Why Facebook Buy Nothing Groups Are the Anti-Capitalist Secret You Didn’t Know You Needed

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Buy Nothing Groups

I know, we’re all in the last stages of the gift-buying frenzy… Did you remember deodorant and hair ties for the stockings? What are we getting for Aunt Judy?

Gah! We need more sugar! Wrapping paper! Advil! After Eights!

I enjoy Christmas — the lights, the family time, the food, the music, the soft blankets and warm sense of ease. Those are the good things, but the buying frenzy is frankly a consumerist grind.

A nice antidote for that is the old neighbourhood Buy Nothing Group. I got into our local one during the Pandemmy and have never looked back. Essentially it’s a geographically limited space that is moderated — and in my particular instance very tightly enforced — by volunteers. If you live within the defined boundaries, you can join and essentially offer stuff up for free. You write a short description of the thing you’re giving away, usually accompanied by a photo. If you’re interested in what’s being offered, you comment underneath the post and then wait — your name may or may not be picked— it’s at the discretion of the giver.

I have occasionally gotten things from my Buy Nothing Group… A short-lived juicer (gave it away again almost immediately — so much work and mess for a small glass of warm, carrot-flavored water!) A tiered cupcake holder (used once, now buried in the basement) A set of free weights (used surprisingly often — see previous post re muscle-building).

The true joy of Buy Nothing, however, is to give stuff away (See, this post is festively on theme!). I have unloaded outgrown clothes, outgrown Lego, old doors and pots of raspberry plant off-shoots. I’ve even, when my daughter was going through an intense baking phase, given away slices of her Double Chocolate Cake (those went like, well, hot cakes).

Unfortunately, these groups appear to be managed entirely through Facebook, so if you’re not on the Zukes personal-info-mining-platform, you might be S.O.L. For everyone else, you should check to see if you have access to one…

If you can overlook the billionaire social media ownership of it all, the Buy Nothing movement is great because you feel good about getting rid of your clutter, you connect with neighbours and it feels like a tiny “fuck you” to the enormous capitalist death-machine we’re all part of.

What could be more Christmassy than that?

Article Roundup!

1. People in colder countries understand the magic of winter. What's their secret?

I love the attitude of this article and thoroughly embrace it. I volunteer at an ESL group at my local library and the students are mostly new Canadians who have never experienced an Ottawa winter. My advice is always: buy a coat with a hood and then always DEPLOY THE HOOD. If you are dressed warmly you can indeed enjoy all that winter has to offer.

But it's so cold out there!

In Norway, they have this saying: "There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing." You want to be warm enough. That's the No. 1 thing that makes the biggest difference in people's comfort and ability to get outside.

Even the coldest weather is manageable when you have DEPLOYED THE HOOD

2. Seven quiet breakthroughs for climate and nature in 2024 you might have missed

There’s a lot of doom and gloom out there, so I grabbed a hold of this article like a lifeline

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon dropped to a nine-year low in 2024, falling by more than 30% in the 12 months to July, according to data released by Brazil's national space research institute, INPE. Roughly 2,428 sq miles (6,288 sq km) of the rainforest were destroyed, an area larger than the size of the US state of Delaware. While this area is still vast, it is the lowest annual loss since 2015. Deforestation fell despite the fact that fires in the Brazilian Amazon increased almost 18-fold during the same time period following a historic drought.

3. My Five Things I Know About Myself List

I like this approach. I keep thinking/vowing that this year, THIS YEAR, I am going to become someone who takes the time to choose interesting outfits, make her hair less “wiry squirrels nest” and actually wear mascara… Then I am cold and I throw on leggings and a turtleneck, stick my hair in a crazed squirrels nest bun and develop a sty just from looking at the mascara tube and I go back to my usual mode. This post is all about saying that That’s Okay:

I’ve been living with myself for nearly 42 years now, and I know some things will always be true for me. I buy at least one paper planner every year, and I never, ever use it. I have never and will never complete an e-course of any kind. I loathe leaving my house during the school year for a social event, so booking myself solid is a great way to ruin my week and hurt people I love by canceling. I think graphic tees with words on the chest are so fun! And yet, I never know where I’m supposed to wear them or how to style them. Pass.

4. Will & Harper

We watched the documentary about Will Ferrell and his friend Harper Steele as they travel across the United States reconnecting after Harper transitioned. It was lovely and funny and touching. A beautiful story of friendship and how we change but good friendships evolve with us. The end credits song is a banger.

Book Stuff

My next event isn’t until January, but you can mark your calendar now and come and chat with me and these other two excellent Ottawa-based writers!

Contemplating a Christmas Present?

What about putting a little MURDER under the tree?

The Foulest Things is an acclaimed, fast-paced murder mystery set in a wintery Ottawa archives. There are squooshed bodies in library stacks! Mysterious paintings! Important ice-safety lessons!

Buy it here or wherever books are sold!

Free Books

The below books are are worth checking out. Click on the image to be taken straight to the discounted or free page where you can download the book and start reading. Some are also included in Kindle Unlimited.

Click here to access the above books

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P.S. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL WHO CELEBRATE! I’m going to be surrounded by every member of the Tector family for the first time in 14 years + two bonus Aussies. It should be magical… especially if we get a little bit of fresh snow… Cookie-induced-sugar-coma here I come! xoxo