In celebration of the 4th of July, also known as Independence Day here in the United States of America, I am hereby declaring independence.
I am declaring independence from consumer debt. I have paid off my credit card, and no longer will I suffer under the slings and arrows of outrageous (mis)fortune in the form of interest payments. If it can’t be paid off before the next bill, then it isn’t going on the card. This is a hard lesson, gleaned from the past two months’ experience.
I’ve been working on my savings, tracking heavily my expenses, and being generally much more responsible about money. No more impulse buys! Maybe I’ll pack a lunch or two, as well.
I am declaring independence from clutter. My project to simplify my home is doing well. I’ve reduced my CD collection in physical size, replaced an outdated light fixture in the kitchen, and simplified my TV area. I have several other projects in store to reduce the ‘broken window‘ effect, as well.
I’ve filed everything that needs to be filed, and tossed a lot of the obsolete dross built up from 11 years living on my own. I sold my G5 tower, which was replaced by a new Mac Pro last month. I refuse to return to the way things were.
I am declaring independence from trivial news. (If you want to check if something is not news, try Fark.) I haven’t cared for some time about anything the news has had to say. Nothing CNN/FOX/etc. can say in their defense will bring me back to watching/reading that which they call important. Important to ad revenue, but not to me.
What is important? Stuff like Democracy Now!, for starters. Wikinews may stay relevant, since it’s more organized by quality of story instead of whatever sells ads.
I am declaring independence from meat and dairy as well. This, along with ‘hold the fry oil‘ is difficult in the South. I don’t feel weighed down as much, and I am enjoying what I eat. I’m also keeping portions reasonable, which is easy to do when you don’t get your day’s sodium and saturated fats in one meal.
What are you going to declare independence from today?