consumer nation

has anyone seen http://storyofstuff.com? it's pretty enlightening. i know, i know, this woman's presentation is not completely objective, but i'm inclined to be sympathetic to her position. planned obsolescence is believable and completely disgusting. watching the world stock markets take a dive this morning reaffirmed to me that i need some deprogramming. in my mind, i know that repurposing and buying used is totally the way to go. however, not thirty minutes ago, i was looking online at pottery barn kids and anthropologie and delighting in their wares. with this country's savvy advertising, i've been targeted since infancy to find happiness in consumption. even my fave magazine is suspiciously using products from the same few companies to highlight in their pages, or they'll showcase homes from execs who work for those companies and outfit their homes with, you guessed it, products from their employers. just thinking about all the ways companies attempt to manipulate us is rather sickening. what am i going to do about it, you ask? well, first i'll give thanks for a functioning brain that i can use to decipher between wants and needs. then, i'll give thanks for healthy hands that can make toys for my children and can maintain and beautify the inside and outside of our home. finally, i'll kiss my voice of reason (james) and thank him for helping me remember to be happy with what we have - the gospel to ground and edify us and happy children to delight us. nourishing food for thought! :)!