The Eco Dad

I know I haven't been writing lately. That shouldn't come as much of a surprise, given the preamble of this site ... pretty sure I said it would be irregularly updated. I am trying, though, to avoid that irregularity. So, what's new? I've managed to find a used strop and honing stone for my straight razor! I'm actually really excited about that. I've been looking for a used strop, but everything I came across was new. Sharpening stones were uber expensive too. I guess I didn't really search too hard as I have a cartridge or two of disposable razor refills left. Just figured I'd use those before the switch. That sorta falls under the ol' saying "waste not, want not." Is it me, or did it just get manlier in here? As a bonus, the purchased lot came with three straight razors, so I'll practice my honing and stropping skills on those ones. I don't want to ruin my awesome vintage razor. I quite imagine there will be a lot of blo

I got a new shirt today, but I didn't pay for it, so I'm not counting it as 'purchased.' The streak continues at 47 days ... or so ... I'm terrible at math when it comes to the days in the months. Either way, I don't think free stuff should count towards getting new stuff, although it goes against the accumulation of stuff. Shit! How do I rectify this? I guess I could do one of a few things. First option: I could donate an old shirt to keep the new shirt. Option two: I could donate the new shirt. Option three: I could keep all the shirts as a reward for all the purging I've already done. Free shirt and creatine when you buy giant bags of protein powder. 😕 So, it's not like I got my free shirt for nothing. I only had to buy close to a metric ton of powder, although, in my defense, it wasn't my intention to get a free shirt. I just wanted a good deal on, well, close to a metric ton of powder, which I will use. Damn it! Ultimately, there are

One of the things I purchased late last year, before going all second-hand only, was a Fitbit tracker ... because I lost my first Fitbit tracker ... when it fell off during a run. Who saw that coming?!? Well, I've somehow managed to mash up my second one, but before I throw in the towel on it and start searching for a $100 replacement, I've given a solid go in fixing it. Check this rubberband, super glue and quarter DIY fixer upper! The flap of the strap stayed attached to the top for, I don't now, half a day before my oldest tore it again while we wrestled. I guess I need a different strategy for fixing this bloody thing, not that I'm winning any of the Fitbit challenges anyways. This is the perfect excuse for not hitting my 10k steps. "Oh, I couldn't get my steps in today, my Fitbit is being superglued with a rubberband and dirty coin. It's not that I suck, I assure you." My Fitbit is aesthetically f'ed, but it's functional. It still

While I've pledged to refrain from buying new things for a year, my wife has not, and that's okay. She spends enough time with a start-up company and mothering our kids that she doesn't have the same amount of time I do to research and find second hand clothes, especially when she needs an emergency pair of shoes. I did make the absolute most out of the situation though. I took some time and sat down with my three year old this morning and made him a garage for his cars ... from mom's shoe box. Waste not, want not? Constructing/decorating the garage didn't take much time. I think I got 15 minutes of quality time with the boy on this one, but it was 15 minutes of him and I working together. He got to place some stickers and then park his cars in the garage. Lately we've been playing a lot of cars, so I thought this particular craft would be fun ... and it was. We'll likely be playing with it this afternoon when he gets up from his nap. Time to use th

I found myself with a few minutes to spare today so I decided to try and go thrift shopping at the nearby Salvation Army. I'm particularly fussy with what I wear. I like slim fit shirts and boot-cut jeans. I've had zero luck at the last two thrift shops I checked out, but this challenge wouldn't be a challenge if it was easy, right? If everyone could do it, they would. Wait, that's not true. Everyone can do it. We just choose not to. We opt for the most recent trend/style/whatever and buy seasonally or annually or whatever it is, but it's unnecessary. We prefer convenience over the hunt for a good bargain at a thrift store. Maybe there's a stigma, albeit much undeserved. Luckily I'm quite fine with the timeless look of jeans and a t-shirt and I'll buy used 'cause I just don't care. Honestly, the pictures you see of me today versus five to six years ago are almost identical. I'd wager my look ten years ago would be identical. I even wear many

Despite the title of this blog post including the popular consumer term "BOGO," I haven't actually bought anything new. It's been well over a month and I'm still surviving. There are a few things I should probably start researching or asking around for. Not buying new isn't going to come easy without being prepared. Something you can't buy used are experiences. Those are always going to be new and hopefully you can indulge in time with family and friends more often as a result of not buying stuff.  What does that have to do with BOGO? Our family happened to have a coupon for an hour of free bowling because we held our oldest son's birthday at a bowling alley last year. Part of the birthday package included a free hour of bowling for a later date, hence "buy one, get one" free. Not everything you do, or everywhere you go will have a BOGO offer, but it's worth looking into. I know Medieval Times sometimes has BOGO free on admissions. Airl

This morning I woke up and was surprisingly pissed off by my Facebook feed, even though it likely didn't warrant the disdain I felt. A group I joined has revealed itself to be more of an annoyance than source of information. It brutally clutters my feed and I found myself pissed off by it. After this morning's incident I thought of removing myself from Facebook altogether for the rest of February, and depending on how that went, maybe permanently. Just when I steeled my resolve to pull that trigger I remembered I have a contact and health related group only available to me through Facebook. So, still on Facebook it is. This was in relation to an online tea order ... a f'ing tea order. Nothing says over privileged or attention seeker, or perhaps mentally unstable, like this reaction over tea. This is a grown man, and sadly he's not the only one who whines about a tea order not arriving in a day or two. #FirstWorldProblems This desire to disconnect, but in