Article: How to Stick With Minimalism During the Holiday Shopping Season

[freshstart]

They are probably making life more complicated than before by digitally hoarding. Show me a minimalist without an iPad or a computer and I will show you a true minimalist. All others are merely imposters or hypocrits.

we all have a bazillion photos still, they are just stored in a smaller space, probably we have more photos now than society ever has. My photos, paper and digital give me angst because there are too many to deal with. And I know I'm not a minimalist but it does bug me, the pictures feel like a burden.

[JaneV2.0]

[QUOTE=freshstart;222386]my mother is all about the goat and worked her way up to getting a cow some years and she really is happy with that. I still give her something small to open but it's a thoughtful gift that I try to match up to her unique taste. My brother named a star after her once, she thought that was the stupidest thing ever and wanted the cow.[/QUOTEhttp://www.simplelivingforum.net/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=222386]

I think paying attention to what the person admires, enjoys, needs, or wants is the critical element. I wouldn't mind a goat particularly...But I'd rather have someone sponsor a cat at Cat House on the Kings for me.

[Chicken lady]

Having read the whole thread:

If anyone wants to send me a couple hundred bucks, I'll buy another goat in honor of your loved one.

Also Ultralightangler, if you get a smart phone you can get rid of the laptop, the alarm clock, and the tuner!

Humor aside, i finally sent my christmas list to my mil. Two rubber buckets, a dozen cloth napkins, and a really nice veterinary stethescope. She can personalize the stethoscope if she wants. It comes with an option to engrave initials or stamp the tubing.

[JaneV2.0]

we all have a bazillion photos still, they are just stored in a smaller space, probably we have more photos now than society ever has. My photos, paper and digital give me angst because there are too many to deal with. And I know I'm not a minimalist but it does bug me, the pictures feel like a burden.

I'm a digital hoarder and proud of it. I probably have 10,000 shots of inspiring arty things. And I have backup, so that makes 20,000. Some art school might find them helpful. If not, it's a shoebox sized trove of plastic discs that can either be erased or melted down. I wish I could put them all in albums, but that's out of the question. I look at them regularly.

[freshstart]

I prefer the original lyric:

But I am not a fan of John Lennon's music really, or that of The Beatles. I am more a Wings guy, myself.

Give me an example of two of people who wear simple living as a brand.

Gwyneth Paltrow (she only counts as 1/2 since you can count her ribs when she's wearing a cable knit sweater). She has that lifestyle site Goop or something similar, preaches clean living and food/products that cost a fortune. She tried the diet thing you just did and failed. Her "conscious uncoupling" from Chris Martin. Gag.

Wings over John?

[freshstart]

ETA: I do put myself in the camp of "unreasonably obsessed". I probably have 50 pairs of socks. They fit just fine in the drawer, and I have no trouble finding the socks I want to wear. Still, I look at that drawer and feel anxious, annoyed, disappointed with myself, dissatisfied with my life. I need six pairs of socks. Must declutter, must declutter ... it's idiocy. It's socks, for crying out loud. But my anxiety about wanting to get rid of them reminds me of some of the things Chicken Lady has said about her anxiety about Keeping things.

I totally agree with "take what you need and leave the rest" ... except for this reptilian part of my brain that says no, go to extremes!!

I am like this, I just did my socks, vowed I have enough for a lifetime, they fit in the bin, no need to think about them anymore. But I do, today when I got a pair, I felt guilty for having so many. Same thing with other "stuff". I'll keep the socks because who would want them but I returned a bunch of clothes today that I had bought cheaply for my non-working new life. I had over bought clothes no one who cares will see because they were cheap so must buy 2 instead of one.

Back to Christmas, thinking nothing would be crowded today early, I did my returns of these cheap clothes. The line at Kohls was not BF bad, but pretty bad, a good half hour+ wait. Same elsewhere. My body gave me the solution to stop buying this crap online by finally giving up the ghost in the last store and landed me on my bum in full view of the line. I vowed I am not going back into a store or the mall til maybe never. My kids had a deadline to tell me what they want, they didn't so I'm sure it's cash they want, too late, I ordered them stuff they need and there might be room for an Amazon gift card if I get any shred of the Xmas spirit back. I hate BF, I hate Christmas shopping in generic malls, stuff, stuff, it's all about the stuff. Ironically, the lines were ginormous for everything but Santa. There's the spirit! At least we don't line up to pose with the baby Jesus.

my family is not kumbaya at all but we have cut far back, we do eat that big breakfast and everyone takes a nap, lol. Then boardgames with the kids and my brother and a nice dinner. However, there is the high chance someone in there gets there knickers in a twist and the day is as far from kumbaya imaginable. Often someone (my brother or my son) bails sometime over the two days in a stupid fight. But when it is good, it is really good. And it's not because of anything I opened or gave.

I want to live simpler, but I do enjoy a lot of my stuff, so I may never reach minimalism but that doesn't really bother me. I purge but I don't feel the need to count my possessions, try to convert others even just by talking about it unless they are of the same vein or give up my netflix because I "should". Baby steps and figuring out how to define it for myself.

[Ultralight]

Pizza just doesn't count. It goes in and disappears, only to reappear on my thighs the next morning.

It goes straight to my ever-expanding belly.

[Ultralight]

Having read the whole thread:

If anyone wants to send me a couple hundred bucks, I'll buy another goat in honor of your loved one.

Also Ultralightangler, if you get a smart phone you can get rid of the laptop, the alarm clock, and the tuner!

Humor aside, i finally sent my christmas list to my mil. Two rubber buckets, a dozen cloth napkins, and a really nice veterinary stethescope. She can personalize the stethoscope if she wants. It comes with an option to engrave initials or stamp the tubing.

I know... I know. I did that for a while. Problem is I did not have the daily or minutely (is that a word in this context?) to turn it off or ignore the buzzing. I used to have two iPhones (a 4 for personal and a 5 for work).

[iris lilies]

Wouldn't butter chicken do for the meat eaters? It does have some tomato, but I never pass it by. And of course there's always tandoori chicken.

I'm OK with Indian buffets, too--for the same reason. I wish there was a good Indian restaurant closer than two towns over. Though I've never had really bad Indian food.

i have not had butter chicken. When I looked it up, it seems to be the main thing served by Indian restaurants,hmmm. But it won't work for my third dish, I want something that's not served on rice. Tandoori chicken is the one
I'm thinking of Tandoei chicken, that's it! surely I can make a mock version without a Tandori oven.

i won't give recipes, there are just too many out there on the web to try and you may not like mine.

One thing I've learned about samosas from a cooking class is that you can use La Mission flour tortillas for the outside. Thats easier than phyllo dough for me.

[sweetana3]

An Indian buffet is not done for me without paleek paneer (spinach with homemade cheese). Chicken can substitute for the paneer or be in addition. In a pinch, the Trader Joe one is totally wonderful. It spices up any meal!!!