MamaM
3-4-13, 1:31pm
**MODERATORS*** Please feel free to move if necessary. I didn't know where to put this.
So, I am in the process of answering the hard questions and part of this journey is going back to what triggered my ideas of what simple living is and how I came to these ideas.
I have realized it's been a series of rather impactful situations that have led me down this road. I would like to share.
1. Growing up poor, we never had much but my mother always went NUTS at garage sales. She would literally bring home truckloads of items, especially in the summer. I don't mind used items, like the Barbie's or clothing and the fancy curtains I had in my bedroom. : ) BUT I didn't understand not having enough money for a new pair of shoes but my mom had a houseful of antiques. Lesson learned: Do not put quantity or owning things over having what you need to live.
2. I survived a fire back around 1993. I lost 90% of what I owned. It was the heavy, black thick smoke that did most of my things in. It was in the barracks, that were 50 years and full of some toxic building materials. It took them 2 days to put it out because if you can picture an "I" shaped building with the middle being the attaching point to the 2 buildings, 300 room per side. It spread quickly and being the middle of a hot, desert summer in CA, it ignited the dry fields around it and even melted the parking lot. Lesson learned: It can all be taken from you in a snap.
3. When I was first married, we lived in San Diego, BEAUTIFUL area but the salty area and water did quite the number of everything, from vehicles to mold in shoes to eating away the tub surround. I had to be deligent about not letting our little apartment get to humid, making sure I moved stuff around to let it get air and using bleach to kill mold. We went away on a 2 week vacation and the power went out. The landlord never checked to see if our half of the duplex came back on. Well, it didn't, so the mold and dampness spread quickly. I don't mess with mold. I have heard NIGHTMARES. So we tossed all of our food, some of our clothes took a hit, books, our bikes started to rust, even the carpet had spots of mold. It resulted in having to move what was salvagable to a new, smaller apartment while they fumigated and cleaned the duplex on both sides. WHAT A MESS and hassle. I refused to move all we had so in came the first BIG purge since I was adult. We had one week to vacate. I was ruthless and I cleaned what I could salvage, boxed it up and gave it the DAV- who did pick ups. They hauled away 24 totes, 14 large garbage bags, 8 pieces of furniture and a few odds and ends. Lesson learned: I didn't miss any of it and I could live with much less, even with a family. And it felt good to help others.
4. When I moved out when I was 18, I moved into a tiny 500 square foot loft down by the water. <3 <3 <3. I had a loveseat with a bed in it, wooden coffeee table that was used to store my bedding during the day and a square table with 2 wing back chairs for my dining/desk area. Little galley kitchen and bath with 1 closet. And I barely filled it up and was MOST happy. Lesson learned: I honored the true me and found happiness.
So what has been part of your journey?
So, I am in the process of answering the hard questions and part of this journey is going back to what triggered my ideas of what simple living is and how I came to these ideas.
I have realized it's been a series of rather impactful situations that have led me down this road. I would like to share.
1. Growing up poor, we never had much but my mother always went NUTS at garage sales. She would literally bring home truckloads of items, especially in the summer. I don't mind used items, like the Barbie's or clothing and the fancy curtains I had in my bedroom. : ) BUT I didn't understand not having enough money for a new pair of shoes but my mom had a houseful of antiques. Lesson learned: Do not put quantity or owning things over having what you need to live.
2. I survived a fire back around 1993. I lost 90% of what I owned. It was the heavy, black thick smoke that did most of my things in. It was in the barracks, that were 50 years and full of some toxic building materials. It took them 2 days to put it out because if you can picture an "I" shaped building with the middle being the attaching point to the 2 buildings, 300 room per side. It spread quickly and being the middle of a hot, desert summer in CA, it ignited the dry fields around it and even melted the parking lot. Lesson learned: It can all be taken from you in a snap.
3. When I was first married, we lived in San Diego, BEAUTIFUL area but the salty area and water did quite the number of everything, from vehicles to mold in shoes to eating away the tub surround. I had to be deligent about not letting our little apartment get to humid, making sure I moved stuff around to let it get air and using bleach to kill mold. We went away on a 2 week vacation and the power went out. The landlord never checked to see if our half of the duplex came back on. Well, it didn't, so the mold and dampness spread quickly. I don't mess with mold. I have heard NIGHTMARES. So we tossed all of our food, some of our clothes took a hit, books, our bikes started to rust, even the carpet had spots of mold. It resulted in having to move what was salvagable to a new, smaller apartment while they fumigated and cleaned the duplex on both sides. WHAT A MESS and hassle. I refused to move all we had so in came the first BIG purge since I was adult. We had one week to vacate. I was ruthless and I cleaned what I could salvage, boxed it up and gave it the DAV- who did pick ups. They hauled away 24 totes, 14 large garbage bags, 8 pieces of furniture and a few odds and ends. Lesson learned: I didn't miss any of it and I could live with much less, even with a family. And it felt good to help others.
4. When I moved out when I was 18, I moved into a tiny 500 square foot loft down by the water. <3 <3 <3. I had a loveseat with a bed in it, wooden coffeee table that was used to store my bedding during the day and a square table with 2 wing back chairs for my dining/desk area. Little galley kitchen and bath with 1 closet. And I barely filled it up and was MOST happy. Lesson learned: I honored the true me and found happiness.
So what has been part of your journey?