This weekend Lisa and I were supposed to head down to San Diego to visit with our friend Wendy. We’d been looking forward to the trip for a couple months, but unfortunately plans got screwed up when some other events got changed around so we had to postpone the trip for later on in the summer. Although we were bummed because we love spending time with Wendy and were looking forward to seeing her new house, we decided to not let the weekend completely get away from us. Lisa came out to my place on Friday, we talked until the sun came up, slept a few hours, then decided to hit up the local swap meet.

Although I’m nowhere near the swap meet enthusiast that Lisa is, I do find it fascinating to see what people are selling. At my local swap meet, videos, as in old VHS tapes, were in abundance, whereas I didn’t see a single DVD (maybe they all sold?). There was also lots of clothing and jewelry and junk, for lack of a better word. Things that I’m pretty sure I’ve seen piled in my dad’s or my own garage that we just don’t know what to do with even though we haven’t used it in a dozen or more years. Although Lisa and I didn’t find any treasures at the swap meet, we decided to keep trying by hitting up a few thrift stores.

Lisa has an eye for finding treasure, and throughout the rest of our shopping day she found all sorts of goodies. I found a couple books for my son and a couple shirts for myself that look like they’ve never been worn. Score! Lisa found some clothing and an exact duplicate of a glass bowl her friend Eddie lost when his house burned down last year. We came home with quite a few bags of goodies, and what made it all the more exciting is that we spent less money than we would have if we’d gone out to lunch. Guilt-free shopping, it’s one of my new favorite things to do!

The guilt-free shopping made the regular shopping I had to do yesterday that much harder. I needed a few things for my upcoming vacation, but after spending so little money at the thrift stores, I could not get myself to pay full price at the bigger chain stores. A shirt for $45 when I got two for less than $10 at the thrift store–two shirts that were just as nice (and one of them from the same store–label still intact–that wanted me to spend $45 for one in the same style)? Heck no I’m not paying that. I did pick up a few things that I absolutely needed, but I sure didn’t get the thrill out of it like I did from my thrift store shopping.

Which made me realize something–well, something I’ve known but really hit home for me with two shopping days back to back. I want value for my money. I want to feel like what I have is worth more than what I spent. If I feel ripped off, I’m not going to enjoy wearing (or using, as the case may be) the product I purchased. So why purchase it? Maybe that’s why so many big chain stores are going bankrupt. The economy woes have made people realize what they’re willing to spend and what they really need and can do without, and it’s simply no longer feasible for the majority of folks to spend $45 for a shirt (can you tell I’m really stuck on that ridiculous pricing?)

I’m sure plenty of other people feel the same way as me. It’s no longer convenient to spend more money just to be done with the act of shopping. I’m becoming a bargain hunter more than I ever have been before. When I do part with my money, I want to feel good about it. I now spend more money buying handmade items on artfire and etsy than I do buying mass-produced goods.Most of what I buy has a story or a history to it, because that makes it more fun and memorable and special. I’m buying things I’ll hold onto for years and years, and not because it’s junk I’m not sure what to do with so I throw it in my garage, but because it’s special to me.

So has anyone else had any shopping epiphanies lately? Or is there any places you can recommend for good deals or exciting finds?

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