Day 25

Day 25. Since I began washing my clothes by hand, I've been trying to do as little laundry as possible. I've been wearing more dresses, because my entire outfit is one piece, and it cuts down on the number of items that I have to wash. I've also been choosing flip-flops over tennis shoes more often, to save on having to wash so many socks. The fact that the weather is getting warmer has been a big help in making these small changes.

I needed to put some laundry away from about two weeks ago. Moneyless month or not, I still hate putting away laundry and will avoid the chore at all costs, until I can't take stepping over the clean pile any more. When I finally got around to it, I began to feel overwhelmed by all of the clothes I own. I looked around and though "I don't even wear 90% of this stuff". Except for one or two things that I really like, my wardrobe has by and large become...burdensome.

I thought that not spending any money would have allowed me to forget about clothes for a while, but instead, it has made me more aware of the clothes I already own. It is shocking to me how many articles of clothing I own but do not wear, so putting away clothes turned into cleaning out my closet... Instead of spending my time bringing more things into my apartment, this project has given me the opportunity to step back and take an inventory of my things. Each item I own requires more thought than just the initial decision of whether to buy it or not. I've come to understand that after buying a new pair of jeans, a coat, shirt, etc., there is still so much consideration that must be given to that item over time. In a sense, I own my clothes, but it is also an ongoing trade. They own some of me as well, in the form of my time, energy, and of course, money. I've learned that once I buy a piece of clothing, it is just the beginning of our relationship together. There is so much more attention that thing requires long after I first bring it into my home. In short, the more I own, the more I feel owned.

I found myself going through piece by piece and thinking "is this item really worth my time right now?"...In the future, that is one of the questions I'll ask myself in order to decide whether or not to buy something in the first place.