Thursday, August 27, 2009

Consumerism and me

I'm obsessed with cars lately. Even more so than usual.

One week I want an Opel GT, the next an Audi roadster, the next a Lancer Evo. And so on. My latest obsession is the Triumph Daytona Triple, a British motorcycle.

I know Ab thinks I'm nuts and she's probably right. As she so correctly points out to me, her fits of consumerism point her towards the dollar bins at Target, and mine point me towards car dealerships and stereo shops.

I don't want to be that person who isn't happy with what they have. Because truly, I am very happy. We live in a materialistic culture, and there's always something bigger and better and shinier and we're constantly bombarded with all sorts of people telling us we need all these things to be happy.

I don't need a flashy Italian car, or a 125-inch plasma TV, or even a car stereo with Bluetooth and iPod controls to make me happy. That's one of the things I've come to understand in the last couple of years.

I already have plenty of gadgets and gizmos. We're fortunate to live in times with such readily available technology to make our lives easier and entertain us. I can surf the web on my laptop while sitting in front of my 42-inch HDTV watching a blu-ray on my PS3 and listening to music on my iPod. And I'm not exactly in a high-income tax bracket.

At the end of the day all the "stuff" in the world can never make a person truly happy. That doesn't mean it's not worth having, but in the long run it's not terribly important. Not compared to family, friends, or that special person in your life.

Just clearing that up. :)

2 comments:

  1. Uh, actually you DO need all of those things. I mean right now.
    Let me tell you about this new investment opportunity. No, it's not at all a pyramid scheme. It's the American dream my friend, and don't you deserve a dream? MLK had a dream and just look at all the great things that happened to him.

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  2. Well, you know, except for that whole shot-in-the-head thing, he did do alright for himself. Hmm....

    ReplyDelete