. My wife and I are pretty good at not falling into this mindset. We don't have expensive tastes, we don't have flashy cars, we don't go crazy decorating our house, we don't have widescreen TVs and all the latest gadgets, etc. But, we have everything we need and more. All in all we have more than than the average person when compared to the rest of the world. The area we live in is very wealthy and I'm quite sure our income is a fraction of many of our neighbors. We got there through hard work, spending carefully and making the best of what we have. We're not too proud that we won't except hand-me-down clothes for the children or buy used cars etc. There are many ways of living comfortably and having nice things without spending lots of money. I recently did landscaping around the house. Along our front walkway is 1 inch red stone. For edging I went in the woods behind our house and dug up a few wheelbarrows of large stone which I washed and lined up along the walkway. It looks good but it sure isn't expensive or flashy. I have many examples like this. One of my new discoveries is Craigslist. Under the for sale section is a 'FREE' section. We've brought home bicycles, TVs, furniture and many more items in the last few months that have saved us from having to make purchases. Many of these items were in excellent shape. I know, I sound cheap, well BTW I did a cleanup last month and put out on the curb probably a few thousand dollars(original cost) worth of items. Bikes, TVs, printers, furniture clothes, etc. I think it's an important lesson to teach your children also, that they don't need to have the latest and greatest things, that something that is maybe not the top-of-the-line, or used, or hand-me-down can still be just as good. Oh, and with the money we save, occasionally we do get something to show off.JSWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12844058197989044899noreply@blogger.com