On Fridays at 365 Less Things I share with you my favourite comments from my wonderful readers and my favourite web finds of the week. I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did.
Favourite Comments. Enjoy!
New reader Sarah tells us her story in the comment. Welcome Sarah.
I really appreciated this vote of confidence from Jo H.
Loved this little story that Megan S had to share with us. The lady involved was both old and wise.
Jen had some interesting things to say in this comment on both having less clothes and the accumulating of clutter for comfort reasons.
Favourite Web Finds. Happy reading!
Although not all this article appeals to me there are some great tips on making the most out of the clothes you own rather than buy more. From Jillee @ One Good Thing by Jillee ~ Shop your closet…
I loved the theme of this post from Asymetrical ~ Not a natural writer. It is more than the title and beginning suggests.
Here is a promo for a book that might be interesting to read ~ http://www.uctv.tv/shows/Stuff-A-Cluttered-Life-Middle-Class-Abundance-Ep-1-24699
Perhaps we could use this trigger idea from The Minimalists to get us all decluttering
Here is something for the parents of little ones to think about. http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/consuming_kids_the_commercialization_of_childhood_2008/
Thank you to all my wonderful readers who sent through many of these links to me. I can’t remember who sent what but you know who you are.
Today’s Mini Mission
Declutter old clothing that fitted with your previous life that are now no longer needed. This could be sports uniforms, work clothing, clothes that no longer fit, clothing that is inappropriate to the climate you now live in, clothing that is inappropriate for your age, maternity clothing if you have no intentions of having more children…
Eco Tip for the Day
When trying something new like a new sport or a new hobby, consider starting out with secondhand, hired or borrowed equipment and only graduate to your own personalised items (should you feel the need) once you are sure you will continue.
This has been such a comment rich week and I have made sure to read every comment even though I couldn’t respond to all of them like I wanted to. The ones you have listed were really good. These links have a lot of impact. The first link to Shopping Your Closet reminds me that my goal for my wardrobe is a good one. To shop in such a way that I have more than one use for each piece–so they can be combined into many outfits. Asymetrical’s Joshua Milburn reminds me that in order to be a balanced person I need to look beyond my natural talents and find things I can do with some persistence. In the article on triggers Joshua reminds me that I CAN conquer some of those things I want to change by just having little triggers. I had forgotten that. It so helps to be reminded. Finally, the two videos just validate everything you stand for in writing this blog and what we are all trying to move away from. I have shared these two videos with several people. One is my pastor. He is in a sermon series about Stewardship and Sunday he talked about being less consumer oriented and to be better stewards of what we buy, look at, etc. I think he will really get a lot of “meat” for sermons out of these videos.
Hi Deb, it certainly was a big week for comments. There were so many and I wrote so many responses that I forgot to separate off some of the ones I wanted to highlight today. In the end my brain was too fried to remember where and what they were. Hence the limited number of them published today.
There were some great links there also which I can thank both my husband and many of our great readers for sending through to me.
I love your pastor* and hope his sermons make a huge impact on the behaviours of his parishioners. The more people we can encourage to take this seriously the better.
*When I typed in pastor before my brain latched on to the first thing that sounded like pastor and I typed pasta. Glad I noticed that mistake before I hit Post Comment.
Pasta just sounds like you are from the south. Grin. I think Jeff’s sermons make a difference because I had two people comment to me about decluttering before we even got out of the building. Then S and a friend what was here visiting talked about it on Monday.
By the way, I sold my Cricut. I have had it 2 years and the last time I cut anything on it was in Nov of 2011 for the Ladies Tea. I thought back and realized that most of what I cut on it was either for Christmas cards or for the Tea. Well, I am no longer in charge of Women’s Ministries so not the Tea either. Happy Dance!! I can go over to a friend’s if I want to cut anything for Christmas cards. So out it went. If all goes well, we will be able to sell two 6-drawer metal storage units soon. Another Happy Dance!!!!
Ha ha Deb J, I am from down south, way down south.
Two 6 drawer metal storage units, now that does sound like a lot of liberated space. Good for you.
Deb J., that’s fantastic! I have not scrapbooked in 3 (?) years and I am seriously thinking it is time for that stuff to go to someone who loves to do it. I never did get a Cricut, though. 🙂
Michelle, I am no longer doing much scrapbooking either so decided it was time to weed out what I don’t use. I still make our own greeting cards but have found there are a lot of things in the scrapbooking line I no longer use just for the cards. I’m also glad that I got the Cricut used and for a good price since I didn’t use it that long.
