Day 1, Week 6.

Remember back in July when I decided to do Dry July, but instead of giving up alcohol, I gave up shopping? Perhaps that was some kind of omen because it seems that has been great practise for being unemployed. When I sit down every few days at the moment to reassess my financial situation and see what else I can cut out in order to ‘survive’ a little bit longer, I think of my time during Dry July and remember I CAN get through this time without shopping.

At least that’s how I felt up until last Friday night. Day 5 of Week 5. After a whole Dry September; ironically Friday was October 1; I finally caved and made a purchase. While waiting for a girlfriend on Bourke Street, I wandered aimlessly into Cotton On and found a cute print dress, in blues and purples, reduced to $15. Little electrodes in my brain were having a party. Bargain!

So I bagged the dress. Then I spotted cardigans. As every girl will know, a humble black cardi is a staple. A basic that transitions from throwing over a sundress to pairing with black pants for work. Essential. And my black cardi’s are looking a bit worse for wear in recent months. They were only $30. Or two for $50. Perhaps I should get two, I think. Then I can put one away…

Reality stepped in and my need for one cardi and want for two came crashing down upon me. One bargain dress. One basic cardi. Done. LEAVE THE STORE. I did, confident with the knowledge that I had made the right decision and that my week temping had more than covered my little indulgence.

Saturday dawned sunny and brilliant and I couldn’t imagine sitting at home. A beautiful day for a drive, one might say, and that drive happened to take me right by the Collingwood Town Hall, where Sass and Bide were having their annual warehouse clearance.

Common sense would say stay away. Common sense would say don’t do that U-turn, keep on driving, get on the freeway and don’t look back. But I didn’t. Thankfully I couldn’t find any jeans in my size in the colour I wanted, a benefit (?) of coming to a clearance sale several days after it started – but I did find a little black dress (reduced from $190 to $30, will practically pay for itself!) and a cropped jacket (marked $150 from $250, scanned at $120, MEANT to be!).

My mood was buoyed; I had new threads, sunshine and a Sunday afternoon ahead of me. I headed to the local shopping complex in my parent’s home town, bargain hunting and trend spotting. It didn’t take long before I was in a change room.

But it was here, trying on jeans that I already own (cause they were only $19!) that I realised in buying 2 dresses, a jacket and a cardi in the prior 24 hours, I had already spent more thant some people spend in a whole year on clothes – and I don’t even have a job! It was time to put the jeans down, back slowly away from the clothes and leave the shopping centre in a calm and peaceful manner.

Ironically, I turned up to mum and dads to be distracted and was promptly sent back to the shopping centre to do the grocery shopping for dinner. Perhaps there is some kind of higher power drawing me to places to shop. I have always said I would rather buy clothes than food….