Happy Buy Nothing Day tomorrow
Happy Thanksgiving! And tomorrow, Happy Buy Nothing Day!
Yep, the annual un-consumerist celebration happens once again, on that day once known as Black Friday. Buy Nothing Day simply asks you to ... buy nothing that day -- A 24-hour moratorium on consumer spending on the day that, for many, is defined by shopping.
No, this isn't like the "don't buy gas today" e-mail forwards that promise something akin to an economic collapse and a new world order if you do as told. No, this doesn't mean the end of holiday gifts (though there is a Buy Nothing Christmas movement too).
It's simply an invitation not to follow the shopping herd for a day, a chance to reflect on consumer culture, and perhaps an opportunity to do, um, fun stuff.
For ex, you can become a zombie for a day at one of the Zombie Infestation and Breakouts. Apparently, Buy Nothing Day and zombies have a bit of a history. From what I gather, people dress like zombies or zombie victims and "attack" and "convert" shoppers into zombies, nonviolently. The breakout schedule:
- 1 p.m. Pan Pacific Park, near 3rd and Gardner in Los Angeles
- 2:30 p.m. near the Beverly Center, Los Angeles
- 3:30 p.m. Mann Chinese Theatre, near Hollywood & Highland, Los Angeles
If, like me, you'd rather not be a zombie, join the silent march in Santa Monica that promises to "be similar of the zombie walk, except NOT dressing as a zombie (I don't think most people will understand the zombie thing, and we will only look crazy...)." Participants are invited to carry anti-consumerist signs. Meet at 3 p.m. near the dinosaur by the Barnes & Noble at Third Street Promenade and Wilshire to walk down the promenade in silence. Need more info? E-mail PozzoEmpire@gmail.com.
Aside from the march, my current plan's to catch up on my NaNoWriMo novel -- I'm roughly 14,000 words behind, but if I fuel my fiction with the powers of anti-consumerism....
If you must do something holiday shopping-related, spend the day planning out your gifts and decorations and festivities, leaving the shopping until the next day. A plan also usually has the benefit of letting you cut out the stuff you don't really need to buy.
While you do that, give American Public Media's series Consumed a listen. The series asks "Is our consumer society sustainable?" and covers a lot of ground: "We follow consumerism from its origins to its dominance in the world's economy and, arguably, its culture. And we examine how, and if, it might be adapted to reduce its destructive consequences while keeping store shelves stocked."
Images courtesy of Adbusters and Straycouches.com
