This morning I was reading one of the few magazines I read cover to cover – Ode – and there was an editorial that was interesting. Jurriaan Kemp was talking about investment “bubbles”. The first recorded bubble was in the 17th century in The Netherlands – It was Tulips. He said that tulips were traded at prices 20 times higher than the average annual income of a skilled craftsman. Out of that one came beautiful flowers and probably a good deal of knowledge about botany and how to breed plants. Another he talked about was the Industrial Revolution which was to a large degree fueled by the railroad bubble that invested in building a huge infrastructure. Of course there was the Internet bubble and now the housing bubble. All bubbles burst eventually but those of the past have served a purpose. They’ve created technology and increased knowledge. This bubble is different. The losses are bigger and what was the upside? He said this is really a consumption bubble. As he says, a good deal of creativity and intelligence has gone into making money with money, rather than with providing new, meaningful goods and services. Now, it may be there is an upside we can’t see yet, but I tend to think he is correct. We tend to want more and more stuff. Doyle turned on one of the morning shows after breakfast this morning and I happened to see a segment they did on picnics. They had an array of stuff for picnics – the $70 canvas tote bag, the $295 designer picnic blanket, etc….I was astounded (which is why I hardly ever watch that stuff). I underestimated the level of consumerism on TV once again. Yes I watch TV but usually only look at commercials for entertainment and the social commentary they provide and really rarely get sucked in by them. Okay, a rant on consumerism (I have barely touched the surface) may seem weird from a retail store owner. I do have a point though and will eventually get to it.
In light of the current economic mess, I, like most folks, will be cutting back on what I buy. But mostly what I will be doing is going for quality. As many of you know I still like the novelty yarns and fun different yarns. But they don’t keep you warm! I really love knitting with plain wool best of all. I have a closet full of clothes – many of which I rarely wear. I have some good wool sweaters and those I wear a lot. It may seem that buying good wool to make a sweater is indulgent or wasteful, but a well made classic sweater can last a lifetime. I still wear the first pair of handmade socks I did – 6 or so years ago. How many commercially made socks last that long? The cost of heating now means I will be wearing lots of sweaters this year. The gifts I still have that people have given me are the ones they made. The gifts I give this year will almost all be handmade. I would rather receive a handmade washcloth and handmade soap or a scarf or – well, you get the picture -than a big fancy doodad. So, I guess what I am saying is: Make your purchases wisely, buy things that last, that mean something. Until the next bubble rises, the way to deal with the bursting of this one is to learn from it and make you purchases count. Learn to make your own stuff, learn to adjust what you do, learn how to make simple quality instead of just buying quantity.
