Do you really need all those magazine subscriptions?

Sometimes we get ideas from the most unlikely places. Last year, I went into a weird frenzy while I was in a brief state of figuring out my direction in life, and got a number of deals for magazine subscriptions, and have 8 magazine subscriptions (I kid you not!), plus my boyfriend has 3 himself. For the most part, I lost interest in several of the magazines quite quickly, and while I have been tearing out articles in an attempt reduce the clutter in my house, I reflected on how much paper I have discarded for recycling. The sad thing is that a few of these are somewhat frivolous fashion magazines, which I only look through because I subscribed and paid for them, rather than due to interest. These glossy magazines are harder to recycle than non gloss magazines. On a positive note, I was happy to see that Elle had a green issue in which they applaud people who have done things for the environment. Unfortunately, however, they used little or no recycled paper for this "green issue". Ironic, huh? In any case, I was still glad to see that there are so many people doing good things for the environment, and also liked their focus on natural cosmetic products because chemical products have been linked to an array of health issues. This also fuels my undertaking about two months ago (on which I also posted on) to eliminate wear of makeup on a daily basis, and to limit products when I do.

Some people who made it on the green list include Colin Beaven and Michelle Conlin a couple (with a child and dog) who live in Manhattan who lived electricity free for a year. Read their inspiring, and amazing experiment. Brad Pitt donated $5 million dollars to make sustainable houses for Katrina victims. One woman, Rebecca Hosking, handed out canvas totes to everyone in her neighborhood for free when she say how many plastic bags (which are not bio-degradable and harm animals) were strewn in the street. There are many others, who I would gladly tell you about if you would like to know further. I felt inspired that not only celebrities are making a move to help save the world and each other, but even "regular" people. This confirms that we can all make a difference, even if it is turning off your lightbulb a little less each day, or reducing your paper usage!

I have been thinking for days now since I spent wasted hours tearing our articles and throwing away (recycling) magazines that just recycling these papers are not enough because there is not enough recycled paper to account for all our paper uses. I am therefore going a step further, and switching print to digital subscriptions for 2 magazines I read only out of obligation of not feeling I wasted money. I am keeping three that I like, and am trying to decide if I should donate the other three or cancel them. I would prefer to donate to my mom's office, but am wondering if I will be tempted to take them to read through when they arrive. It seems I have gotten a little too used to mindless banter and pictures in some of them, and may feel guilty for wasting the money on subscription by not even looking at them. I tried giving magazines to my sister before, but ended up taking them after she read them, so it seems that I may have to cancel them. I will evaluate if they are worth continuing based on what percentage of the magazines actually interest me. If it is less than 10%, then I will cancel them.

Although they were entertaining for some time, I have really gotten sick of the fashion magazines particularly, as they tout uber-expensive products, clothing, and accessories, yet claim to be trying to be green. Many very high end designers vastly overprice their clothing just for the image rather than quality and worksmanship alone. Yet, the designers are not the main ones at fault. Designers need to make a living, and we could say that they are just supplying demand for the wasteful folks who would rather spend money to $500 for a pair of shoes or $1000 for a dress or bag, rather than donate $50 to a charity. If they choose to spend their hard earned money on items, that is quite fine (I myself buy J Crew and BR - because it lasts long and requires me to purchase less items, and contribute less to the environmental effects of the clothing industry). The problem is that some of these consumers purchase items to feel a temporary sense of self worth. While it is fine to buy things that last, it is quite something else to try to deflect insecurities via purchases or letting your desires dictate how you buy, rather than necessity. This insatiable hunger is never filled because material things in themselves rarely bring happiness or satisfaction. So the end result is that they just keep buying more, and need to have the newest fad so they can feel a sense of self worth, even if it is short lived.

Frankly, I don't want to contribute to this behavior any further by subscribing to magazines that propagate this wastefulness, while people do not even have clean water or a meal in other parts of the globe, and even this country. The 3 other magazines that I intend on canceling are decor and housekeeping magazines, which also use gloss paper, that are silly too because I am trying to have a simple elegant house, and don't need to follow trends about how to decorate. When I feel peace within, it seems that I want less in my apartment consequently as unnecessary things are just a distraction. The fashion magazines nor the decor do not correlate with my life goals. Furthermore, they are not just a passive waste of my time and contributing to the behavior as mentioned above, but they are also very damaging to the environment in a collective sense when they are being thrown away. If one is very interested in a magazine and keeps a lot of its articles, I would say that is quite fine. However, to subscribe to several magazines which captivate little interest is a waste of time and resources. It also detracts from the minimalist life that I have been attempting to live. It is strange that my magazines are now down to 3, all of which both expire in 2 months. Next time I order magazines I will make sure that they correlate to the direction of my life rather than an impulsive whim or interest.

A few magazines may not seem like they are hurting the environment much, but add them up annually, and it is alot of wasted paper directly from trees. Consequently, one tree clears 1 ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime, so even half a tree saved is a lot. Furthermore, if each of us took small measure such as this, it would add up to many trees saved.

Additionally, it also simplifies the content that you take in, and eliminates unnecessary material to go through and discard, which saves alot of time. By watching and limiting what you take in, it is easier to keep things simple.