An observation from my minimalist life: when you don’t have a lot of stuff in your home, you tend to look outward for entertainment.
When my husband and I lived in our tiny flat in England, we rarely spent our leisure time indoors—other than reading or cooking, there simply wasn’t much to do. Instead, weekends and evenings would find us walking the streets of London, or the idyllic paths of the countryside.
The same holds true now: even though we live in a larger house, there’s still not much to keep us inside. During the day, I usually put Plumblossom in my Baby Bjorn carrier, wander through the neighborhood, and chat with anyone who happens to be out and about. On weekends, our little family goes for long walks and picnics in a local park. As far as I can tell, Plumblossom—budding minimalist that she is—much prefers an outdoor jaunt than staying inside and playing with toys. And my husband and I would certainly rather get some fresh air and exercise than sit around at home.
Along my minimalist journey, I’ve learned that too much stuff can build up into walls around us—keeping us isolated from everything and everyone out there. When we declutter, we dismantle those stacks and mounds and piles of clutter, and reconnect with the world at large. Oftentimes, it’s simply a matter of pursuing our interests and activities on public ground rather than private.
Here’s a few examples:
* Instead of buying (and storing) a treadmill or rowing machine, go for walks/runs or join a recreational athletic league.
* Instead of outfitting a media room with the latest and greatest in viewing technology, take your family out to the movies.
* Instead of owning an ice cream maker, cappuccino machine, or specialty bakeware, go out for an indulgent treat.
* Instead of accumulating collectibles, visit a gallery or museum (or window shop) to satisfy your aesthetic interests.
* Instead of stashing away closetfuls of craft supplies, take a class or course in your hobby of choice. That way, you can use the studio’s equipment rather than invest in your own.
As I write in my book, The Joy of Less:
In our quest to become minimalists, we want to reduce the amount of things in our homes that require our care and attention. Fortunately, we have ample opportunity to do so—simply by shifting some of our pleasures and activities into the public realm. In fact, such action produces a pretty wonderful side effect. For when we hang out in parks, museums, movie houses, and coffee shops—instead of trying to create similar experiences in our own homes—we become significantly more socially active and civically engaged. By breaking down the walls of stuff around us, we’re able to get out into the world and enjoy fresher, more direct, and more rewarding experiences.
Do you have any walls of stuff you need to break down? Tell us about it in the Comments!
{If you’d like to learn more about minimalist living, please consider reading my book, The Joy of Less, A Minimalist Living Guide, or subscribing to my RSS feed.}
I think most children if not all prefer the outdoors to toys. It is an inbuilt gene within us the too many people lose over times
Your point about being more socially active and civically engaged is such an important one, for our children especially I think. An excellent, thought provoking post! Thank you.
I’ve decluttered quite a bit, but feel that there is more to do- less stuff= easier cleaning= I can have a clean house and time to spend outdoors- although for me that will mean working in the garden. Actually, working in the garden does tend to result in conversations with passers by… The other sure fire method is walking a dog and chatting to other dog walkers!
“too much stuff can build up into walls around us—keeping us isolated from everything and everyone out there.” – Oh Dear, This is an eye-opener for me! I did told myself, that i slowly get more and more allone and disconnected from the world becouse my age of caracter changing-
the world changing too fast and I can’t following etc… I closed myself up in my home. I was thinking: I have everything what I need hier around me. Now i read your brilliant post, i see: I’m almost completely disconnected from the outside, and from people. It’s true: my house is full off stuff, I’m really lost in and I really loose myself between this walls. Thank You, now I see the real reason: I simply burried myself in all this comfotable things! I really wonder if “declutter, we dismantle those stacks and mounds and piles of clutter, and reconnect with the world at large” I wil it give a try! Many many thanks for your writing wich shifting my mind! I was really thinking it was something wrong with me, but it is the accumuleted stuff what keep me in this prison life! I will go from now outside and start declutter! Greetings from the Netherlands!Love, Krisztina
Kido, good for you on your “light bulb” moment of clear and insightful thinking. I think it’s just wonderful when someone comes to the realization that stuff is keeping them from living. I was really touched by your honesty. Thanks for sharing that moment with us.
I think being outdoors in nature is far more stimulating to the senses than being stuck indoors. You notice so much more when you are on foot than when driving around in a car, too.
Thank you, Francine – this post really hit me.