Wow Everyone – you MUST watch the clip on middle class families – I ended up watching the three in the series. I found it a fascinating study and wow, my life is changed! I found watching shopping in costco fascinating, such big packets and boxes. I showed a bit to my son and he wants to go home and count the number of items in our house now.
I was interested to hear that packaged dinners only shaved 12 minutes off a meal preperation, that is good data to know.
Colleen – I am interested to know since you have lived in America and Australia – are the refridgerators in the USA bigger than ours? I have noticed that while watching TV but wasn’t sure of my observation.
I also found it interesting that some mums were cooking individual meals for their kids – I have to admit that I have only 4-5 recipes that everyone in the house loves, there is always one person who isn’t a fan of a particular recipe across the board of the rest of my repetoire, but I don’t make a different meal for them.
The mother they were interviewing who discovered dinner packs – she was so excited! We don’t have those here, I can see that they could have a place in a busy household, especially if a mum works longer hours than I do.
Interesting co-relation between the front of the fridge and the clutter in the household!
I though that was interesting too, Moni, how the refrigerator (the front and even the inside) seemed to be mimicked in the rest of the home. I am interested in what Colleen has to say on the differences there in Australia. Myself, I have lived in Europe and in the U.S., and things were on a much smaller scale in Europe. Homes were smaller and usually housed more than one family and the kitchens, appliances included, were much smaller. People over there spent more time outside of their homes too it seemed. Whether it was at the local market getting fresh goods or being outside in general. I am sure not all areas are like that in Europe but it seemed to me that the priorities were different. It seemed contentment was not based on the square footage of a person’s home or the size of their television screen.
Hi Jen – I thought the same thing re: home size. I think Americans (of which I am one) get wrapped up in a “dream” life of trying to have it all and trying to stuff it into our homes. I’m not sure where this over-consumerism came from. Advertisers maybe? I had a friend who was looking at homes and he “needed” to have a theater room and a work-out room and a permanent entertainment room/winebar and yay for him that he had the money to afford it, but boy, I don’t want those things in a house. And there are only two people living in his house. My husband and I have a 2 bed/1 bath and my dream home would simply have 2 bathrooms! LOL
December, 2011, the newspaper had a great article about an author who, when she was young, stayed with a family in France. It was a tiny house with lots of people, but she loved the atmosphere. Dinners every evening with a tablecloth and nice dishes. I think the point of the article was that the French live small in a very big way and that us Americans could learn something from them. Kind of how they don’t buy, buy, buy but what they do buy, they buy the very best, like fine soaps or linens. That really struck me. For years I have had “good” dishes or linens that sit in boxes for what occasion, I’m not sure, because we certainly do not entertain a bunch. I donated my mediocre dishes and we use our good dishes everyday now and I’m so pleased when I use them. I’m not saying that I need to have the very best of everything (certainly hope it doesn’t come across that way), just that don’t we all deserve to enjoy our living surroundings?
On a funny note, I am addicted to HGTV’s House Hunters, U.S. and the International one and I think it is comical that when a person is home shopping in Europe, the first thing they complain about is the size of the applicances!!
I agree totally with your thoughts here. Living in a big house just means that it has to be cleaned. Of course, I guess one could opt for house cleaning services. It is funny though what is deemed by some as necessity. Our culture does help foster that mindset though, especially advertising.
By using your good dishes, I think that just gives you greater appreciation for the meal and will only serve to make it that much more pleasurable. Life is too short not to use the good dishes.
I am drawn to those HGTV programs a lot lately also. I rarely see anyone that is downsizing though. I know there are times that it is necessary to upgrade, especially when children come along. It seems to be a common theme that people want bigger. They do complain about appliance size on the international version of the show and they usually comment about the size of the homes too. It is a very interesting dynamic that is portrayed.
I don’t know if this holds true all over Europe but seems to me you can find within walking distance many little shops where you can buy your groceries each day or often. So you don’t need the refrigerator that can hold a weeks/months worth of groceries. Here in the US you have little of that unless you live in a few BIG cities. The idea of having to drive to the closest store every day and then walk through that big place just to get a few groceries puts us off. If I could walk a few blocks and find it all it would help in two ways–everything bought fresh and some exercise at the same time. I’ve always envied the European way of shopping for groceries.
