Let's opt for something completely unrelated to medicine or residency. Given the Christmas season and the materialistic aspect that comes with it, I wanted to dedicate a post to purchasing power. Whether you live comfortably or paycheque to paycheque, there are many ways you could be mindful and purposeful in your expenses. I try my best to align my values with my purchases.
My main overriding values are the following:
- environmental impact
- philanthropic aspect
- ethical impact
- local/provincial/national support
- frugality to save money for above
Here's my approach to some major categories:
Transportation: cycle if weather permits, public transportation, borrow my mother's car, or use Evo (car-sharing program with hybrids). When I finally buy a new car for myself, it will be an electric/hybrid car.
Fashion accessories: 90% of the shoes I wear are TOMS. That's been the case for the past 10+ years. TOMS donates a pair of shoes to a child living in poverty for every pair sold. They expanded their model to eyewear where for every pair of glasses they sell, they provide eye exams, surgery, and eyewear to those in need. I've used my first and only pair of TOMS sunglasses since 2012. Sticklers for price points need to remind themselves that they're essentially buying two pairs of shoes, but giving one away.
Clothing: Reduction is my main goal here. I have a simple style. I buy new clothes to replace worn out clothes, and I let my clothes go a while before deciding to replace them. I wore a grey hoody until my elbows wore through the fabric, then Bailey sewed elbow patches on, and that gave me a few more years until I wore through the patches and then I bought a new grey hoody. Another important factor that can't go unstated is that I'm disciplined about my body proportions (i.e. diet and exercise) which allows me to keep wearing the same items. Cycling season makes my legs, butt, and lower back larger which makes pants fit tighter, but if it's reaching a limit and the season isn't going to end soon, I adjust my riding pattern to be less interval-based (stimulates muscle growth) and more paced (maintains muscle tone). Typically the off-season is long enough for me to lose muscle mass before I would need to buy the next size up.
Food: My stance is frugality and environmentally conscious without sacrificing nutrition. For me that means drinking water (not juice, tea, or coffee) and not buying meat or cow's milk at the grocery store. The agricultural industry contributes to green-house gas emissions, deforestation, and water pollution and thus global warming at a greater amount than the energy (coal, nuclear) sector and transportation industry. The majority of land cleared for agriculture is to grow feed for animals, which we then eat or their byproducts. Another not so fun fact, the vast majority of antibiotics used in the world is in agriculture. Same concept applies to humans in that the use of antibiotics is to fight off disease because the animals are raised in disgusting conditions where infections abound. I still eat meat, but only when I eat out. When I move to Mill Bay (and start making more money), I'll participate in a CSA (community supported agriculture) program to support local farmers and add some variety of fresh produce to my menu. For residency, my menu is the following
Breakfast: oatmeal, blueberries (frozen fresh from BC farmers' summer harvest), ground flax seed, all natural peanut butter, and a splash of unsweetened almond milk
Lunch: I rarely get to eat this meal. So it's typically quick snacks like unsalted pretzels (from Bulk Barn), roasted almonds (bought raw from bulk, roast at home, no added salt), baby carrots, and hummus made fresh by a local restaurant.
Dinner: one week black beans (bulk dried), bell peppers, corn, brown rice, quinoa, salsa, baked with cheese. Another week: spaghetti squash with whatever I want to mix with it (usually bell peppers) and a tomato or pesto sauce. Another week: baked pasta. No added salt in any dish. Garlic in every dish.
Treats: Girl Guide Chocolate Mint cookies. I buy a case (12 boxes) each year from a friend's daughter to support her, but also to get a year's supply of delicious cookies.
Scheduled meals out: weekly dinner with Grandma, Sunday family dinner, once a month Perogy Friday with Yan. Beyond that, I typically have a meal with Kurtis, a Deutsch, and residency friends at least once a month each.
Alcohol: I love beer, but only buy it when I'm out to eat or for social events. I do not buy beer to consume at home.
Media/Arts: I stream songs on Spotify to determine which songs/albums I like then I buy it on iTunes. I go to the theatres to see new movies. I use Netflix for older movies or I buy it if Netflix doesn't have it. I don't have cable so I use YouTube to see Stephen Colbert's latest monologue, Seth Meyer's latest "A Closer Look" segment, and if I want to watch an episode of something like SNL or The Good Place (the only network shows I moderately follow), I go to Global TV's website to watch it. All online methods are licensed with ads and count toward ratings. If my favourite bands are playing in Vancouver, or if a play/musical by the Arts Club or Bard on the Beach, or a show by the VSO tickles my fancy, I'll buy tickets to see them. My guitar is a Norman (Canadian) and my favourite drum sticks were Ayotte hickory 7As (Canadian) until they stopped making them. Paying for and supporting the arts has been very important my entire adult life.
The one minor exception I make is with books and that is where I use the library, not because I'm cheap, but because it's my way of proving to the government that library's are vital to communities. If something is important, use it and make sure you're counted whether it's buying the ticket/song/album, streaming the reputable service, or scanning your library card - the numbers matter. Of course I buy books as gifts and also for myself if I particularly enjoy a book I borrowed.
Housing: I know for residency I just need a place to sleep and sometimes eat, meaning I don't mind having a roommate to split rent with. When I move to Mill Bay and need a place to decompress and be at ease, I'll live on my own. I layer, wear slippers, use lights only if I'm home and need it to be on, use energy efficient bulbs, hand wash dishes and air dry them, use the toaster oven instead of the big oven, never overfill the fridge or freezer. All this reduces hydro usage. My mattress is an Endy (Canadian company) and the best sleep ever. All my other furniture is second hand ($30 for my desk, $10 for side tables, loveseat & wardrobe from my aunt, drawers, book shelf, and mirror from my parents, coat rack from a clothing store going out of business, and still using my childhood double bedframe). Still using my Dyson vacuum that I got when Nadine and I first lived together in 2005.
Gifts: Admittedly this is the area where frugality goes out the window. This is intentional. I will always be frugal in spending on myself so that I can be more generous to others. Christmas time, I always hit up Ten Thousand Villages, a non-profit volunteer-run shop that sells artisans' creations that are fair trade. For chocolate lovers, there's Thomas Haas (local world-renowned and socially conscious chocolatier), Rogers' Chocolates (BC-based, fair trade), and Purdys (Canadian, less focused on fair trade and environmental impact). I buy my Unicef Christmas cards from Pier 1. I have some special people who are "experience" people, so I typically buy them gift cards to local businesses for various shenanigans (escape rooms, archery classes, rock climbing, straight razor shaves, delicious meals).
So there you have it. By no means am I saying everybody should be like me. There's lots of room for improvement on my end. For instance, I'd like to start buying clothing from fair trade more ethically based brands. I also acknowledge that I have different tastes from others. I don't wear jewelry (don't have pierced ears), but that can be a way to buy locally and ethically. I don't drink coffee, juice, or tea and again that's an opportunity to buy local and fair trade. I hope you can incorporate some of these strategies into your spending (or lack thereof) or at least think about how you can use your purchasing power toward a greater good.