I’ve been working on de-cluttering for quite sometime now, but always seem to accumulate as fast as I clear! This post has given me a strong push towards a new paradigm: focusing on living more in the public arena. Like Kido, I readily end up living as a semi-hermit surrounded by my stuff – all the while telling myself I can’t afford to go out and enjoy cafe and museums. Of course, if I hadn’t spent so much money on stuff…
Thnaks for helping my brain switch into a different gear – now to live the change :-)
I was accumulating faster than what I cleared, until it finally sunk in that I had to stop that flow of stuff coming in if I was going to get where I wanted to go. I have set the rule that one thing goes out for each thing that comes in. I am not perfect at it, sometimes I forget, but I seem to be getting better all the time.
It seems like we all start with the getting rid of stuff stage first, me included. Perhaps the best place to start is stopping the inflow of stuff. I guess getting rid of stuff and seeing space made is the fun part, where as stopping the tide of shopping is harder and not as fun.
OOOOh. I like it…
Yes, I think most children would prefer a trip to the park (or library, or,choldren’s museum) to a day inside with their toys.
My daughter loves going outside above everything else (toys?tv? coloring? it’s no contest.) I’d like to attribute it to my stellar parenting, but I think it’s an innate thing in most children. :)
I seriously had this exact conversation with my husband last night. My daughter, 19 months old, has always preferred being outside. We take advantage of the local park, pool, library story time (and other library children’s events), farmer’s market, museams, etc. We also have a weekly play date with her friends and she recently started gymnastics class. The hands on museum has an amazing play area and the library has toys and playtime after story time. At home, I try to keep only developmental toys like puzzle, books, stuffed animals, blocks, coloring items, etc. It’s great to be able to have her grow up in an uncluttered environment yet be able to enjoy so many diverse experiences, most of them being free.
I’m sitting in my cubicle and realised that I have built a nice cozy wall around me here. I really want a new job but it has been a challenge. Now I understand why: I’m telling the universe I’m way too comfortable here with my family pics, house plants, post cards from colleagues travelling and other mementos… WHAT an eye opening your post was!
I don’t want to build a nest here – I want to fly away to a better job which is out there! Yay!
That struck a chord! When I wanted to leave my job in London and knew I would have to save up first, I steadily decluttered my office. In the end I had the neatest noticeboard of anyone in the company. All the filing got done, things I knew I had done for the last time (even though others didnt) were all neatly filed with a note to tell my successor what to do. It was great and gave me that push to do what I really wanted to do and not get too bogged down in my comfortable life. I hope this works for you! Good luck!
Maria, way to go, girl!!!! Follow your dream!
Even as an infant (nine months now), my son’s irritability is ALWAYS soothed with a trip outdoors!
We too have enjoyed going out for pass-times, especially for exercise. Baby’s don’t work well in movie theaters though, so we have recently gotten a projector set-up so we can enjoy movies at home as a family while pausing when necessary. ;-)
We love hosting movie nights here for our friends and family, too. Is this a minimalist decision? For us it is the right decision and one of our few non-minimalist looking ones. It’s all about balance, right?
It’s about getting rid of the stuff that is in our way of getting to the important stuff in our lives.
We have a projector too. It is my husbands pet project made up of mostly salvaged items (free computer, Ubuntu, speakers someone put in the dumpster, old amp, free projector, free projector screen from work, projector holder made from too computer tower holders that are made to clamp onto a desk + bit of wood all from Ikea’s as is department). It looks pretty modern and slick, despite it’s free origins. My husband brought up the point that this set up is more minimalist. The projector, wires, tower, and screen that comes apart and rolls up is easier to move, more compact, and less likely to get damaged, to have a , than to try to hall around a great big tv.
Awesome!! Thanks for sharing! :-)
I run an in-home daycare and I find this principle to be true. Even though I have 5 toddlers at my house all day, I own very few toys. My neighborhood has a nice park and a nature path, so there’s no need for me to invest money in play equipment for my yard. We inevitably meet friends from the neighborhood there. My husband is an avid gardener, so when we stay at home, the kids spend the majority of their outdoor playtime walking between the rows of vegetables, looking at bugs and picking produce.
