The Frugal
Lifestyle and Swapping
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I have to
confess, I don’t understand swapping.
Maybe it’s because all of the swappers I’ve ever met are really just
hoarders. Living frugally isn’t
necessarily a sparse existence, but it’s pretty free of extraneous clutter. So, I don’t have anything to swap, and I’m
certainly not going to have things on hand so that I can swap them for
something I want.
That’s what
thrift stores are for. They have small appliances and clock radios that usually
work, for pretty low prices. That
arrangement doesn’t seem to sit well with some swappers – a lot of them want to
have the entire thrift store in their home – just in case. To me, frugal living should mean that there
are limits that you place on how much stuff you accumulate – regardless of how
much it cost you.
I am
continually faced with swapping advocates who suggest that swapping is an
antidote to consumerism. In my eyes it’s
the same thing. I am also faced with
swappers who say that they are saving he environment by diverting consumer goods
from landfills. It seems though that
they are just turning their residences into very expensive landfills.
So, perhaps
I’m being too hard on swappers.
Hopefully I’ll hear some constructive arguments in the comments section.
