For this week's Thrifty Thursday post I want to share the latest way I'm making do (or is it making due) with what we already own. Why? Two reasons:
A) We're a single income family living in the country's most expensive real estate market.
B) Our house is tiny.
A+B = We're on a budget and I'm serious about eliminating clutter.
But first, a little history. Our family likes to go for long walks on the weekends. The hubby and I often listen to music, while walking hand in hand, for stretches of time on said walks. Lately I've been passing my phone over to our kiddo about 10 minutes into my jams. Music puts a spring in your step and I've discovered we can keep walking another 45 minutes if the kiddo's enjoying his own tunes. Anyway, recently, our son has been asking for his own phone so he can listen to music too. We're a one income family, so I cringe thinking about the added cost to the monthly budget. I tell him he can use mine all day today and suggest we bring his tablet with us the next time. After all, he got a brand new tablet less than 1 year ago for his birthday. Uh Oh. I had to agree with the kid when he mentioned it was too big to carry on a hike. He was right.
A few days later, I was seriously considering forking over money for a new, smaller device. After all, he's got a b'day coming up, so I reckoned I would buy now and call it an early present from the 'rents.
Fortunately, my hubby reminded me that I used to have a 2nd gen Ipod Nano and, "maybe we could put music or load a music app on it? After all we've got a credit on Itunes." Fortunately, I'm what author Malcolm Gladwell calls, a 'late adopter' when it comes to technology and gadgets. That means I don't jump on the first wave of any new roll out. For me, its not an aversion or fear-based. In actuality its totally a frugality based lifestyle choice. Over the years, I've learned that things get cheaper, if you are willing to wait a little while longer. I take care of my belongings and as a result they last a long time. I still own CDs and even a few albums. Why would I pay for a download of a song I already own. I upload my own music instead. This also means my music never goes missing or gets deleted because of a hackers or glitches and it works without WiFi...But I digress...
True confession time. You will most likely never see me in line two days early to get the latest generation _____ (insert latest must - have device here). Why, not? More than likely, my current version works great! That and I can think of ten other ways to spend my time. I replace things only when I have to. No sooner. End of story.
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| 2nd Gen Ipod Nano + Awesome CDs |
So, back to my story about the the kiddo and the gadgets. With the hubby's prompting, I found my Ipod tucked in the back of a drawer still inside the original box. Once I opened it up I was pleased to see it had nary a scratch anywhere! I pulled it out of the packaging, updated the software, went through my trusty CD collection and pulled out about 20 CDs that I thought would get the kiddo started.
Its actually been a blast going through our assorted musical tastes and figuring out how to introduce the kid to Hip Hop, Rock 'n Roll, Punk, Country, and Stevie Wonder, Prince, Nina Simone and Miles Davis (yes, I love all of these types of music), Figuring out which lyrics are age appropriate, but cool enough for a discerning 8 yo with Rock 'n Roll leanings. I work from home, so its been fun and easy to upload CDs while I work and the import the entire collection on to the device.
The earlier version of the IPod Nano is slightly larger than newer models. I much prefer it and so does the kid. It has a color screen for viewing. Enough memory for hundreds of songs and even came preloaded with a few games. Only downside is its not WiFi/Internet enabled, so you have to load podcasts, music, etc in advance. Still, I see this as a plus. We want to wait a few more years before giving him a phone. This is a nice device for my no longer a baby, but wants some independence kiddo. I only needed to swap out the standard IPod white earbuds for headphones*.
TAKEAWAYS:
1) Be Creative! Look around your house to see if you have anything that can be repurposed.
2) Ask Around. Ask family members, neighbors, coworkers, and friends. Put a flyer up in the breakroom at work. Lots of people have old phones collecting dust. If your needs are simple - a security "monitor"for the nursery or a way to listen to music, it will more than likely do the job well. Offer to pay for the postage to ship it or bake a batch of homemade cookies in exchange.
3) Look Online for Free Exchanges. But before you start dropping it into your virtual shopping cart, be sure to look on resources like NextDoor or Freecycle.org
*Most pediatricians will tell you that old-fashioned over-the-ear headphones are a safer choice than in-the-ear buds for youngsters as they better protect the fragile ear drum.
What have you successfully repurposed? Share in the comments section below.
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