I agree with this to a large extent, with some exceptions. There is something to be said for facilitating hospitality in your own home if that is a priority and something you enjoy. One beauty of minimalism is that it allows you to do this in your own way according to your own values. For example, music is important to us, and we own a piano and several other smaller instruments that we play. We often have people over to play music together. We also now have a rather large living area in an otherwise modest apartment, but because we have minimal/lightweight/flexible furniture (except for he piano) and no TV, we are contemplating using the space to our advantage and getting a ping pong table to set up and fold away when not in use – we thought this would be a fun “excuse” to have people over. The point is that minimalism can clear the extra clutter you don’t actually care about to make room for things you do care about, and hospitality in our home happens to be one of our core values. You don’t NEED stuff to do this, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with a few facilitating items to draw people IN, if you’re not excessive and if you carefully pick and choose what you own.
If you own an average-sized dining/kitchen table, you can just buy a table-top ping pong set- it’s just the net and you can clamp it on to your existing table.
Yes, well my husband is actually a rather serious ping-pong player, so I know he wouldn’t go for table-top kind – must be regulation height and certain quality and specifications, etc. Thanks for the suggestion, though! :)
I really enjoyed reading this post. One thing that I’m baffled by in my neighborhood is that nearly every family’s backyard is outfitted with elaborate Playscapes and trampolines (costing thousands of dollars) while there is a large variety of public spaces in our town where children can play. The parks here are safe, well-maintained, and have all sorts of great equipment to play on for kids of all ages. To me, this is the perfect example of consumerism keeping people in the private realm rather than getting out into the community.
We are one of the families with a trampoline (less than $300). It’s actually our smartest purchase for our children EVER! Where we live, kids can not play on play equipment at parks for at least 4 months out of the year due to heat. Thus having the park down the street is pretty pointless come May. Our trampoline gives our boys a chance to jump out their energy and play outside while I can be inside cleaning (it has a net around it). In the summer, we put a sprinkler under it to keep them cool. I don’t have any of those options if we went to the park.
Gosh Megyn, it sounds like we celebrate summer the same way! I don’t know what we would do without our trampoline! It is even getting good winter use because we’re having such a sunny winter :) While we try to keep our home as clutter free as possible, there are some things we choose to have. I love how minimalism/simple living can be defined as many different ways as there are people that identify with it :)
I think overall this is a good post. However, I think you miss a HUGE point as to why people have some of those items: they save money in the long run. Having a cappuccino machine is often much cheaper in the long run over going out and buying a treat as frequently as one would want a cappuccino. The same goes for movies, crafting classes, etc. We save an abundance of money from actually owning items rather than just splurging whenever we want an experience. Our (free to us) TV and $7/month for Netflix saves us hundreds of dollars a year over going to the movies. Yes, experiences are more fun. However, not everyone can afford such endeavors. Please don’t forget that item ownership can actually benefit others rather than put them in debt just for “experiences”. Experiences can be had right at home too!
Good point. I enjoy cooking and find it to be a creative and artistic outlet, one that I need in the conventional career that I have chosen. Mealtime should be communal social and leisurely, savoring rather than rushing through without really tasting. I don’t believe I have anything in my kitchen that I don’t use on a regular basis, but I do take inventory about once every six months.
My non-communal vice (if you want to call it that) is reading. I love to read, but it truly is an individual pleasure. I find that I like to choose when to be social and when to find solitude. It is a balance, really.
I also agree it is good to be outside as much as possible, however most of the examples do not work for me. My husband and I am both extremely introverted and also on the autism spectrum. Being around people and in busy places such as coffee shops and the movies is a form of torture for us, I have major sensory issues and feel profoundly uncomfortable in such places. Home is our only sanctuary from the onslaught of the world and I love being at home. We also live below the poverty line and just cannot afford expensive coffees etc. Our house is very minimalist because I cannot stand clutter and my anxiety is so extreme that is how I need it in order to be able to cope. However I do not consider myself a minimalist, more a frugalist. I am quite content in how I live as I don’t need much to be happy, internet access, a pile of books, a well stocked fridge and an animal friend and I’m all set. Not everyone wants to connect with the outside world or other people, different strokes for different folks.
My kids do enjoy being outdoors and they have horses, cattle, dogs, cats, bicycles etc at their disposal daily, but we live in an area with such extreme temperatures that several months of the year it’s too hot or cold. We also live in a very rural area so it requires at least a 10 minute drive to a park, movie theater, etc so it’s not going to happen very often. Most years we get a small inflatable pool for the kids but this year we opted for a slip n slide because after several weeks of 100+ degree days it gets too hot to enjoy swimming even. So we do have indoor toys and a DVD player and things for entertaining inside when the weather is just too extreme. I think it just depends on the area you live in as to what works for your family. Very good post though! And I must admit when I saw the title “walls of clutter” I was expecting a post about too many photos on the walls–which is a problem I do have!
