A Non-Consumer “Treat Yo’ Self” Week!
My husband is heading off to Las Vegas for a baseball tournament and I’m taking it as an opportunity to plan a week dedicated to self indulgence. I normally thrive on days of accomplishments and productivity. A big ol’ to-do list that’s been fully checked off is such a dopamine boost!
Behold all my accomplishments!
What if . . . I just spent the week doing self indulgence things? What would that even look like? I retired from hospital nursing in 2019 and the kids are fully launched, so there’s no one officially counting on me. I suppose that many women reach the stage when fewer people rely on them and it can create an existential crisis. This is not that. No crisis, I promise.
I think I just want an excuse to eat yummy things and do fun stuff. But you know . . . non-consumer style.
I’m thinking friend dates, binging multiple library books, thrifting, exploring my own city and this one’s important –enjoying the pleasure of other people’s cooking. Food carts, takeout, the complete and utter delight of restaurant food. Fancy coffees, desserts, all the sweetness in life!
Wait? Am I just describing “Treat Yo’ self” from Parks & Rec? Except there will be no fragrances, massages or “fine leather goods.” (I love the Donna character and the way she delivers that line will live forever in my head!) I think they were onto something.
I’m locked into throwing an 84th birthday party for my mother on Wednesday, but I’ve held enough dinner parties to keep that commitment from spilling over.
Of course I’m allergic to wasting money, so it’ll be interesting to see how things play out. Can this goal be accomplished non-consumer style? Will I revert to my equilibrium? Stay tuned.
I’m excited to start planning, maybe even start a detailed to-do list. <– See? Already reverting to type.
What would you do on a “Treat Yo’ Self” week?
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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Lucky! When my husband went to Vegas, I worked in a few more bins visits than usual — the type where I spent a few hours and wasn’t too worried about getting home in time to start dinner!
Another treat was that I got to binge some of the shows I can never convince my husband to watch.
Have a great time!
“Treat Yo’ Self” for sure! and have a fun time doing it. My daughter and I made a Saturday stop at the Franz Outlet and I feel like we struck gold. She is having a barbeque at her house and wanted to pick up hamburger and hotdog buns. We found 24 count packs of both for $1.00 each. She was super delighted. I found a 12 pack of multigrain English muffins, a loaf of deli rye bread, a 3 packages of soft ginger molasses cookies all on the dollar rack. Some will be used now and some will go into the freezer. Best part was that it was part of a regular grocery shopping so no special out of the way trip was made.
I love when I find bread that’s packaged for the restaurant trade!
Off the top of my head: I’d visit the fancy downtown library, go on a hike, and jigsaw puzzle (from buy nothing or our free puzzle library) while listening to an audiobook from Libby.
I love all of that!
Regardless of what you.decide, ENJOY!!!
My favorite self indulgence is getting a yummy drink and then wandering through stores looking at cute things and smelling alllllllll the candles. My husband thinks it’s a waste of time, and it probably is lol, but I seldom buy anything and I love it.
That’s a great idea! Get a stack of books and read, read, read.i would love that, no timetable, no one waiting for you to finish. Lovely, enjoy your time whatever you do.
Yes! I am an avid reader who has been retired for 9 years. Only once did I allow myself the luxury of spending all day reading. To me, that is the ultimate indulgence.
Hmmm—
To treat myself, I might go to a movie, eat breakfast at a restaurant, get an ice cream cone, get some Chinese food, or a personal size pizza. All spending, and mostly food! Or I might take the train into the city and visit the Art Institute. Or visit the botanic gardens. Again, not free.
DH goes away on hiking trips a couple times each year so I know that exquisite feeling of looking forward to having a chunk of time all to myself. The excitement builds as the day gets closer. When he’s hiking here’s a few things I do ( or don’t do):
I don’t cook much but when I do it doesn’t involve meat. Not my favorite food group.
I spend a lot of time at the indy bookstore Cafe sipping tea and talking with friends.
I don’t clean much.
I go to the library for books and read to my heart’s content, preferably on my deck in the good weather.
I pick up Thai food takeout once or twice, not his favorite.
A whole week sounds decadent! I’m still in a working fulltime with young kids phase of life so it’s incredibly rare to get any time to myself but I’m currently in the middle of a mini treat yo self day. My husband took the kids to visit his mom (about 1.5 hours away) so I have a half day to myself. And I did in fact make a list of what I wanted to do this morning so I wouldn’t forget anything.
