An Abundance of Treasure or a Pile of Junk?!?

The Backstory: I needed an iron. As the savvy shopper that I am I wanted to shop around and see what was out there. I have never purchased an iron before so I wanted to see what I could get for my money. A quick search of “iron” at Target.com (or Tar-Jay for my bourgeoisie readers) returned 1505 results. After I narrowed the results, I discovered over 300 different types of irons with more features than I care to discuss. You get the picture.



Flashback to 1999 when I got my first cell phone. It looked like this.  Under strict instructions from my dad, it was to be used "for emergencies only." There was no issue with texting or minutes and only one of my friends had a cell phone. The most I could do to customize it was add a swanky Winnie the Pooh case for $20. I was extra gik'd when the key pads started coming in different colors. Then came headsets and light up antennas. The big thing back then was to have your own home phone line seperate from your parents' line and my sisters and I were blessed to have that. The rest is history.




Random fact about me: I can be indecisive. I am one of those people who has been eating at McDonald’s all of my life but when its time to order I still take a few moments to look at the menu. When I get cash back at a register it takes me a moment to decide how I want my $20. I could get one $20 bill, 2 $10 bills, 4 $5 bills, 1 $10 bill and 2 $5 bills and the list goes on. If I can't decide between two pairs of shoes I usually just get both pair. See what I mean? Good.


Stick with me I have a point.


The fact of the matter is that we have become a generation characterized by over consumption. Imagine a typical dinner.
These are just some of the choices you will make:
Before you start to prepare dinner you have a choice of tops, bottoms, belts, and shoes.
You have a choice of meats, veggies, starches and drinks.
You choose beef, pork, chicken, lamb, turkey or go vegetarian.
You choose fresh canned or frozen veggies.
You choose fresh herbs or store-bought canisters.
You choose alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages.
You choose dessert.
You choose dental floss or a toothpick.


Not only do we want different types of everything but our choices must be visually appealing as well. The phenomenon has even reached chewing gum manufacturers as evidenced by Orbit's promos of their new stylish packages. Not only do we accessorize our outfits, we accessorize our pets, our cars, our cellphones and our mp3 players. We dont want to hear the phone ring with the traditional sound, we want custom ring tones. We also want our callers to hear a special tune as well so we pay a little extra for ring back tones. Our options teeter on the thin line between exhibiting the power of consumers and ridiculous varieties we really don’t need. The problem with this is we translate our wants into needs. Who needs to match their iphone case with their outfit? Who needs a 4G network or the Evo? Who needs 900 television channels? Who needs 7 cars? I'll make this easy for you, NO ONE! No matter what you tell yourself these things are not necessary.


More after the jump.

A positive result of the abundance is that everyone is dabbling in each other’s industry. It is no longer faux paus for a football player to have a reality tv show or a lawyer to be on the cover of magazines(ok we're making slow progress on this one). The art people are making cakes. The cake people are making art. Unfortunately, it also means that a $45 sheet cake is no longer enough. You need a 3 foot tall edible monstrocity in the shape of turntables that actually plays your favorite music while shooting fireworks. Marketers are scrambling to find innovative ways to get us to but their products. It has even seeped into the diaper industry as Huggies just unveiled this jean diaper mess. No pun intended. They use blatant comparisons with competitors and make miniscule distinctions to essentially say "our product is better, give US your money not THEM."


Don't get me wrong, I embrace change. I love change. I also embrace material things. I believe if you work hard then you should bless yourself with a few gifts. But I think there is something to be said about knowing when enough is enough.


I wonder what the abundance is really costing us? With concerns about our environment increasing, I wonder where it all goes when its no longer a "must have" product? Is having an abundance of choices something we should treasure or is it just another way for us to accumulate unamanageable piles of junk? What say you? The floor is yours...