I saw an old Chinese man at Costco pushing his wheelchair-bound wife through the checkout line. His life seemed complicated, with language and aging challenges, a partner who needs extra care, and a cartload of bulky Costco items to haul around. But he had simplified his life in one astonishingly practical way.
He had a rubber band wallet.
It was a single, fat blue rubber band holding together all his credit cards and IDs and photos. I thought, in the new cash-free economy, this rubber band wallet seems like a pretty clever idea. And I was reminded of a man I photographed in China in 1991 who made a business out of transforming old bike tires into shoes. I was also reminded of my father, who fixed exhaust systems with coat hangers and installed a phonograph in his car before 8-tracks or tape cassettes or CDs existed.
I love seeing people solve sophisticated problems with unsophisticated solutions. And yes, the man at Costco was most likely just cheap. Like my father was cheap. But the ability to stay in the game when you are dealt a poor hand is admirable. And I think it can be an addictive way of looking at the world. I have a few shot bike tires in the garage, and right now I am looking at my shoes.
Searching for Yoldash 
I love the idea of a phonograph in the car. I guess he had to pull over to change a record. Which also changes the pace of things, eh?
They put the phonograph on springs to minimize skipping from bumps in the road, but when they rounded corners the needle would slide across the record. Scrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
Nicely said
Tony!