Sometimes I think we just have too many choices in the U.S. regarding our purchases. Just imagine how a person from a very poor country would feel coming to the U.S. They would feel so overwhelmed! How do you know one product is better than another product? What about this product over here? How about this product in a different store?? Holy smokes! Shopping can be simply exhausting!! [throwing arms in the air in a gesture of defeat!]
Michelle, I so agree with you. We have way too many choices. I do feel very sorry for anyone who comes here for a “3rd World” country. I have learned to ignore advertising, read labels, and follow my list. I find the brand I like and stick with it. I have to ride a disability scooter when I shop and that makes it even more of an ordeal. I’m glad to have the internet so I can do research. Once I find what I want I then call the stores that are supposed to carry that item and have them hold it for me. Sure saves me a lot of work. Except with groceries I still have to go around with a cart (a friend goes along) and pick it all out. Ugh!
Hi Michelle, the old spoiled for choice syndrome. Having too much choice can spoil the experience as much as enhance it. One can easily do their head in trying to decide.
After Wal Mart dropped itself in my country, we did discover the “over” stuff. However they adapt to the country and its culture, so they give you a lot of choices, but mostly of what we have elsewhere. Their key is having a “monstrous” place that “robes” you of at least 2 hours of your life, even to buy very few things. I think that in the US you have the “bigger” of everything. The biggest mall I ever been here, was smaller than a big mall I visited there. And I wish Deb J could see where I live, I guess she would really like it. I have a small grocery shop close by and I can avoid big supermarkets if I want to. I can by fresh products in a place that only sells fresh fruits and vegetables. It is really great to save money and to avoid excess stocking, as has been said above.
Andreia, I envy you those small, individual markets. We have the second largest Wal-Mart a mile from us and that is mostly where we buy groceries because they have the lowest prices overall. On a limited budget you go where you have to but that doesn’t mean we like it. We do have another store that has better produce that is about 2 miles away.
Hi Deb J! The thing here is that Wal Mart does not have the better prices in fresh products. Their “good” price is for industrialized goods. That is why is better to buy in little places. I know what you mean. When I am in a “credit card” moment is a big place or no place, because small only takes cash.
Our Wal-Mart here doesn’t have the better price on fresh stuff either. That’s why I go to another store that is more organic and whole food friendly. It’s such a pain to have to drive to two places.
I know this is late but I have to say the stores here in the States are overwhelming even if you grew up with the number of choices. When I was 13, we moved to Egypt. I don’t know what it is like now in Digla and Maadi but when we lived there the shops were what we would term “holes in the wall”. Very small. Often we had to go to a number of different places to get what we needed grocery-wise. And, yes, the variety was limited.
When I came back from there, my first experience going into a Wal-Mart (one of the original small ones, not a Super Wal-Mart) induced my first ever panic attack. It was too much stuff, too much choice. The shelves seemed to tower above me. I suffered culture shock going to Egypt, only to learn that I now suffered culture shock coming back to the States.
So, I can only imagine what it is like to people who grew up in a place like Egypt. o.o
When my son was about nine I had him count the choices of toothpaste we had at the grocery store. Including flavor and size differences he came up with around thirty. In one grocery store…not even a drug store! And that was 8 years ago. Too much! It made me want to go home and just use baking soda for tooth cleaning like my dad did.
Hi Julie and welcome to 365 Less Things. Interesting thing is that just this weekend I bought a tube of toothpaste and I felt my grocery store was now stocking less brands, curious. Your story raises another question that plagues me every time I go to buy toothpaste. Why do some Colgate options cost so much more than others, almost twice as much, when they all say Colgate Total and have the same active ingredients in the same proportions.
This is how I understand it too, in European society. Mind you in Australia we are not that different when it comes to have shops conveniently nearby. Unfortunately because their turnover less, therefore their buying power is low, they tend to have to charge more which perpetuates the cycle of people preferring to shop at the cheaper larger grocery chains.
Hi Moni, we did have the biggest fridge I have ever lived with when I was in America but that being said it wasn’t really that big. And I dare say most Americas don’t have another one out in the garage. I only have a 430lt fridge/freezer (300 fridge 130 Freezer). It is less than twelve months old and is only the second one we have owned in our almost 26 years of marriage. We did own a very small extra freezer for a few years but have never owned a second fridge and the one we do have now is larger than the one we had for the first 25 years.
