Page 5 of 16 FirstFirst ... 3456715 ... LastLast
Results 41 to 50 of 157

Thread: Are you or are you not a minimalist?

  1. #41
    Senior Member catherine's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Vermont
    Posts
    14,636
    Quote Originally Posted by early morning View Post
    But for now, I love the connection I feel to the man or woman who turned my big wooden bowls and large spoons - and all the hard-working women who used used them to take care of their families. I like the hand-forged tools, the hand woven cloth, the carefully crafted furniture - but mostly I love the connection I feel, through these objects, to all the nameless, faceless people who lived, worked, loved, and made life as good as they could with what they had. I am grateful to them, and feel that I am honoring them through using and loving the everyday items they made and used. And I am even more grateful for what I have today, without the hard labor faced by common workers in centuries past. My "stuff" does not distract me from what I love, it connects me to it even more firmly.
    Such a nice sentiment, and I agree.

    For me, that connection is with stuff that came through my kids. Now that I have to drastically downsize at least 3/4 of my stuff, I laid in bed the other morning looking around my bedroom, picking the "have to have's": I did pretty well. Out of all the stuff in my bedroom (excluding clothes) I chose the little pottery heart jewelry dish my DD made me when she was 8, and the old pictures of my mother, father, MIL, FIL and greataunt--although I may have to remove them from frames and put them in an album. We have hardly any wall space in VT. And MAYBE the little souvenir dish from Motel on the Mountain--from one of my first dates with DH--but I can live without that, too. So that's cool!

    ETA: I forgot about the hurricane lamp that was on my great-aunt's mantle. I'll take that over the Motel on the Mountain dish. Plus it's functional if the lights go out.
    "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it--every, every minute?" Emily Webb, Our Town
    www.silententry.wordpress.com

  2. #42
    Senior Member catherine's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Vermont
    Posts
    14,636
    Quote Originally Posted by JaneV2.0 View Post
    I like TooMuchStuff's quote as well.

    In citing (inciting, apparently ) the hair shirt, I was referring to people that make a fetish of their sacrifice/holiness/rejection of culture, et cetera, which few do here. Though if you could get hair shirts in colors or patterns...oh, wait...
    Yes, I get it.
    "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it--every, every minute?" Emily Webb, Our Town
    www.silententry.wordpress.com

  3. #43
    Senior Member Teacher Terry's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Nevada
    Posts
    12,889
    When I got rid of stuff I kept things that had meaning and that I enjoyed looking at. I don’t like the way a minimalist home looks either because it feels cold. But too cluttered also makes me uncomfortable. I don’t know any minimalists.

  4. #44
    Senior Member JaneV2.0's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Posts
    15,489
    My mother's side of the family was in tune with Iris Apfel ("More is more; less is a bore.") My father's side was way more restrained--until you got to their libraries. I have boxes of books ready to go (where?), but my stash has got lighter since Kindle came along.

  5. #45
    Senior Member Teacher Terry's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Nevada
    Posts
    12,889
    Our thrift store came with a truck and picked up 50 boxes of books.

  6. #46
    Senior Member JaneV2.0's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Posts
    15,489
    Quote Originally Posted by jp1 View Post
    I'm definitely not a minimalist. I have a box with 20 years worth of every computer cable I've ever owned to prove it. And just this week two of them are seeing use for the first time in probably a decade.
    I donated mine awhile back, finally. As I donate anything I can't/don't use. I hope I didn't donate anything essential...

  7. #47
    Senior Member JaneV2.0's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Posts
    15,489
    Quote Originally Posted by JaneV2.0 View Post
    My mother's side of the family was in tune with Iris Apfel ("More is more; less is a bore.") My father's side was way more restrained--until you got to their libraries. I have boxes of books ready to go (where?), but my stash has got lighter since Kindle came along.
    These are illustrated books on arts and crafts, so I'll be hanging on to them. (Oh no! Another hoard!) I thought they'd be easy to box up for the fictional move in my future.

  8. #48
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2016
    Posts
    7,451
    I don't think we will be successful getting rid of our books in this lifetime. I do give them as presents to my son and dad, and I find things for them at estate sales. This year for Christmas I gave my son my favorite novel, and my dad gave him his book of Hemingway short stories recently. I found my AA Milne which I suspect was my dad's, when he was small.

    I could more easily see us opening a used bookstore, actually.

  9. #49
    Senior Member Ultralight's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    10,216
    Quote Originally Posted by Williamsmith View Post
    I observe your conversations with female forum members and am not surprised that you seem to shed girlfriends as easily as you rid yourself of silverware.
    I will argue with anyone. I am equal opportunity.

    I will also agree to disagree with anyone who wants to.

    Feel free to do a trial-run on either with me, WS.

  10. #50
    Senior Member Ultralight's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    10,216
    Quote Originally Posted by Gardnr View Post
    UL, so many threads on minimalism. Do you just dream of new ways to ask the same question? Are you looking for further proof that no one else wants only 100 things so you win?
    Has anyone else posted threads about minimalism?

    I don't think of minimalism as a competition. Do you?

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •