Quote:
Originally Posted by pizzachef
Sounds like you're in the wrong neighborhood...there's got to be cooler people in Seattle.
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Sure there are! I'm one of them!
I've taken a car to the repair shop all of three times in my life, and only because the weather was so miserable that I simply couldn't see myself crawling under the car in anything like four feet of snow, or a three inches of standing water.
I've only purchased one new car in my life, and I only did that because I had less than a week to get a car capable of driving 300 miles a day. On top of that, my company was reimbursing me for it completely.
I recycle a lot of things others discard. I've picked up three cars off of CraigsList. I've bought computer parts at Value Village. Heck, I have clothing from value village.
Every three or four years, I build a new computer, frequently with slightly used components that I picked up from someone who only used them for a month before the next latest and greatest component is released. That alone means I spend half or less than what most people are paying for a computer, and I'm using stuff that's already been manufactured.
I dumped close to a grand on a semi-pro digital camera 7 years ago that takes photos just as well as the newer cameras, even if it's four times the size, and I still use it several times a week. Before she met me, my wife went through several $300 - $400 cameras within two years. I know a lot of other people that do the same thing. It's a huge waste of money, and most of that stuff ends up in landfills, instead of being properly recycled. I buy things with the intention of using them for a long time, not replacing them every six months.
Sure, Seattle is full of people that buy a phone, car, computer, clothes, and appliances every year, but we're not all like that. The vast numbers of old diesel Mercedes roaming the streets is proof of that.
*Note: I'm more in to saving money than hugging trees. Don't get the wrong idea. I do believe conservation is something we should all take part in, but you won't see me skipping my daily showers in order to conserve water any time soon.*
Carrameow, you let me know when, and we can go hit the local salvage yards for parts, then scare the patrons of the nearest StarBuck's in a fancy neighbourhood with our dusty clothes and grease-smeared faces. We're likely to have the pleasure of knowing that we're the only folks there that aren't in debt up to our eyeballs.
