Happy #BuyNothingDay: Enjoy your time off to rest and reflect
Every year, instead of trampling my fellow human beings in a race to be the first to grab the latest gadget nobody needs on Black Friday – just one day after we’ve all shared how thankful we are for all the stuff we already have – I like to celebrate Buy Nothing Day.
And I encourage you to celebrate with me!
Even if your holiday shopping is all done online, don’t you find it a little frustrating to wake up the Friday after Thanksgiving to an inbox stuffed with ads? Sure, they are offering you crazy discounts and deals, but why must it be TODAY? Seriously, why are we all going so corporate consumer crazy just one day after we shared heartfelt thanks for our friends, loved ones, and our comfortable positions in life?
It drives me a little nuts, to be honest. And, like Charlie Brown, I truly dislike the commercialism that surrounds the holiday season.

So although I do typically purchase food on Buy Nothing Day (woman cannot live on coffee and leftover cauliflower mash alone, after all), I avoid all the capitalist hype associated with the deals and steals.
Instead of listening to the noise, I tune it out in favor of solitude. It gives me time to think about what the holidays really mean to me, what I really want out of life, whom I’d like to share my precious moments with, and what path I’m truly on.
Today isn’t about buying things. It’s about relaxing and reevaluating – and finishing my NaNoWriMo project! And with that, it’s time for me to get back to work.
Happy Buy Nothing Day, everyone.
What do you like to do on the Friday after Thanksgiving?