Moving is hell, but I'm in Buy Nothing heaven

We've moved to the other side of Austin, and I brought the gift economy with me.

I washed all the aprons in the house and spent 15 minutes untangling them so I could give some away on Buy Nothing.

Hi, friends!

It’s a searing hot Sunday afternoon in Austin, and I’m taking a break from moving to write about moving.

We’ve been in the thick of a long-anticipated move to North Austin, where we are now making our home with Frank.

The boys have been in good spirits, despite all the changes. And so have their parents. Mostly.

I have added an extra layer of difficulty by incorporating Buy Nothing into the process. Instead of taking loads of unwanted clothes, dishes, art or even pantry staples, I’m giving them away on my local Facebook group dedicated to what is called the gift economy.

A snapshot of things I’ve given away on Buy Nothing in the past month.

The concept of giving things away to your neighbors has been around much longer than the concept of money, but in 2013, some friends in Washington State started what they called a Buy Nothing group on Facebook.