Unlike Librarian Idol the weather is not causing me particular suffering, but I liked this list so I thought I might see what I come up with – Things that I’m Prepared to Do Without:
1. Caffeine. I don’t drink coffee as I don’t like the aftertaste. I am partial to a nice cup of tea, but can go without. I don’t eat much chocolate.
2. Alcohol. I do like a nice cold beer, but if there’s none on offer I don’t suffer any pangs. I usually have a limit of one beer per evening/social event so I am no party animal. Wine makes me dozy so I don’t usually drink it.
3. 24-hour connectivity. We have it at home but I am not online the whole time when I’m home. I don’t have mobile internet and don’t miss it while commuting. I think I would pine if I lacked the possibility of going online for information, connection, entertainment, and so on, though.
4. Commercial Television. What’s that?
5. Driving. I take the bus and train to work daily, not for virtuous reasons, but because I find peak hour traffic very stressful. I don’t seem to drive much at other times, either…
6. Meat. I currently eat very little meat. I can’t claim no meat because I have lapsed on the odd occasion over the last few months (mostly eating fish, and, I am ashamed to say, even junk food) – however I have recently resolved to get back on track again. This is mainly because I feel much better when I eat light, meatless meals. And it is better for our environment.
7. A full-time job. No. I love my job and place of work! I can’t imagine not working full-time, and at the moment we wouldn’t be able to afford to pay our bills if I didn’t. (Just as well I love my job, innit?) I don’t think I’d lose my job if the economy sours, though one can never be absolutely certain, right? I guess I could go back to working as a chef/cook if I needed to.
8. Newspapers. I don’t like the feel or smell of newsprint on my hands. I seem to have been getting along pretty well without newspapers for some years now and get my news from mostly online sources (and not all of them mainstream media organisations). We do have newspapers around the house but that’s because they are useful for toilet training puppies.
9. Disposable menstruation products. I stopped using tampons when I started using the Mooncup, and wouldn’t go back to them if you paid me. The Mooncup wasn’t that difficult to learn to use, it’s way more comfortable, and the best thing is, I no longer need to spend a small fortune on tampons. Oh, and there’s the environmental factor again.
Items 1 to 7 were in Andrew’s original list; items 8 and 9 I added to this list.
Things I can’t do without:
Books. I can’t even talk about this, the idea of not having books or access to them makes me shudder.
What about you? What could you do without?
7 Comments
I feel like a failure on this list -in response to your list first.
I can’t do without
1. caffeine. I only have one coffee a day, but it’s important, and I love tea (I have a pot in the morning after my walk with breakfast), and while I don’t eat chocolate very day- I can’t resist Lindt
2. Alcohol. I would if I had to (Dr- you have to give up alcohol for health), but I love my glass of red wine, and like to think it helps me stay sane
3. Can I have at least 12 hour connectivity? I have to say I love our 2 weeks camping- no electricity etc, but am thinking more and more about mobile web…
4. could easily live without commercial TV
5. I ride mostly to work- but food shopping is too hard without a car. I’d have to stop working and walk to shops everyday and tend my garden! Actively trying to reduce short car trips tho.
6. Meat -could and have been vego for a few years in the past. Currently eat red meat once every 7-10 days? I love lentils, pulses and vegies so no problems there.
7. full time job- would love to work part-time, but can’t for financial reasons. Instead I need to rethink my job, spaces & working day. I have some flexibility and don’t have to physically come into work everyday- but find I work better here.
8. Could live without newspapers- mostly read online & love ABC radio National. Would have to wean off Sat papers- but I could if I really wanted to.
9. Have thought about using Mooncup- I’m 47 though and wondering how much longer I’ll need any of it?
So what couldn’t I do without?
People. My kids and partner, family (for all their frustrations!) and friends. I’m a social animal.
K
Let’s see.
1) Diet Coke is like my mother’s milk, but I could do without if really needed
2) No way
3) OK, but I need Foxtel for the English football
4) See 3. Commercial telly is uniformly awful.
5) Hate driving, but it is a necessary evil for me
6) Yep, lots of my meals are veggie. I could live on falafel alone (in fact I did during a week I spent in Israel).
7) Oh my god, yes. I don’t understand people who win the lottery and say they’re going to work the next day. Work is a way of getting money that takes me away from my wife and kids. I resent it hugely, which is very adolescent of me I suppose.
8) No probs, I read The Guardian and the SMH online
9) N/A
My list: wife, kids, movies, books, football882080
It’s funny – part of my reason that I wanted to become a highly-paid professional (in librarianship – ha!) was so that I could move into a 0.6 or 0.8 position, be financially secure, and still spend a day or two with other career pursuits like writing and performing. That said, I don’t think I could cope with waking up in the morning, and having nothing to do! I do, however, have a habit of over-committing myself to all manner of projects, both in and out of work, so that’s never been a problem.
A good friend of mine got a Diva Cup a while ago, and still can’t stop talking about it.
Thanks for your lists, guys. Funny how I didn’t think of people as what I can’t live without. I’ll just say I assumed that! 🙂
Now that you mention it, it would be interesting to work part-time and have more time to do other things like write and learn about new techs and stuff, I spose…
Thanks for stopping by Andrew. What’s that saying, if you want something done, ask a busy person? 🙂 And yes at one stage I think M got heartily sick of hearing about my Mooncup, but it isso good!
hmmm
1. Well I am a self-confessed addict and a coffee snob at that so this one would be hard.
2. Could do this one – I mostly use alchohol in cooking with the odd shot now and again in my coffee. Mind you, Lemon Z and soda on a hot day is pretty good!
3. Some connectivity is good, but I don’t need 24 hour stuff.
4. Don’t have a tv at home so yep, can do with this one.
5. driving – well, I’m neither here nor there with it. It’s a useful tool and I do it. I like the independence the car gives me, and certainly with a young family it is nice to be able to dump them in the car and not have to deal with public transport.
6. If I had to be vego I could, but I do like a bit of dead animal.
7. Now this one I could live without and have done so as a SAHM. But financially it is better for me to work. I’d prefer to work part time. I like my job, but full time is a lot to cope with in my situation.
8. yep. could do that.
9. yep. would never go back to the disposable stuff.
Couldn’t live without:
my family, books definitely, some sort of craft for fun, solitude
you don’t have a problem with the weather!? i was reading andrew’s post about going troppo yesterday, i walked outside of my office at 5pm and thought I’d been transported to darwin. I’ve been looking forward to that rain all week and last night was the last straw! at least now my garden’s watered and my rainwater tank has water in it!!!!
I’m so glad to hear there’s a girl out there who talks to guys about her Divacup. I want to be one of those ppl who tells everyone she meets how wonderful her mooncup is, but i can never do it. i was in the toilets at curtin the other day and someone was trying to use the tampon machine. she asked me to help her, but it was broken. i so wanted to tell her about mooncups, but even if i hadn’t been busting, it wouldn’t hav happened 🙁
Penny, yes to solitude! 🙂
Clare, I don’t talk about my Mooncup either – only here. I often imagine rinsing it out at a sink in a busy public toilet, though. I wonder what the reactions would be… (as for the weather, the recent mugginess didn’t last too long, and in any case I was inside all day, and after all that airconditioning it was nice to feel the real air, muggy or otherwise)