Thrift Therapy

Last weekend I went to my favorite local bargain mart, the Saint Agnes Thrift Shop in Atlantic Highlands.

 (Photo thanks to houseofguise.blogspot.com! See her blog about the shop here.)

While there, I overheard a shopper saying to the cashier how much she enjoyed browsing in thrift stores. She called it "Thrift Therapy." Her phrase struck a chord with me, and I have been savoring the concept since. My gratitude goes out to my fellow thrifty patron; she put the perfect label on how I feel about shopping in places like Saint Agnes.

People close to me know that I really don't enjoy shopping. I typically buy only necessities, and my overarching goal is to pay no more than what I feel is reasonable. Don't get me wrong; I'm not neurotic about it, just conservative, though the injustice of spending upwards of $50 for a single blouse made in a country known for paying below-poverty-level wages is usually enough to nix it for me.

I know someone who absolutely lives for buying and possessing things with certain brand names, who believes that the higher the price point, the higher the status an item bestows on its owner. It is to her I write here, in praise of thrift shopping.

Dear -----, I understand the thrill of buying something new. It has never been worn, carried, driven, played, applied or otherwise used by anyone but the original owner. It comes tagged or packaged, complete, graced with unsullied beauty and uncompromising usefulness, perhaps even with a lovely smell: in short, its own perfection. All these features are wonderful, and may be extended at length by loving care.

Of course, the moment you achieve the prize it begins to tarnish, doesn't it, though? Edmunds.com published a startling graphic about the depreciation rate of a new car, starting with driving it off the lot. They estimate a loss of about 9% of the purchase price the first minute of ownership. So what is the true value of anything we buy new, at any point in its life?

Clothing can easily disappoint. Even with careful attention to laundering instructions, some pieces may shrink or begin to fade or pill. The new item suddenly looks or fits wrong, and it lands at the back of the closet. All that money spent turns into something marginal rather quickly. The rush of the acquisition has already burned out, probably before you got home with it.

Other things grow weary, too. They experience the aging process at varying speeds, but eventually everything falls into that all-purpose dustbin called "used." Certain durable things stay beautiful and useful, like dishes, hand tools, furniture...only to suffer the indignity of becoming "dated." Then we have to decide whether to do as our grandparents did and wait until something breaks to replace it, or go ahead and spend money again to update.

My personal shopping inhibitors are crazy pricing; limited choices of goods made in the USA; avoiding impulse purchases; feeling satisfied with what I have most of the time; finding better uses for my discretionary funds; being creative with making things rather than buying them; and an abiding belief in the tenets of recycle/reuse. People tell me I need to loosen up and enjoy shopping more, but, in truth, I find it very stressful because it seems so often unjustified.

Now, my extravagent friend, let me explain why thrift shopping is different. The items for sale have been donated. There's no corporate entity trying to make its profit margin, inflating the prices to pay every link in the retail chain. There's no luster to wear off; it's already gone, and you know exactly what you're getting. There's no letdown in expectations, because you're buying something on its merits. Used does not necessarily mean used up; I have found many gems among the offerings.

The shopping experience itself is both scintillating and relaxing. There are no crowds at the thrift shop, and no competition for the wares on sale. I may go with the hope of finding something particular, but many times I just enjoy the slow-paced browsing and the potential to get lucky. No salesperson hovers around, buzzing annoyingly. Saint Agnes is staffed by volunteers, helpful if you ask but not looking to score a commission on your purchase. The lack of an agenda by anyone in the place is refreshing, and I enjoy seeing the familiar faces there.

Finding USA-made products is often easier among older things, which I consider another positive feature of thrift shopping. I feel better about buying used imported products than new ones, simply because they are in the domestic system already. To me that makes them American, and their purchase on this go-around helps our economy rather than filling the coffers somewhere else.

The monies spent stay local, in the form of programs for the church or aid to the community, a fulfilling support-a-good-cause facet of places like Saint Agnes Thrift Shop. Consumers of modest means are served well, and everyone gets a deal. Why not enjoy the benefit of a great bargain while donating to a charity? Why not give back a little in this unassuming, virtually effortless way?

Finally, think of the impact on the environment. These items were produced in the past, so the resources to create and distribute them were already expended. The only new costs incurred to put them back into the consumer stream are the fuel to drop them off at the shop; the operations expenses for their temporary storage; cleaning, tagging and bagging costs; and the energy to get them to their new homes upon purchase.

Let me circle back to the idea of "Thrift Therapy" for a moment. I hope you can see now why that phrase resonated with me, by all I have shared here with you. Of all the little pleasures in life, this one is so innocuous yet effective! It encompasses garage sales in many respects as well, yard sales, tag sales, consignment shops, and so on. I leave you with one last thought on the subject: your credit card limit will never be jeopardized at most thrift shops...cash and checks rule, so go with a smile on your face, a short wish list, and a small mad money stash in case you find that sweet deal.

Color Psychology Basics, Just for Fun

What is it about your favorite color that draws you to it? I find that colors I favor evoke a positive emotional response of some type; they ramp up my reaction to a greater degree than other, less intriguing hues. Color is on my mind continually, from apparel choices to decorating schemes, to metaphors about emotional state of mind. I often connect the weather or season to color choices for the day. When buying my house last year, I felt strongly that signing the papers in black ink, with a particular candy-striped pen, would bring me good luck as a homeowner.

There's little doubt that color psychology plays a role in our lives. Arttherapyblog.com has a good, basic chart of the common meanings associated with various colors. Most people dress to either project an image or to feel a certain way. Muted, darker colors in apparel convey competence, professionalism, and authority, all traits desirable in a business setting. A brighter splash of color invites attention and indicates confidence; think about the trend in "power ties" which are often red or incorporate red. Medical personnel frequently wear blue or green scrubs, cool colors and relaxing to be around.

