making do v. producing

One of the reasons for the year of making do is that I want to be a net producer not a net consumer. Years ago I realized that nothing productive comes from a day of shopping. I mean, it might be fun, and I might really like my new stuff, but I would not feel fulfilled at the end of the day. I feel fulfilled when I am creating things, when I am taking pictures, reading a book, painting, cleaning, talking to friends, spending time with friends, laughing. Not watching TV. I don't feel fulfilled after an evening of TV, even if I need it sometimes.

So far the year of making do has been interesting. First, sometimes I shop without noticing it. Not a lot anymore, but sometimes. Second, we were not buying nearly as much stuff as I feared. We are about a month into the experiment, and really we spend most of our money on shelter, travel, and food. Interesting.

But I realized just now that even though I am not out shopping, I am still consuming all of the time...just consuming time screwing around on the internet, rather than working on my book...

So maybe this should be the year of producing, instead of the year of making do?