shit i bought and liked no. 29: PRIIIIIIIIME DAY
Shit. Ters. The last two times I sent this newsletter, MAJOR news broke very shortly afterwards (first, RBG’s death—may she rest in peace, second, DJT’s corona—all comments withheld, no further questions at this time). Given that track record, I have been understandably nervous to send this next one, but of course the (shit) show must go on! (Am I gonna eat these words in ~four hours? Feel free to respond from the future if so).
Today is Prime Day—a (now two day!) holiday manufactured by a conniving corporation that wants to fuck over the world under the guise of offering us some sweet deal$ on air fryers. I’m not telling you you shouldn’t get an air fryer (my mom has this one and it fucking rocks, though you can def find some more budget friendly versions today). I’m just here in your inbox reminding you that even if you can’t resist the deals, you can resist buying things you would otherwise buy at a small(er) business (books, gifts, art/art supplies, pet stuff, clothes that aren’t the world’s best bike shorts, etc.), you can definitely skip next-day shipping, you can set up Amazon Smile to donate a very tiny portion of your purchases to a charity of your choice, and I recently learned that you can try THIS to get your purchases in the least amount of plastic packaging possible.
I’m not a perfect angel who’s sworn off Bezos completely (it happens to be soup season and this immersion blender is calling my name), but I am ATTEMPTING to be better by selecting the most lax shipping options possible so as not to break the backs of the humans who are responsible for getting that blender to me. Who knows—maybe I will #influence you too in the process. (Re: soup, I’ve been making this Curried Butternut Squash one from Minimalist Baker with carrots instead of squash plus turmeric/tons of cilantro and it has me in a very fall vibe.)
Aside from Prime Day, I thought I’d put a hot tip out there about the REAL shopping holiday of the year. If you are a human like me with a never ending list of shit to acquire because things make you happy (everyone knows this) and/or because those things are necessities, pull up a seat. This is for you.
Around this time of year, I like to spend a few minutes (loose interpretation of the word “few”) putting together a Google sheet entitled “BLACK FRIDAY.” I note down a few things I’ve been eyeing (my list is usually a couple of clothing items/shoes, or a bigger budget thing like a blow dryer, bag, or a jacket) and add links, so then on Black Friday I can open up the sheet and GET MOVING.
Listen, I’ve been hopelessly addicted to buying shit for a long time. Which yea, might not be great, but it means I know a thing or two about shopping. The biggest thing? Black Friday is absolutely NOT the time to browse. It’s when you get what you’ve already wanted at the best possible price because FUCK YOU SHOPBOP, I REFUSE TO EVER PAY FULL PRICE AT YOUR STORE.
If you do some prep work now, Black Friday goes from a chaotic attempt at not getting sidetracked by shit you absolutely do not need even though its on a great sale to an extremely tight, strategic half hour, so you can get back to the important things: family time falling asleep on the couch in your parents’ living room at 2pm after eating Thanksgiving leftovers. It’s such a fucking shame DJT ruined “The Art of the Deal” because I could’ve done WONDERS with that title. (Speaking of which, here’s a great way to make sure your vote sends him and all his little pals up and down the ballot packing post Nov. 3rd).
As always, if you have appreciated these hot shopping tips, have stuff for me to check out (MY ROOMMATE IS GETTING A PELOTON AND I AM IN DESPERATE NEED OF SPIN SHOES, PLEASE SEND RECS!), or just wanna say hi, reply to this email! I love hearing from you! Seriously, it’s nice! If you’re reading this on Twitter or something, you can sign up for this newsletter RIGHT HERE so I can get acquainted with your inbox. How fun for us both!!
TALK TO YOU HOPEFULLY SOMETIME BETWEEN NOW AND NOV. 3RD!
Priyanka