Moving to Japan requires a little bit of money. I broke the bank getting over here. Then I racked up some credit card debt, just to stay a float (something I am not happy about). For the past few months, I have been finding different ways to spend money on necessary items, on a small budget.
One of these ways is to purchase items used. A few weeks into living here, I saw a giant lot where people were bringing in bikes, washers, dryers, etc... It was a recycle center. I decided to find out if I could take a bike off of there hands. Luckily, I was able to. I purchased a working bike at a fraction of the cost of a new one.
It has a few rust spots, some dings, and dents but overall works just as good as any other bike. This same bike, new, would cost somewhere around $150. People buy these bikes frequently and is the most common one you'll see. Its known as a 'Mama Chari' which means 'mama chariot'.
Growing up, I never wanted to buy anything used. Something inside of me thought it was bad. Then I had to get by on my own money. Can you guess who was hitting up Goodwill frequently?
When you buy anything used here, it has a much higher quality to it. Either the Japanese take care of there goods really well or they are continually getting new items and tossing out the old. Regardless, one mans trash is another mans treasure.
---------
No comments:
Post a Comment