CLEM #1

I have for years not worn a watch. Something about being prego and then having babies makes you NOT WANT TO KNOW what time it is. But now, 3 and a half years after the second - and no new life on the horizon - I need a watch. For a time I resurrected my favorite watch which my Hubby bought for me when we were dating, a Swatch from the late 90s. But then the watch band broke and I was afraid I would lose it if I kept wearing it. My oldest, a boy, now 5 - almost 6 - decided that all my running, hiking and sports watches belonged to him. I did manage to borrow one back for a time, but the battery ran out.

So, in order to attempt to live more, use less stuff, be less of a negative impact, be less responsible for the overflowing landfills of trash - I decided to, instead of the typical American consummer impulse of just going to the mall and buying a new watch, to get a new watch band for my Swatch. I've never loved a watch before, so that takes care of the 'enjoy more' part. I have no idea how much packaging the new band will come in from Swatchonline.com. I may have to eat my 'consume less' words. I'll let you know. (And I won't buy a new jogging watch either. I promise to pick the cat hair out of the Velcro and just get a new battery for it, while wresting it from a five year old. The jogging that might go along with just may fit into the 'consume less' part, provided I can get the chocolate and white wine out of my house.)