As for cooking differently for each child. Liam, from the age of about 13 was the only exception to what the rest of the family ate because he became vegetarian. It was only the meat we had to get around there for a while until Steve started eating low carb. Then it got more painful because rice and pasta were off his menu.
We have a nice side by side fridge and a extra stand-up freezer because we buy a quarter beef every year. It is also nice on occasion for a pizza box or if a turkey or ham are on sale, I can go ahead and get them. 🙂 My grandma who lived on a farm in the country had this huge chest freezer from maybe the 30’s. I swear it was as big a a car. The lid was broken and it always scared me that she was going to fall in and we’d then find Popsicle Granny!
Hi Michelle, I am sure there is probably no comparison on the savings but have you ever actually done the math on how much it costs to run the extra fridge v the saving on buying the beef. Mind you this could be tricky without being able to measure how much power the fridge uses. I have been tempted to buy a power metre for my home so I can test the efficiency of some of the appliances I use.
I understand why you were concerned for you Granny. I dare say the situation you describe is entirely possible. My mum used to have a huge chest freezer when we were young. The problem with it was that things just got so buried under one another. I think we lived for a couple of months on what was in there at one point. God only knows how long some of that stuff had actually been in it. Its a wonder we didn’t all get six. If I remember correctly there was about six frozen chickens.
I don’t know about savings, really. This is more an issue of quality for us. The farm that the beef comes from is 20 minutes from our house. We can drive by and see happy cows out in the fields – – well, until they end up in our freezer. Is that gross? I don’t know. I am glad that they get to roam out in fields instead of crunched up in a feedlot. There are a lot of those here. This beef comes from a long-time family of ranchers and are, I believe, fairly natural as opposed to a lot of chemicals. We do tend to run out before the next quarter comes in and that is fine with me. Hubby wants to get a half and I think that is way too much for two people. So far, I have been able to convince him that a quarter is enough.
We started out with a chest freezer and that was simply a waste. I could never find what I was looking for and I thought I’d end up dumped in it!
I actually watched those videos about the cluttered middle class earlier this week. I am thinking about getting the book. I was so amazed at the number of stuffed animals. I am not being judgmental because I have dealt with my own issues with different types of clutter over the past year or more. Truly though no one could possibly ever play with that many toys. It is sad because it seems to be just a symptom of many other things. A vicious cycle of having no time or energy and just trying to keep your head above water. Not to mention the stress that is involved. For many people too, if they run out of room they opt to get a bigger house in the hopes of having enough space to get away from it all once in a while. I would say on average people have been programmed to think bigger, as well as more, is better. Bigger houses, bigger kitchens, bigger appliances…it goes on and on, and it is insanity.
In the video they mentioned how much of the guilt of having to handle the household landed on the wife. I would say that is probably true, because women do tend to put a lot of pressure on themselves to be and do everything. However, I know that the clutter that I once had in my own home, bothered everyone who lived in it. I know that it bothered my spouse, but even if he mentioned anything concerning it, it would not matter to me because I did not have the energy at the time to deal with it. I was not the only one to blame, but the majority of it was my stuff which needed to be dealt with. Everyone has their own point of time when they know enough is enough. I hope that those families see the light eventually.
Sorry I went off on a tangent there…
Go off on whatever tangent you like Jen. I had a guy jokingly tell me today that he was glad his wife wasn’t at the same function because if she met me she might start hounding him to get rid of all his toys. I have to admit the situation is usually the other way around where the men are wanting to introduce me to their wives. Perhaps unwittingly realising that perhaps they actually own as much clutter as their spouses.
I would say certainly that is so true. Most of the time, they have just as much clutter as women do, but they are better at justifying it :). At least that is what I have found. If they have an overabundance of tools, they are able to point out how useful they can be when they need that particular item. They have just as many “just in case” or “I use that at least once a year for a project” items. I suppose it is harder for me to justify how useful my knick-knacks are. So funny!
Hi Jen, I only wish the knick knacks were mine because they would be out of here by now and would not require dusting. I don’t think there is a knick knack in this house that belongs to me anymore. Maybe I should make those who own them be responsible for their upkeep and they may all disappear. The problem with justifying that plan is that I am home all day while the knick Knack person in at work earning all the money.
