In which I steel myself to use the specialty diaper-disposal bags I foolishly bought eighteen months ago.

Last night, I had to remind myself to follow my Twelve Commandments and to “spend out”—that is, to stop senseless hoarding, to be willing to use things up, to trust to abundance.

We were packing to go away for a few days to a house we rent in the Catskills.

As I was gathering things for the Little Girl, I caught sight of an unopened package of “Sassy Diaper Sacks” in her drawer. These are small, scented diaper disposal bags, the right size to tie up one dirty diaper.

Just before the Little Girl was born, we made a trip to a gigantic baby supply store. As second-time parents, we managed to steer clear of most of the useless gadgetry that first-time parents can’t resist. But these little sacks caught my eye.

“They’d be so handy when we’re at someone else’s house,” I said to the Big Man. “I never know what to do with dirty diapers if we’re visiting people who don’t have a baby themselves.”

“Sure,” he shrugged. He just wanted to get out of there. Super-stores depress him.

So we bought the diaper sacks—a package of 50. And now the Little Girl is eighteen months old, and I’ve never opened the package.

Have we visited people who don’t have a diaper-disposal system in place? Of course. And why hadn’t I used the diaper sacks? I asked myself. Well, I had to admit, I was saving them. But why? For what?

This is the foolishness of not spending out. I act as though a more deserving time will come in the future—a time more deserving than the last eighteen months have been. I can easily imagine the Little Girl outgrowing diapers before I decide that the time had come to break out the diaper sacks.

It was very foolish to buy those diaper sacks. They’re the kind of unnecessary product that just puts more plastic in landfills. But having bought them, it’s silly to “save” them. Not using them is just as wasteful as throwing them away unused.

So I packed the sacks to take on our trip. And in the rental house, instead of using the clear, plastic, grocery-store produce bags to tie up the diapers before putting them in the trash, I use these specialty bags. They’re very nice, very convenient—just as convenient as the produce bags.

But I’m glad that I’m putting them to their proper use, instead of hoarding them to no purpose.
*
I've been diving into the treasure trove of information at management expert Bob Sutton's Work Matters blog. It's about management, but really it's about dealing with other people, and the suggestions are so smart, and the writing is so funny, that I enjoy reading even the parts that don't apply to me.

Comments

[kentblumberg]

Great idea. I read your blog and Bob Sutton's blog, too, because both give me great ideas both for life and for leadership. I plan to use your Sassy Diaper Sacks story when working with my team on how we can do more with less - by using what we already paid for. Thanks.

Kent Blumberg
http://www.kentblumberg.com
kent@kentblumberg.com

[Monica Ricci]

Gretchen, good for you for using the things. And even though you will never have enough "away" trips to use them before the Little Girl gets out of diapers, perhaps you can find additional uses for the bags?

Maybe they'd make good trash bags in the car, or pack a few into each of your suitcases for stashing wet/dirty clothing when you travel. Or how about for cleaning out the cat litter box if you have cats? Or maybe they'd be good bags for following behind your dog if you have a dog that you walk regularly.

Re-purposing the items in your life is a great way to get added value out of the money you've already spent. I'm sure there must be a number of uses besides diapers that you can think of. This way, you may actually use all fifty of 'em and get more value from them at the same time.
~Monica

[Shelley]

Wow, so I am not the only one who has a tendency to hoard things this way! I have also developed enough self-awareness to catch myself hoarding things that I bought for the very purpose I am trying to avoid using them for, "just in case" I need the hoarded stuff one day (wouldn't want to run out). I remind myself that it is o.k. to enjoy the convenience of using the item right now and not saving it for "some day". Not to mention that I can always buy more once I've used it up. I find it humorous that I have to catch myself in the act of hoarding and then tell myself it's ok not to do so, but I'm happy that I finally figured out that I am worth the convenience and freedom of not hoarding stuff away for "some day".

[rebecca lynn]

Love your posts. I know I've pack ratted stuff away before too. I have been getting my diaper disposal bags from a site called rogersmarket.com. They are very fast with shipping and have scented bags for less than 2 bucks for a 100. such a good deal I just had to share it with all of you.