Resisting the Holiday Hype

Today, since we are now past Halloween, I present a selection of the top 10 most relevant holiday-themed posts from our blog, staying true to our year round focus on anti-consumerism, waste reduction, and joyful alternatives that are low cost or free. 
Here you will find low-impact celebrations like Buy Nothing Christmas and solstice rituals instead of the usual commercial excess. I prioritized a mix of timeless classics and more recent entries from our 17 years and 8 months preaching the simple life on the net. 
Here they are, listed chronologically. Click on the URL below to see the post.

1. Why I Am Having A Buy Nothing Xmas (December 9, 2011)
   My personal manifesto highlighting global inequities (e.g., 80% of humanity on less than $10/day) and positioning non-shopping as activism, with alternatives for true giving.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2011/12/why-i-am-having-buy-nothing-xmas.html
2. Buy Nothing Day 2012 (November 23, 2012)
   Elevates Buy Nothing Day as an anti-Black Friday "holiday" with overconsumption stats (e.g., 70% of U.S. GDP from spending) and creative, debt-free ideas like zombie walks or community picnics.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2012/11/buy-nothing-day-2012.html
3. No Christmas Gifts, Please (October 9, 2015)
   Advocates declaring a gift moratorium to reclaim holiday simplicity, sharing reader stories and suggesting solstice-focused alternatives to escape the shopping pressure.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2015/10/no-christmas-gifts-please.html
4. Simplify The Holidays - Buy Nothing Xmas (November 28, 2016)
   Builds on Buy Nothing Day success with tips to de-commercialize the season through sharing, creativity, and resources from the Center for a New American Dream for stress-free celebrations.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2016/11/simplify-holidays-buy-nothing-xmas.html
5. Rise Above Consumemas (December 15, 2017)
   Critiques the shift from Christmas to “Consumemas" and promotes zero-buy rituals like natural art-making for a sustainable solstice.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2017/12/rise-above-consumemas.html
6. Facts On Holiday Waste (December 25, 2021)
   Shares stark stats like 25 billion pounds of annual U.S. food waste and $800 average gift spending, urging a "Buy Nothing Zero Waste" approach to end the cycle of dissatisfaction.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2021/12/facts-on-holiday-waste.html
7. No Gifts? Not Necessarily A Bad Thing (December 21, 2022)
   Celebrates declining gift trends (from $1,300 in 1999 to $800 in 2020, adjusted) as progress, linking it to better communication and charity growth, with ideas for handmade or need-based exchanges.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2022/12/no-gifts-not-necessarily-bad-thing.html
8. The End of Black Friday Madness (November 29, 2020)
   Reflects on pandemic shifts ending in-store Black Friday crushes, proposing permanent alternatives like mindful non-shopping to avoid debt and chaos year-round.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2020/11/the-end-of-black-friday-madness.html
9. A Prescription for a Minimalist Christmas Might be Just What You Need (December 17, 2024)
   The doctor is in! A Peanuts-inspired remedy for ditching debt-fueled extravagance, favoring simple joys like hot cocoa gatherings or peace vigils over "perfect" gifts and decor.
   URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2024/12/a-prescription-for-minimalist-christmas.html
10. Reverse Christmas (December 2024)
    Examines the post-holiday returns frenzy as a symptom of overbuying, encouraging preemptive "reverse planning" to match gifts to real needs and minimize waste from the start.
    URL: https://notbuyinganything.blogspot.com/2024/12/reverse-christmas.html

These selections offer ideas for holidays that prioritize connection over consumption—ideal for the 2025 season. Please enjoy our selection of posts, and may they help you celebrate a more meaningful, intentional holiday season free of the pressure to spend, spend, spend.
Happy Holidays, everyone.
Let the peace and calm begin.

Dumb Consumer Item of the Month - Kitchen Gadgets

How many kitchen gadgets does one home need? Apparently a lot. A whole lot. It’s a gadget-o-rama out there. 

It’s endless, really, this obsession with creating kitchen gadgets that promise to make cooking easier, but only end up cluttering countertops for a while before being put in the cupboard, or worse, out at the curb, in disappointment and frustration.

For example, if you can boil water with an animal skin and hot rocks from the fire, what do you need a high-tech immersion heater for?

Immersion circulators—also known as sous vide machines—used to be reserved for professional chefs in fancy kitchens. But what was once only for fine dining is now commonplace in home kitchens.

I don’t know how commonplace this gadget is - I had never seen one before until a reader brought these to my attention. 

Why? Because she had just found one and liberated it from the trash. A new one is worth $260.00 Canadian dollars, or €160 Euros. Our trash liberator friend sold it for €50 Euros, so a good day of collecting, and the purchaser got a bargain, too, if they actually use the thing.

Sous vide is an unusual process that begins with vacuum sealing food in a plastic bag, so you would also need a vacuum sealer. Oh boy, another gadget! 

The plastic-sealed food is then long cooked in a hot water bath heated by the immersion unit. Cooks say this method retains juices, tastes, and aromas that otherwise would be lost using other methods.

Cooking food in plastic does not sound that great, although the process can also be done using a glass jar.

How many cooks do this often enough to want to own a high tech immersion cooker? Not many, I would imagine. 

 

The only kitchen gadget most people need is a Mombot Kitchen Cooker that does everything except cut your food into bite sized pieces, and wipe your mouth with a napkin after you are done.

I think Elon Musk is working on one. They would sell like hotcakes, and be able to make and serve them, too.

Some kitchen gadgets can be game changers, and I would put a food processor in that category. Others seem entirely superfluous, but each to their own.

Where do you stand on kitchen gadgets? What are you favourites, and which would you never own? 

You aren’t going to find a high tech immersion heater for sous vide cooking in my kitchen drawer. 

Or in my trash.

Thank you to Le-Chat for the idea for today’s post.