I’m glad Megyn mentioned this also: the reason that people have these things is because in the long run it saves them money. As you will discover with a little one in tow, the price of doing things as a family on limited income makes doing these things you mention increasingly financially and physically (in time required/allowed) most times impossible outside of the home, hence the accumulation of ‘things’ in the home. I totally agree with you that having belongings that sit there unused are totally unnecessary, but those things that are? They are a good investment certainly :)
As a person who doesn’t claim to be minimalist, but rather has a philosophy of keeping things simple and not aquiring more things than are needed (really needed), I prefer to go without certain ‘luxuries’ both within and outside of my home altogether. It’s about priorities, for sure. I think this approach of going without is far more successful in the long run… Unfortunately I feel that your examples are only options for those without ties and money to spend. I am sure you can think of some more that would work however ;)
Much as I love the outdoors I also love my precious time at home at the weekends. It’s my haven, and I love nothing better than curling up with a book, my husband and cats, looking out at our garden (or sitting in the garden in nice weather!)
I would much much rather eat my lunch at home than in a local park. I don’t think it’s a bad thing to be tied to the home. We certainly don’t have clutter or fancy entertainment systems (rarely watch TV) that ‘isolate’ us, but both my husband and I are introverts and love our own space to retreat from the world after a busy week.
I also think a lot of your options are way more expensive than the home-based ones (own craft supplies vs course, buying ice cream rather than making it etc). It’s not an option for everyone.
I’ve noticed this too. When I have more than 1 day off in a row, I make excuses to get out of the house. Going for a walk or bike ride, going to a coffee shop and buying something I couldn’t make at home (a latte if I’m feeling indulgent, or a kind of tea I don’t have at home), or just walking to the store to pick up something I need (just ran out of deodorant? Trip to the store, even though I still have my mini deodorant in my purse.)
I love going to a coffee shop for a double espresso or a soy cappuccino, not only for the coffee but the experience of sitting there with a book or just watching people. So I agree with not having all this stuff to entertain you at home when you can go out to do the same things. And not having to own an ice cream maker or an expensive coffee maker; I’d rather treat myself outside our home. On the other hand, I don’t have to go out all the time, since I feel very comfortable at home without all the accoutrements mentioned in your post :)
I’d be interested in your thoughts on walls between family members who aren’t minimalist.. I’ve become a minimalist but my mother doesn’t understand it, and there’s often friction as I’m getting rid of something she bought for me years ago that I appreciated and enjoyed at the time but now have no use for :/
Very very hard… I’ve asked my Mum (and most of my friends) not to buy me more Things… But my mum is like yours, she thinks that when I get rid of a Thing she has bought me she feels I am getting rid of her…
I really enjoyed this post. I just returned from a family vacation in France (home to the U.S.) and am missing the public spaces where people walk, gather, and congregate. It was so much fun to people-watch and just to feel a part of a larger community while running errands, having a coffee, or wandering. At home it’s rare to see people on the streets in my neighborhood, except for a few walkers/joggers/parents with young children.
I’m wondering if you have noticed any differences between living in Britain and in the U.S. in this regard, Francine. My impression is that people live in smaller spaces in general in Europe, but also maybe there is less cultural inclination for everyone to have their own little everything? What do readers think?
Hi,
I agree with others who said they liked to be able to stay home on the weekends instead of always going out… I’m an introvert too, and I like having some private time and space from time to time. Having your own thing (sawing machine, bakeware…) enables you to do things you like away from the stimulation of the outside world for a few hours. Yet I also think I must be careful not to keep too many things which I actually don’t use and which take some precious time to care for, while I would rather be resting…NB : about France, I’m French and I think this tendency of everyone having his thing is becoming more present. Lots of people have or want to have a nespresso machine, a massaging bath, things for the garden…
Perhaps if I were a SAHM or if I worked from home I’d want to get out more, but for me, spending time at home is much more enjoyable than being out and about. I work full time in a big, big office divided up into cubicles. There is a lot of background noise from other phones, other people, and so on. By the end of the day, and certainly by the end of the work week, I’m more than ready to be alone. My home is peaceful and quiet and I find that refreshing. Being out in public means haveing to listen to everyone else’s conversations, clattering crockery,cell phones, kids, dogs, iPods, etc.
