OMG I only bought one thing this month

Okay so it was something I didn't really NEED, but it got ticks in lots of other boxes - its Aust made (okay so some of its components are imported, but the actual unit is made here) its funky, it will last a couple of lifetimes and I LURVE it. Its a stone radio - made by a dude living in the Blue Mountains - I could never have afforded to pay the full price for one of these babies but I picked up a demo model from Graysonline for $112. The only issue is that it didn't come with an AC adaptor. I thought it would be easy to source an adaptor but it has proven more difficult than I suspected. Nevermind, I shall persist and one day will be able to listen to my radio.

Hey one thing I spent a lot of time thinking about this month was what would I take if the house was burning down. Our house backs onto a bush reserve and its not out of the question that one day we will be threatened by bushfire and will have to make a decision whether to stay or go. If we decide to go, I don't want to be spending precious minutes racing around wondering what to pack into the car. I want to know already what is important to me and what can be left behind. I thought this would also be a good exercise re my consumption challenge - to find out what material possessions are really important to me and what I really could do without.

For the purpose of this exercise I assumed that DH was working overseas (which he does a lot) and so it was up to me and the 2 kids to load up my small hatchback and scidaddle out of here. Here (in order of importance) is what I decided to take:

1. Myself, DD1, DD2 and the cat. Pretty easy, this one.
2. My watch, handbag, ipod, filofax (which includes all my contacts, addresses, financial and insurance details etc), 2 memory sticks (one which stores our favourite family photos and videos and the other one has drafts for my novel/s) and DD1's asthma medication (she doesn't need it much anymore, but would need to take just in case). Also, our marriage cert and birth certs. All these would fit in my handbag.
3. My quilts, handmade tapestry cushions, and knitted blankets. Totally irreplacable and heaps of memories. Handy too!
4. Overnight bagx3 containing change of clothes for 3 days for myself, DD1 and DD2 and some essential personal items such as DD1's blankie which she has had since she was a baby and can't sleep without
5. My handwritten recipe books - I have 2 with heaps of family recipes and other ones I have collected over the years. I have a terrible memory for recipes and would be struggling to put a meal together without these. I don't think I could restruct them if I left them behind
6. Other sentimental items - a painting I was given for my 21st, a mantelclock I got on ebay which has seen me though some tough times (long story) and our bedside lamps (another long story).

that's pretty much it!! I was quite shocked at what I would be happy to leave. I'm not a clothes or jewelry person and it wouldn't worry me to leave those behind. Same for my book and DVD collections. It was a good exercise in finding out what was really important to me. If it wasn't impossible, I'd also take my piano (I inherited it from my grandmother - her parents gave it to her for her 9th birthday, she learnt to play on it, I played on it as a child as did my Dad, and DD1 is learning to play it now). Priceless! But it is old and extremely heavy. It took a crane to get it inside and we couldn't get it any further than the hallway, so that's where it lives and where it will stay. Also a rug I got with my first paycheck - I love it to bits but there is no way it would fit in the car.

So there you have it! Hopefully I'll never need to use it, but it was an interesting exercise. Hope you all have a great month!