10 Things We Aren't Using During Quarantine

No baking pictures today since I didn't bake anything.  I figure we have enough baked goods to last a week or more, however most of the stuff I baked went into the freezer to eat later.  One thing I was thinking about today was all of the things we are NOT using/spending money on during the quarantine...

1. Makeup.  I haven't put on makeup in more than a week!  I guess in a disaster, the need for beauty and makeup goes out the window.
2. Clothes.  I mean I wear clothes, house clothes like sweatpants and t shirts, and when we go for a walk I just throw on a sweatshirt and off we go.  Needless to say, the neighbors have all seen my house clothes every morning when I am working in the yard but there has been absolutely no need to put on regular clothes for more than a week!
3. Gasoline.  Our car has only left the garage once in the past week and that was to take a quick drive to the Strip and see how things were looking there.  Many people have been going to the scenic areas to enjoy the outdoors and "distance" themselves, however these places are so crammed full of people they have had to close for people's safety.
4. Bottled water.  While people were freaking out and buying as much bottled water as they could, we decided to switch to tap water in order to save our bottled water for a real emergency.  We tend to boil it then flavor it by making tea or adding just a bit of juice to change the flavor of the water.  The water in Las Vegas is just OK but I still think bottled water tastes better.
5. No Baskin Robbin Blast or Starbucks frappuccinos.  While I do (did?) have what one might call an addiction to yummy coffee drinks, I haven't had any for more than a week.  It isn't worth the health risk to go to a restaurant every day just to get a coffee fix. The next time we go get groceries, however, I will probably get the ice cream and stuff to make my own coffee beverage treats.
6. Portable electronics.  Before the pandemic hit, I was obsessively checking out reviews and updates on the latest cell phones and tablets and other portable electronics.  I use these items every day when we are out and about as I usually hang out on the free wifi while hubby is playing poker.  Since we are house-bound, I have all I need with my laptop and TV so any other electronics purchases will wait until sometime after this disaster passes.
7. Spending money on random stuff.  We don't usually buy a lot of stuff but over the course of a week we might hit up the grocery store, the dollar store, the Goodwill, Costco, Sam's Club, maybe Walmart, a couple restaurants, etc.  Since we have been housebound, we haven't spent a penny.  There is nothing we really need so I haven't ordered anything on Amazon either.  Staying home is a great way to save money.
8. Traveling anywhere.  Before the pandemic we had had plans to go on a dinner cruise then drive up to Reno, go to a family reunion in Washington, and the SIL was still trying to get us to make a quick trip to Connecticut.  We also wanted to visit several state parks as well as a few national parks.  Since everything came to a screeching halt, we decided not to do any of these things until things get back to normal.
9. Our regular activities have come to a halt (as did spending on these activities).  Hubby's bowling leagues are cancelled, all of the poker rooms he plays at have been shut down, my walking club has cancelled all activities until further notice as have community events like the CERT exercise I was supposed to participate in.
10. Finally, not us, but friends and family have made some major changes due to the pandemic: a friend spent several thousand dollars on a 70th birthday party for her husband which we would have attended next week (she cancelled it and will hold the party on his 71st birthday), the SIL and her husband were going to buy a house next month when his job relocates the BIL but that probably won't happen (the job is suddenly on hold so they don't want to buy a house in a location he may not even end up working in), the cousins were going to take their annual spring cruise but cancelled when people started being quarantined on cruise ships, and another set of cousins usually go to Asia for six months each spring but they cancelled their trip as well because of both the possibility of catching the virus as well as the possibility of not being able to get back into the US when they wanted to return.

On the one hand, being quarantined saves a lot of money, on the other hand, not having all of the usual economic activity that most everyone participates in on a daily basis has brought our overall economy to a screeching halt--not good for employees, not good for businesses, not good for anyone really as economics are a cycle and when there is a glitch in that cycle, everyone is eventually impacted.