Savers vs. Tossers

"One of you needs to be a saver while the other needs to be a tosser" I have heard this advice from many married couples. One of you has to be willing to get rid of stuff while the other needs to be good a preserving things. My husband is definitely the saver while I am better at getting rid of things when they seem to no longer serve a purpose. We recently received a very thoughtful gift form Rob's Aunt and Uncle. These beautiful engraved glasses with our initials on them. We love them. 
Although, now we must get rid of some old glasses in order to make room for the new. Over the years this has become my policy as I seek to try and keep clutter from filling my life. In our modern lives it seems very easy to allow our lives to become overrun with stuff. Too many vitamins in my cabinet, too many bottles of medication, too many cans of nonperishable food, a linen closet full of towels, too many apps on my phone, TOO MANY charging cords to God knows what device. Sometimes all this stuff will make my blood pressure rise a little. 

So, I diligently cleaned out our glass cabinet in order to make room for them. I planned to take the old glasses to the ARC the next day. When I told Rob who was away on a trip I knew that he would have some objections to getting rid of perfectly good glasses.I know this difference in our personalities is reminiscent of our views on money. He is a much better saver than I am. I really want to be more like him in this manner.  

I was recently reading a financial blog who's focus was on obtaining 1 million dollars in net worth. What an awesome goal to obtain this financial freedom in order to be able to make decisions based on you desires rather than your needs. To be able to be give with extreme generosity. His philosophy is: 

I can and I will employ solid personal finance theories in my life.

I will spend less than I earn annually.

I will never buy a car just to keep up with appearances.

I will not buy a house that is more than myself or my family need.

I will not spend money just to spend it.

That last line is really the root of my stuff problem. So here is my public declaration: My commitment to not spending money just to spend money. To not walk into a grocery store and buy products not on my list just because I want to try it. To not buy bottled water just because I left my water bottle at home. To not buy trinkets in gift shops. To not buy a $3 coffee whenever and where ever I feel like it. This shopping absitenence is the habit of your next door millionaire. This will be my new habit. 

However, I am still taking the old glasses to the ARC.