Philosophical and therapeutic theories abound as to the relationship between color and mood in human beings. Carl Jung believed that the art produced by his patients (as well as himself), the colors and symbols they used, provided insight into their psyches and an avenue to healing. The notion of therapy through the use of color, while considered unscientific, has been popular for millennia. A holistic school of thought on chakras and energy flow relies heavily on the body's supposed interaction with frequencies of light and color.

The 12 Season Color Theory analyzes a person's natural coloring into"seasons," based on dominant and secondary characteristics, into a chart like this, to determine what colors look best in clothing and make-up:

(Borrowed from Prettyyourworld.com, with thanks.)

Consumers' response to packaging and advertising is the focus of much marketing research. One reason logos are trademarked is to protect the specific colors developed by those corporations to get their brand front and center. Next time you go shopping, be aware of how much you rely not only on the familiar brand name of your favorite products, but on the package design and color scheme.

Decorating is an expression of the mood you wish to invoke in a certain space. It is desirable to have a relaxing ambiance in your sleeping quarters, which leads many people to use cooler or neutral colors in bedrooms. Yellow is popular for kitchens; it encourages appetite and feels sunny and cheerful. Study areas often benefit from natural tones to allow concentration. Color choices, down to the particular shade within a color family, affect the sensation of warmth or coolness, coziness or openness, statement or neutrality of the room. Notice how you feel in rooms of different colors, and whether you feel the scheme makes sense for the purpose of the room.

Just for the fun of it, I took an informal poll of favorite colors last week. Of the 58 responses I got, the overall color favorite was blue, at 25.8%. Here's the breakdown by color, without respect to age or gender:

Among just males, this chart shows the line-up:

And the female preferences stack up as follows:

Interestingly, I did not find a strong correlation between age and color preference. It appears that females overall favor what are considered warmer shades: pink and purple are strong. Green seems to have universal appeal for both sexes, understandably as a natural, refreshing color. Males in my sample group overwhelmingly prefer blue, as well as other cool hues, over the red-family or warm tones.

My favorite color is red, and has been for as long as I can remember. It feels energetic and exhilarating to me, a bit dangerous even. Among my survey respondents, I am one of just four (two males and two females) who chose red.

What does this little study say about color preference overall? Just that it is an interesting topic, with slight gender-based trends. The beautiful thing is that color preferences and meanings are not carved in stone; every choice can be a new one. Enjoy!

Bring the Stars Back

Recently I had dinner with a friend, a woman in her 70s who has lived her entire life in NJ, the most densely-populated state in the US. As we exited the car in the early winter evening, she looked skyward and asked if I thought there were fewer stars than in the past. She said she had read that it seems that way because of all the artificial light we produce.
 
Her remark really got me thinking about how humans have turned night into day in many ways, and why it might be desirable but also destructive. Since we discovered fire some 1.6 million years ago, we have had the ability to generate light, and the trend toward controlling darkness has continued ever since.

It's easy to list the benefits of natural light: better visibility for safety and productivity, and elevated hormones for better mood, among other things. But does artificially extending the number of hours of light in a day present a physiological downside? All living creatures have circadian cycles, naturally established bio-rhythms that govern important functions like digestion, growth, reproduction and migration. Only humans seek to manipulate or alter these built-in patterns, and to some extent we are successful at it. Unfortunately, our efforts in this arena do not affect only us; plants and animals similarly exposed to our artificial light suffer from changes to their natural cycles. From hatchling turtles confused about the way to the ocean, to birds migrating off-schedule, we are not alone in experiencing unhealthy changes to life cycles. (See Verlyn Klinkenborg's article "Our Vanishing Night" on Nationalgeographic.com.)

The ability to work (or play) through the night may seem a boon to industry, service and even pleasure pursuits. Studies have shown, however, that people who do shift work or night work are more prone to experience poor sleep quality, health problems, family and emotional stresses related to being out of synch. A persistent state of exhaustion makes driving and other similar activities more hazardous as well.

And is the type, quality or intensity of artificial light healthy? No, in many cases. A study by the AMA last year, entitled "Light Pollution: Adverse Health  Effects of Nighttime Lighting," addresses in particular the blue spectrum lights now commonly used in vehicle headlamps and electronics equipment. Not only do people experience discomfort from the glare, there is evidence of a possible link between exposure to such lighting and various health problems, vis-a-vis disruption of our natural cycles. Sky and Telescope e-magazine blogger Camille Carlisle presented an excellent review and summary of the AMA article.

In his farcical 1784 essay, An Economical Project, Benjamin Franklin wrote about forcing Parisians to rise with the sun, presumably to tire them out by dark, in order to save on candle costs. What are the financial advantages and drawbacks to generating artificial light? A manufacturing enterprise that runs all the time is theoretically more productive than one that shuts down for several hours in the same 24-hour period. Deduct from any additional profit the operating costs to keep plants open at night, pay the workers the shift differential, cover related healthcare costs, and maintain equipment than runs nonstop, and what is the real financial gain?

Superstorm Sandy ripped through our area on October 29, 2012. For days, weeks, even months in some cases, we were without power all along the coast, here in New Jersey and beyond. One thing I noticed immediately was the utter darkness we experienced at night, and (setting aside the hardships of the situation for a moment) how soothing it felt without the constant glare of light. Over the holidays, did you take note of the differences in effect and sensation to your eyes between older style decorative lights and the newer, brighter LED bulbs? It is said that candlelight is the most flattering; I am starting to believe it is the closest to natural light and possibly the least harmful, too.

There may not actually be fewer stars in the sky, but my friend is correct in her observation that we can't see the stars nearly so well as we used to. I only hope that by the time I am her age we have not washed the view out completely with the fake sparkle of artificial light.