Challenge Accepted?

I want to clarify something from my last post. I understand that living in America costs money, a lot of it. Believe me I understand that. Some guys from church and I are trying to rent a place in Colorado Springs, I know what rent is. I know that food prices keep creeping upwards and that insurance premiums are always present. I understand this. What I am talking about, however, is what we do with our money AFTER the cost of living. Do we really need 4,000 square foot homes? Do we really need a new car when used ones can be found anywhere (my friend just got a running subaru for $1,000. How many video games, new clothes, Ipods, Ipads, and Iphones do we really need? Is the 35 dollar a month media charge on your cell phone worth it when all is said and done?

Ok, now that that message is out of the way I want to give you a challenge, and I will partake of it right along with you:

First, some back-story.

I believe that one of the instigators to our insatiable need to buy is that buying itself is a semi-professional sport, taught when we are young. There is a reason kids are known for hanging out in malls. Somehow, marketers have convinced us that shopping as a form of entertainment is totally acceptable and highly desirable. We learn from an early age that anything we want, we can probably get somehow, whether it be asking parents for money, or just buying it ourselves. But we learn to look for things to buy just to buy them!

I'm not going to lie, I do it too! I'm a spend thrift so my shopping extravaganzas happen in two places, Craigslist and Ebay. However, I catch myself looking at things like video games even when I don't have the time to play them, or when I haven't even touched a new one I already have (yes I do own video games, don't judge. My brothers and I keep in touch over Playstation Network as none of us are big phone talkers :)

But seriously why do we do this? We have an inbred urge to buy things.

I read a book once that talked about how every time we buy something our brain gets a shot of dopamine (chemical agent which gives us a pleasurable sensation). Seriously, its an addiction to getting that dopamine high! We have to control this urge!

Now I understand that none of you are probably as bad as the girl on Confessions of a Shopaholic (I have a sister, again don't judge), but I think we all find ourselves wandering through stores (virtual or not) "just looking". However, this just looking is easily turned into an obsession of "man I NEED that". On craigslist one time, all of a sudden I really NEEDED a DSLR camera. Why? I have NO idea! I haven't taken a picture in over 4 years probably (if facebook didn't exist there would be no proof I ever went to college).

But because it was there, and it was essentially "cheap" (in the $400 range instead of $700-$1000) I had to have it. I didn't thank goodness, but looking back its SCARY how easily this happens.

I want to give us all a challenge today. Let us all, for one month, not try to window shop, to ebay surf, to look on craigslist. Let us flee from the dopamine high for one month. This means no extra items in the walmart kart, no excess walking through the mall, none of it.

Yes you can buy deodorant (PLEASE do). Yes, I will still look for houses to rent. Yes you can buy things that you need, which are preconceived and the reason you go to the store. However, for one whole month let's stay away from the temptation to suddenly inherit a NEED we didn't know we had. Let us do a cleansing from the shopaholic nature of our country. If you are willing to take this challenge with me please leave a comment below and let me know how your month goes. I will try to do the same.

Thank you all for reading
-Just Some Thoughts