Jen – it was an interesting point about wives and guilt associated with the household. The last time I went down to visit my parents my mum commented that modern mother has it so much harder than in her day. I was surprised as her generation dealt with Rogernomics (a particularly difficult time in NZ economic history) and the rise of mothers re-entering the workforce. Plus her generation also kept a garden and spent most of Feb and March bottling, preserving and pickling and sewed most of our clothes. How could that have easier?
Well, her theory is that her generation served meat and three vege – a Chinese Takeaway was the most exotic thing to ever grace the table. There wasn’t the food outlets that there are these days, so everyone was content with what she put in front of them. It was ok for your kid to be ‘just ok’ (what are you trying to say, mum?), there weren’t the supervision laws that there are now so if she wanted some space from us she just sent us to the park till it started to get dark. Kids had less, required and/or expected less. There were less options and best of all, all the shops shut at midday Saturday until Monday morning and only one night for late night shopping and that was only until 8pm.
Moni, this comment is going straight to next weeks favourites. I feel the same way. Even though I wasn’t a mother back them but as a child I think it was easier on us as well. We had more freedom, we were happy with our food so long as we were fed, sharing a room with a sibling wasn’t a hardship, by the time we were allowed to go shopping with friends (without parents) on Saturday mornings we were really only going to check out the boys ~ not to shop. And whats more our parents couldn’t track us down via cell phone. We cycled until we were old enough to drive keeping us fitter. Now as parents we are too frightened to allow our kids out on those crazy busy streets. Modern day parents think our children are more vulnerable to predator adults but the truth may just be that because of Television, internet and the like we are more exposed to news stories about such crime. It would be interesting to know what the statistics really are. Heaven only knows what restrictions and challenges will confront the next generation and their children.
Colleen – I especially thought her comments about food were interesting, she mentioned another time that her generation didn’t have to turn out international cuisine every night – I assume by international cuisine she means Mexican, Turkish, Sushi, Thai, Greek, Italian, Indian etc – and my generation of working mothers are expected to have such a repetitoire. And all the fixings in the pantry. She reckons we should have stuck with simple meals!
Personally I don’t think a chilli con carne is the epitome of international cuisine but I guess at some point it was a new thing.
I can remember our first microwave, gosh it was expensive and big. And all the mums went off to microwave cooking classes.
This entire post makes me grin. My mom and her siblings were always happy to have a good meal. You are right on the international cuisine! I once tried a Emeril recipe that had all these new ingredients and to be truthful, I didn’t think it was all that outstanding. So now when I try a new receipe, I try to keep the fancy spices in the same cooking family. We like Mexican food, so I’ll usually try a new receipe of that kind that I won’t end up tossing a bunch of expensive ingredients. We can our own Mexican and Italian tomato sauces with our own herbs and if we don’t have anything else, we can toss one of those over either ground beef or pasta.
Colleen and Moni – My mother grew up during the Great Depression. No one had anything much, but everyone was going through the same issues, so there was not really anything better to compare yourself to. Growing up, we had a black/white television with only four channels. My mom would can multiple jars of vegetables, from our large garden, and used dried beans to help us through the winter. Most families (not all) today are so busy, they cannot keep up with the expiration dates on food or leftovers in their fridge. Nowadays the distractions, as well as conveniences on every corner, are overwhelming. It sounds like to me that they had it harder, than today with all of our modern inventions. Not to mention, the fear that is instilled in us, concerning letting your kids freely play outside. It is a whole other subject entirely, the responsibilities of holding down a job, keeping up with the home and kids, carving out time for yourself, as well as time with your spouse…, the list is endless. We live in a different time indeed. Our focus and where our priorities lie are entirely different. I believe embracing some form of simplicity would help and simplicity in our surroundings, by decluttering, is a great start.
Moni, you just describe what was like then, and what is like now, even here where I live. You nailed it!
I think from the sounds of it I am your mum;s vintage LOL Jen and though in australia we did the same thing. Things were much simplier because there was’nt the chocie there is today and everyone was satisfied with what we had. We were the first generation after the second world war and compared to the days during the depression and the second world war we were rich and did have a lot and were thankful for it.
Colleen,
Thanks for the love. I appreciate it.
