Bag Lady is so embarrassed. She didn’t Agnistambhasana this year.
Not. Even. Once.
So much for that resolution.
This time last year, Bag Lady vowed to welcome 2011 with a one-in, one-out policy on new clothes, give footwear a serious quality vs. quantity overhaul and exercise at least three times a week (even Agnistambhasana, the yoga fire log pose, would count).
For her New Year’s resolutions, Shopping Siren planned to organize the basement, buy less and buy better, and save for either a big ticket item or many mini-tickets.
The score: BL 2-1, SS 2-1.
Shopping Siren thought about cleaning out the basement quite often. But even she is willing to admit that doesn’t count.
We console ourselves with the fact we aren’t alone. Most people don’t keep all their resolutions. (Various websites quote the failure rate at 80 percent “according to research.” We resolve to find out who spends their days researching resolutions.)
But, hey, that’s no reason to give up. So this year we’ve come up with a whole slate of new New Year’s resolutions. You’ll notice that some look exactly like the old resolutions, but don’t be fooled! See, those were for 2011. These are for 2012. There’s a difference.
We hope the difference means we’ll, you know, stick to them.
Time will tell.
For Shopping Siren:
* Organize the basement. Yes, again. This isn’t a shopping resolution, per se, but like I said last year, I know I’ve bought things I don’t need because their duplicates are sitting in my basement, buried in boxes or hiding behind plastic totes, unseen and forgotten. It’s all getting gone through! Ironically, just in time for the end of the world.
* Organize the bedroom closet. Pretty much a duplicate of my basement resolution, yes. And just as badly needed, for pretty much the same reason. For example, I have three black camis. Somewhere. I think I should find those before I buy No. 4 … and then lose that one, too.
* Buy something I’ve always wanted. You may not be able to tell from a column completely devoted to shopping, but I’m frugal. Very frugal. Most of the time I budget, save and spend only on necessities. Which is great for my financial life, but there’s something to be said for splurging. So in 2012 I will break down and get something I’ve always wanted. Yellow Mustang convertible, you’re mine! (OK, maybe not that.)
For Bag Lady:
* I’m stealing organizing the basement and the bedroom closet. Both are out of control, my basement being the worst. No rhyme, no reason. Dear 1989 boom box, am I ever going to hit play on your tape deck again? Never, and we both know it. Ditto on the half-empty paint cans and mountain of old games. You’re outta here.
* Get some sleep. Lights out, at least two nights a week, before 10 p.m. My bags could get you to St. Louis and back, and it’s not a good look.
* Exercise at least three days a week, yoga included. As SS said, what’s old is new again.
And, new Bliss for 2012:
In February, Bliss will celebrate its sixth birthday. (When it will play Pin the Tail on the Donkey and blow out the candles on a homemade chocolate cake.) It’s been a blast checking out local businesses, secret shopping and sharing deals. We have loved every minute of it.
Wait … wait … we’ll keep doing it! That’s not where we’re going with this.
But after nearly six years we thought it was time to spice things up a bit. So we’re adding some features we thought might bring a little extra bliss to Bliss. Starting in the new year we will:
* Take more road trips. Because, really, who doesn’t want to know about that awesome gift shop in Rumford or that super secret doll shop in Wales?
* Do more product comparison. You want to know who has the best chocolate ice cream. We want to know who has the best chocolate ice cream.
* Offer coupon shout-outs. We don’t practice extreme couponing — we’re completely jealous of anyone who can get a lifetime supply of toilet paper for a grand total of 37 cents — but we’re no strangers to searching online for printable bogo deals, $10 off $25 vouchers and percentage-off coupons. So when we find them, we’ll let you know. It’s our way of sharing the love. Er, the savings.
* More guest columnists. It doesn’t have to be all about us, just most of the time.
* Go online shopping. Not to Amazon.com or some other out-of-state mega merchandiser, but to Maine-based retailers who do business on the Web. Handmade stationary shop and specialty toy store, we’re coming.
* Lastly, more from you (we hope!). Do you know of a good couponing site? Tell us. How about an e-business or a small retail shop run out of someone’s home that we ought to be writing about? It’s impossible to secret shop in person at many of those places, but on the Web everything is open. We’d love to virtually stop by, so please drop us a line.
In the meantime, an Agnistambhasana New Year to you, too.
Bag Lady and Shopping Siren’s true identities are protected by a pair of stylish, sweater-wearing Doberman pinschers (who celebrate every day) and the Customer Service counter at the Sun Journal. You can reach them at baglady@sunjournal.com and shoppingsiren@sunjournal.com.
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