I think you make a great point, but I also think it cuts both ways: “I can’t face all of this clutter in my home, I’m going to spend the day outside away from it.” vs. “Whoo! Look at all my lovely space I can enjoy!”
As a child, I remember I MUCH preferred being outside to being indoors with things! And I still do today: http://goo.gl/MxxaG
I once wrote an article about using a shopping mall as a playground. It was fun. If you are interested you can read it here: http://sandcastle.sandsys.org/2012/06/mall-of-america/
With my youngest child having recently started school, I have started getting out every afternoon for a walk in the neighbourhood. It’s good for both heart and soul :) We used to have a lot of books that we really didn’t need, and I am very pleased to report that at the school book fair my kids were quite happy to browse the books to see what new books were coming out and to make a list of which ones they wanted to get out of the library. The school missed out on a few dollars of fundraising from us, but we
(oh rats, I pressed enter by mistake…)
The school missed out on a few dollar of fundraising from us, but we gained so much from not bringing home extra things we didn’t need :) And I gained a pleasant surprise from how content my children were to go without a new ‘thing’. Good all round!
Love this article. My philosophy is that if you spend less than 5% of you time using a certain thing, don’t buy it yourself. Go use a community solution or rent something in the rare case you need it.
This post is golden! Every suggestion resonated with me. I’ve been radically paring down over a year and a half now. The exercise equipment is gone along with the china, the bakeware and the craft supplies.
We now have the opportunity to move to a smaller outdoors community, cut our square footage in half, and live walking distance to the kids school and a grocery store. We are excited to embrace the opportunities like the ones you mentioned above in our new community.
Yet, I’m still hanging on to our second car. That’s my wall, I guess. But you’ve helped me see ditching the second car as opportunity to connect further through the community car share and local work from home network. Thanks Francine!
I think the comments on this post demonstrat there is no one correct way to be a minimalist, it is whatever works best for each person. There are many paths to minimalism. While one person would rather not own a coffee machine and instead go out in the community for coffee, others are happy to stay home and sip their coffee made at home…and I suppose there are a lot people who see the advantages to both. I think that is the beauty of it…there are many shades of minimalism! I love the sharing and thoughts!
How is this for spin? I built my walls out of the things I love and the activities we chose to do. We have our bikes in our front landing, baskets of assortment of shoes and sports equipment- soccer, swimming, football, running, lined up against the walls in our various rooms. I decided I did not want a showcase out of a catalog but a page out my life reflected in my home. I rather have my running shoes out than an chotsky on the wall. When these items were in the closets, we used them less. Now, we are out and about all the time. We are saving for a pool. Most people think it’s a waste of money but when we had one where we lived before, if it was about 75 degrees out, we were swimming. My only requirement is a cute umbrella to sit under and some someblock. ; )
Love this comment! Very cool. ;-)
I’m an introvert and a home-body too, and I actually enjoy spending more time at home when it is minimalist and bare. A maximalist, colorful and cluttered place makes me irritated easily and I feel like running out so I can breathe ;)
Now we have our own big garden though so we can be outside and be private.
I also agree with whomever made the point about hospitality – I love to have space to invite guests to, to have dinner around our big table, barbeque in the garden, go to sauna, and have people stay the night in the guest room. (We are just about to have my brother stay for two months.) So what if I need some extra bedding and dishes and towels? THOSE are useful things, I can do without the knick knacks and kitchen excess paraphernalia and lots of curtains and rugs and Ipads and …..
But this isn’t to say I don’t get the point of this post -I do. I don’t think everybody needs to own everything, and I think active communities are nice, and when we lived in the city we loved the playgrounds and beach and cafes right next to us.
I totally agree with this idea! :) My roommate and I don’t have a TV, and we really wanted to watch the Olympics opening ceremony this weekend. So we went out to a really fun sushi place and asked them to put the Olympics on the TV at the bar. It was more like a special event that way, & so much more fun than staying home! :) I was looking forward to going out all week, and we had delicious plum wine and sushi, which is definitely a treat. The best part was being around a bunch of other people who came out for the same thing; it was like an impromptu party.
I too live in extreme heat and cold climate. It doesn’t even begin to cool down to a reasonable heat till 8pm, which is my son’s bedtime. So we have to find indoor places to go. 100+ degree heat is not safe for young ones. Also, as a coffee addict, I save money by having a machine at home.