JFM
Hi everyone,
Oh man it has been a week for rants hasn’t it? Yes rants, I have ranted and most of us have ranted at some stage, we got offended, or some of us did, I got offended the other day, driving behind a vehicle that was displaying stickers with a man a woman, 7 kids, 4 dogs, 6 cats, what looked like a set of older figures so I will deduce they may have grandparents living with them, oh and what looked like 2 rabbits and a bird in a cage!! What the!!! How dare they have a bird in a cage!!! Hahahaha, I wrote down the above list whilst idling behind this mega huge car/4WD/bus thing!! How dare they, as fortune would have it we ended up next to each other in the parking lot, so I stayed in the car so that we wouldn’t have to make eye contact, you know because then I might have to make polite conversation with a woman that had her hair all over the place, and yes it needed a trim from what I could see, and a little make-up wouldn’t hurt either, God forbid she was wearing thongs, blingy ones, but thongs none the less, oh and a pink t-shirt with baby blue jeans, What The!!! a purple bag to hold assorted crap that she should really sort out. Oh my!! That poor woman really needs someone to smile at her, tell her it’s ok to get around like that cos after all we’re all in this gig together, no matter how we face it, SO I stopped looking at my reflection and smiled at the lady as she got out of her big drivey thing and caught my eye and I smiled again, and said “Wow with all that you have time to look after a bird????” She burst out laughing and said the bird is her way of keeping life real!!
Laughter really is good for you heehee!! Opinions are good for you, good, bad or indifferent, we all have them, we all use them and we sometimes get offended by them. That’s cool, by catching up on my favourite site to catch up on, I have managed to declutter myself of a friends’ comment to “Get a Life” I have a life and I love it, with all the twists and turns and things that may or may not go wrong, or right, the weight I may or may not put on, the clutter I may or may not purge, the things or food I may or may not waste, the comments I agree or may disagree with, after all is said and done, Colleen, this is your blog, I love it, I love reading everyone’s comments and opinions and I especially love that everything ends up here being discussed, whether I agree or not, doesn’t really matter until I do agree or disagree.
That lady I shared a comment with could have chosen to say ‘What the!! to me and something like don’t judge me check out your outfit”, or whatever, she didn’t, she laughed I laughed and I felt good about myself and the world as I headed into the centre to make a hair appointment during which I was complimented on my baby blue jeans and my purple bag hahahahaha.
By the way love Peter Walsh and his books and I love the way he demonstrates tough love. If you can’t stand the heat, leave the kitchen, yeah he may come across opinionated and seem to have all the answers, I often think he does, and I also think JFM does too and I also think I do too because my answer to any question about getting organised and de-cluttering is ‘Check out 365 Less Things’ oh and all the other sites I visit from time to time that become a go to as well as here!! That’s my opinion!!! just sayin’ 🙂 🙂 🙂
Thanks for that opinion Dizzy you are obviously a discerning woman. What a way with words you have ~ “Wow with all that you have time to look after a bird????†~ what a perfect comment.
Haahahaha Just keepin’ it real my sweet, just keepin’ real . By the way love your new pic, did liam take it? You look fab chicky real Fab!!
🙂 🙂 🙂
No I took the photo myself with my cell phone. It took some effort and about 15 attempts to get one that looked good. It is hard to hold your phone stead, get in a position that doesn’t make you look like you have two chins and have the hair looking at its most fabulous. Mind you I took the photo that day because I was having a good hair day and figured I’d make the most of it. Oh vanity! 😉
Yes I love this site to and its also my favourite site and am ALWAYS quoting things from it.
It is nice to hear those words Denise because I have spent today with my daughter and an old family friend who ganged up and goaded me mercilessly about being the crazy declutter lady. If only they knew that I am the sane one, a minority but sane none the less. 😉 What sort of crazy people wish to be a slave to consumerism, not me. If I am crazy then I am happy being so.
Don’t let them get to you Colleen. You are normal and you are right. I’m not saying that there aren’t people out there who can’t have more than I do. I’m saying that all of us should have what we have for the right reasons and not because of quilt, buying to cover up a problem, trying to keep up with whoever, buying into the cultural things being fed us, etc.
They didn’t get to me Deb J, I think I got to them. We passed plenty of shops and they only stepped inside two and never bought anything. 😆
Good. Our side wins. Grin.
Yah for us Colleen & Deb my daughter does the same now we go in have a look and then walk out empty handed.