Indiana flowers

I know I have talked about this subject before but it has been heavy on my mind again and so I will talk again about consumerism. It is amazing on how my mind has changed so much about things over the years and maybe it is because you do get wiser about things as you get older or maybe after years of experience you finally can see things clearer then you could as a younger adult.

First off I would like to start with houses. I still look at houses on our travels and admire their beauty and wonder what it would look like on the inside and I used to long for homes like these but now I have come to realize that I can admire them but I don't have to own one to enjoy them. I often wonder at these large homes with the expansive, perfectly manicured lawn with the seasonal decorations what type of person lives there. Are they deeply in debt? Are they as happy as most people would imagine they are? With such a house that is much in excess do they live the rest of their lives in excess too? I wonder what is in their trash. I know that sounds weird but it seems to me that a lot of people that have that much money are wasters as they can afford to waste items and not give it much thought. I know with these homes I have never seen a recycle bin outside of the homes. I am not saying these are bad people just saying that they probably just don't give much thought to recycling, gardening or minimal buying as there is a never ending world of items to buy. I know as a younger adult I did like to buy things for decoration, I am sure we are all guilty of this at one time or another. My mom didn't decorate very much and so when I got my first home I was thrilled at the idea. I would buy pretty pictures in frames, candles that smelled pretty, and of course knick knacks to fill shelves and I believed this was personalizing the home and it was fun. I now have this overwhelming need to get rid of said items and only keep things that actually have a purpose. Don't get me wrong if I already have an item that I love and have fond memories of I am of course going to keep it but I am no longer going out to buy said items because it is the "in" thing or fashion has changed. I used to hate when you would be invited to a "party" to buy things and felt obligated to go and I would try to find the cheapest item in the catalog so I didn't offend my friend that had the party but that stopped when I first looked at a Longaberger catalog. I will never get over the shock of the prices of these baskets! I couldn't even afford the cheapest item which was a itty bitty basket that held business cards and really what would I do with such a small basket anyway. I finally was able to tell my friends that I wouldn't be attending the parties as I had no interest in the items being sold. I still worry about what other people think of me but I am getting better at standing my ground and doing what I want instead of feeling pressured into doing otherwise.

I actually saw a post on facebook the said "the catholic diosece asked people to be careful of water usage and to conserve as much as possible." the guy replies to it by saying " I pay for the water so i can use whatever I want". I just wonder how many people have this mentality, as if the world supplies will never end as long as we have money to buy it. I really get tired to about commercials and advertisements that tell you what you "deserve". I mean really what do we deserve? No matter how much I try to think of senarios I can't imagine in any circumstance do I deserve anything. I may have earned my money but to say I deserve it, I can't. We as people need to think about what we really "need" and not let other things tell us what we "just can't live without" not to be envious of others and what they have and be thankful for the things we do have and to realize all of what we own can be taken away from us in a blink of an eye.

Here are some "weeds" that I found along a rest area in Indiana. 

Do you see the dear? its a fake! Why would the rest area think it would be a good idea to place a fake dear on the side of the interstate I have no idea.