Oh, I agree with all of those except the cookingware and to a degree, the crafting supplies. Cooking is something we love to do, and we do use all of our “specialty” stuff. My husband is about to get some more bread making tools and we would love to build an outdoor oven someday.
I think for the crafting things it’s pointless to have so much around that you never get to it. But I love the idea of narrowing it down to something that you really love to *do,* not something that you love to *store.* Taking a class is a perfect idea because maybe you’re get it out of your system, if you really don’t love it, and if you do love it you’d get a better idea of the things you practically need to get the job done right. I would love to take clothes-sewing class when I’m out of nursing school and be able to make quality, attractive clothing but at this point I have no idea what I need, nor how to make clothes.
My main craft hobby is not as tiny as yours: it’s sewing. I do own a sewing machine, a variety of tools and thread and also a box of fabric. That said, I’m far from having a “craft room” or anything the like (living in a smallish apartment that wouldn’t be an option anyway). I’m a rather experimental sewer, I go out window shopping and when I find a cute purse or bag or whatnot, I might just go through my little stack at home trying to make something similar – often at night or on holidays, so a classroom would really be a different kind of thing. Moreover, a sewing machine is great for mending and altering things, so it also helps me get the most wear out of my wardrobe.
As someone mentioned above, me too, I need to be able to host guests for dinner. It doesn’t need to be elegant or anything, but a table, chairs and a couple of stools and enough plates and glasses for about 6-8 additional guests are a must for me. We often have spontaneous gatherings at our place. Also we have hosted young and old travellers so often at our home and it has been real fun every single time, that I’d also count a place to sleep (nothing fancy in a small apartment, but a comfy couch or a folding matress or anything) for a guest as something I wouldn’t want to miss.
Still though, I do get what your post is all about and I do think, you wrote wise words here.
I know this is all true and important. I do feel though, that we all need that “quiet time”, as individuals, as couples, as families. With so much going on around you it can be so hard to truly see and experience ourselves and others. Even if you are experiencing something together, there is still need for quiet at times, to refect, to connect. For our family these moments can happen out in the desert, or in the woods, as they often do. But the most profound bondingin with my husband and my two small boys has happened at home, snuggling in bed or rocking in a chair or reading a captivating board book. Having moved towards minimalism and having done major decluttering was partly spurred (there are other reasons) by the desire to remove distractions so that we can spend time at home without worrying about cleaning and getting mad about something breaking. It’s okay to unwind and seek entertainment outside or enjoy the outdoors together, but some of the best moments happen at home, especially when your kids are little. Despite the sometimes craziness and sometimes lack of money, my husband still can’t wait to get home to us and always tells me that there is no place he’d rather be than be with me and our boys. That truly warms the heart and home far more than decor and fancy things.
I think you make some interesting points, but I have to disagree with you about a couple of things. First, while outside is great, it’s not so much fun to go for a walk when it’s -40C. While the temperatures where I live don’t normally get that low, it often does a few times a winter and I find anything below -20C is really hard to take. I know I could layer up and do it anyway, but it’s just about impossible to motivate myself when I’m inside under a cozy blanket!
The suggestion about getting rid of equipment and going out of the home for things is also difficult, depending on hobbies and lifestyle. I do sewing and leatherworking, and there’s really no where I can go to rent time (as in hours, not months) on the heavy equipment I need. I also need to keep a lot of supplies and odds and ends around so that I’m not constantly going shopping. Taking a class or dropping in to use equipment isn’t an option for me.
I realize the latter is a lifestyle choice, but when I’ve spent years cultivating a skill it seems like an aweful waste to give up something I enjoy and am good at and instead bundle up for a walk in the cold, which I would hate (this is also why my spouse has a rowing machine).
I’m also an introvert, so the idea of pursuing all of my entertainment in the company of others is exhausting, rather than fun.
I know these are just suggestions, and I usually find your suggestions relevant and useful to my lifestyle, but as you can see from my comment, most of your suggestions would demand a huge change in lifestyle, hobbies and geographical location, which I am just not willing to commit to. I’m fairly new to minamalism and am trying to take small steps that will fit into my lifestyle, rather than radically changing my lifestyle.
I really needed to read this. I’ve been debating on whether to get rid of my icecream maker that I’ve used once in about 2 years…yup it’s getting donated ASAP :D I’d rather go out for icecream and then I can at least get a little walk home in to work off the calories!
I’m a whole foods plant based vegan and there are some great recipes on line for making homemade “ice creams” without an ice cream maker and with health(ier) ingredients.