I’d initially thought of going to my favorite thrift store and other places but since I am literally never alone in my house, I figured I’d rather stay here and enjoy it. So far I went on a long run (which I know would not be considered a treat by many!) and made some banana nice cream with matcha in it which I enjoyed in the sunny backyard. Next I’ll do some cooking and baking (another thing I enjoy but not for everyone) then probably more backyard relaxing with a book or crossword puzzle book and a lagunitas hoppy refresher (non-alcoholic, it’s essentially very expensive sparkling water so a ration them out and enjoy sparingly) For dinner, I’ll pickup Turkish food since no one else in my family likes it. I’ll also stop at the grocery store to get a few things (going to the grocery store without kids also feels like a luxury).
Now I’m daydreaming of having a whole week though, maybe someday, I’m certainly enjoying my half day at least though!
Indulge in a candlelight bubble bath while playing your favorite slow dance music, or love songs.. Hopefully you have gifted, thrifted or trash picked scented candles and scented soap and bath oil and bubble bath stuff. Paint your toenails while you’re at it. Dry off with the softest, fluffiest towel you have.
Oh that sounds so promising! Only
Yourself to take care of. Enjoy’
Bachelorette living – treat yourself to fried bologna and/or Spam sandwiches (potato chips are an excellent side dish). Read or binge watch shows. I usually only get a couple of bachelorette living days, likely only one if a corp america work day. Enjoy.
I spent a few days not setting an alarm, not watching a clock, with my phone turned off (and bad cell service/ no WIFI). It was extraordinarily relaxing! That and a big old Victorian novel and my favorite snack foods had me pretty blissed out!
I agree, time with no alarms, clocks or Internet is the most relaxing!
With a more indulgent budget, I’d have slightly more massage than is strictly medically advisable and go to movies and spa/swimming in between, ideally.
But mostly I spend these opportunities reading in bed with a cuppa and having the really good chocolate.
That sounds like heaven! Some good books, good food, a huge stack of library books, some fresh flowers, some special chocolate and perhaps a trial of some streaming or subscription service that you can readily cancel such as Spotify (did you know that can include a few hours of audiobooks- so you could get a recent bestseller without having to wait weeks/months in Libby for same). Maybe check out some aspirational library cookbooks, putter in the kitchen and spontaneously host people to share the result.
I would take naps, walk an hour a day, probably a couple of walks at the river parks, read a novel that had zero to do with the legal profession, eat ice cream and sweet potato pie, and just chill. I am not fancy.
I would read, read, read all day!! And lots of walk and coffee dates with friends.
I’m someone who’s been a lifelong caregiver (retired social worker/RN too). I now care for my 93yo dad, but just got back from my first ever vacation by myself. LOVED IT! Wandered California back roads and stayed in an old funky hotel in a gold rush town. Hiked in a state park to commune with the sequoias. Wandered little shops in the town and spent as long as I wanted everywhere I went. Hung out on the hotel balcony reading. My frugal nature kicked in and I ate on the cheap by choice, but did treat myself to a quiet happy hour margarita and dinner one night. Ha- ate leftovers the next day. Watched whatever I wanted to watch on tv (dad is not a fan) and read a good book. Absolutely wonderful! Enjoy your week, Katy!
Ha ha you stayed at the HOTEL CALIFORNIA!
Ooh, have fun Katy! I had to laugh at this as I currently have a lot of free time to myself. I work part time while my partner often works long hours (running his seasonal business with care work on the side). We joke that we never get any time together between April-October.
Currently I am: spending time on my allotment, practising yoga (Yoga with Adriene), coffees and cookies/flapjacks at the beach (both made at home) – sometimes I swim in the sea too, lots of reading secondhand books at home (I agree with other commenters that hours reading feels like such a luxury), naps, plus crochet and sewing using secondhand yarn and fabric. I’m also doing ‘Arty Thursdays’ on Thursday evenings where I either read about art (again, secondhand books) or make some art – currently have a free trial of Skillshare I’m making the most of! It’s not a priority at the moment but I also love foraging and going for walks by myself, and my favourite ever holiday was actually a solo walking holiday.
When I do have a week off work, I tend to treat myself to a day out during the week: a five minute train ride to an area with a great yoga studio, farm shop, vintage shop and some charity shops. It can get spendy by my standards! There is a library there I enjoy browsing too and then I often bring my own coffee, treat myself to a pastry and enjoy them both in a little public garden. Bliss!