Make Something Day, 2009
It’s the time of year when we start thinking about gifts. No, I’m not talking about Christmas. Friends Jason and Brooke Evans started Make Something Day a couple years ago as a way of practicing an alternative economy of simplicity and gift-giving on the most conspicuous consumption day of the year: Black Friday. Naturally, this idea appealed to me right away as it goes hand-in-hand with the gift economy approach of the Twoshirts.org Community.
Here’s a snippet from the MSD website:
MAKE SOMETHING DAY HAPPENS THE DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING (USA). ON MAKE SOMETHING DAY YOU MAKE SOMETHING AS SPECIAL AND UNIQUE AS THE PERSON WHO IS RECEIVING YOUR GIFT. SOUND GOOD?
They even picked up some article space on TheOoze.com to promote it where Jason wrote an article titled “Beat Your Apples Into Applesauce:”
The day after Thanksgiving, thousands of Americans head for the shopping malls for a ritual known as Black Friday, called such as it’s a day when many retailers move from the red (losses) into the black (gains).Who knows if this year will be like most others for retailers. But I’d challenge you to take this year off from Black Friday. Instead, celebrate Make Something Day.
Check out the site. Get some ideas for things you can make for your friends and neighbors. Submit an idea for a project. Host a party. You might even like it better than shopping : )