Having a nice media room is something my Wife and I enjoy very much. I don’t care for going to the theater. Bluray’s are about the only physical copies of media I still buy but in extreme moderation and could easily be packed away for moving. I no longer buy books and cd’s and stay with digital formats as they are a little easier to store digitally and use if you don’t have internet vs videos.
As for a laptop? I haven’t found the need for one yet. A tablet covers it when I need something mobile and at home a little spill of coffee won’t destroy my entire pc. I also have a softub (hot tub) that is very easy to move around and we enjoy that very much as well. I also have a keurig machine with a re-usable filter and find that I don’t need a extra coffee pot.
To me being a minimalist is getting rid of things you don’t use which I am doing right now. Some people may have to do 100 items or what not out of necessity but I still like keeping around a few things. I have some rubbermaid totes filled with puzzles and board games that I know will be used again but other things like clothes that have been packed away for a decade are being donated. I’m getting rid of a tote of near worthless baseball cards , playstation games etc. I will have very few things in storage when I am done. Mostly items for maintaining the house. What I do keep will be easily movable in rubbermaid totes.
I started another round of decluttering. I found a bag of art supplies for the local preschool and another bag of craft supplies for the public library. I have more places to look for donations as I usually focus on clothing and books and magazines. Tomorrow, I
will take all the used batteries to the village recycling center. Whenever I read your entries it helps me to focus on something else. Thanks.
I disagree somewhat about going out as a way of saving.
I do have a hobby now that allows me to go out “for free” (landscape photography), but before that, I mostly went out to buy.
I live in a city, and going out mostly meant going to the supermarket, going to a gym class or going to the mall by bus.
Of course, in the mall I could do little else than windowshopping (mostly ending up buying a dink or fast food) or actual shopping.
I see this in a lot of people:
Boredom > going out > grabbing a drink/ food on the go > windowshopping > ending up buying something more or less useless (Idea “I have been hanging around so long that I need to buy something now.”)
A friend of mine even calls this “going out to buy something useless to uplift me” (her, that is).
I used to meet her more often and we always went to the mall, sometimes to two different malls after another or to a restaurant area.
Her idea of “going out” is tied completely with “buying something” – there is no other reason to leave the house and as she does want to leave the house, she ends up spending a lot of money on overpriced food (on the go/ restaurants/ cafés) or items she rarely wanted before leaving the house.
We used to go to Ikea, too, and she always ended up with “comfort buying” worth 50-100 € – accumulating plastic containers and covesr mostly.
Everytime we went there last year (every other weekend) she came out with a sheep skin.
Last time a came along, I mentioned to her that she seemed to collect sheep skins (they are around 40 € each).
Her answer stunned me:
She would not collect them and had in fact tired of looking at them so that she would now get rid of them!!!
She must have about 400 to 800 € worth of sheep skins in her house, purchased during the last one or two years alone!
This cycle really stunned me:
Going out to be out of the house, going shopping, buying similar items, and then being so tired of them that one feel the need to dump them – and possibly re-starting the cycle with another item.
Another term for it is “consumer therapy.” Maybe a better term is consumer addiction. Ultimately, it’s like a drug. Mindless shopping releases dopamine and other neurochemicals that make us feel good, but like any drug, the high eventually fades.
I like your idea about getting out when we can. I rely on the public library for a lot of our entertainment. I think a few things in our Midwestern climate is probably fine, because there are days when we don’t go out. The problem comes when we try to create a mini- world in our homes.
We have gotten rid of a lot of things. There are still more things that we can give away. My son likes to come over to watch sports because he shares an apartment with his sister who doesn’t enjoy sports. This morning we had brunch with some cousins who were here from out of town. To me, living in Chicago is great because someone is usually passing through here. Of course, the downside is the winter weather. When it is really cold, if we go out, we walk around a nearby mall and spend very little just enough to feel we’re helping keep the mall open.
I like staying home more than ever now that my house is de-cluttered! Minimalizing opened up space in my brain. I seem to have more energy for reading, especially. But also sewing, something I had gotten away from for literally decades. Thanks to your book I actually have a system for creating the space for sewing and keeping supplies and fabric organized and boxed up.
I was at a thrift shop and saw some yarn at a wonderful price and didn’t buy it because my craft bin was full. Being a minimalist wannabe keeps me from buying craft materials I don’t need. I am saving some items for my homeless niece in one of my drawers and I found more things to donate to Goodwill.