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

[kib]

Some years ago I went crystal mining with friends who found a great pocket on a riverbank. After a few hours they said, "ok, this is good, we have some really nice stuff, it's time to go." And this crazy part of me in mud up to my eyebrows was just, "No Way! This is the best pocket Ever! There's lots more here!!!" Now what I wanted with an extra bucket of crystals, of little actual monetary value, is a mystery, but I was getting such fierce joy out of extracting them... obsessive. I'm ok with a buffet because of the viceral signal to stop. Without that, I'm a loose cannon, whether it's gathering more or removing "excess".

ETA: funny, it's not exactly hoarding. I didn't keep more than one or two crystals, I was just consumed with the compulsion to GET them.

[Ultralight]

Some years ago I went crystal mining with friends who found a great pocket on a riverbank. After a few hours they said, "ok, this is good, we have some really nice stuff, it's time to go." And this crazy part of me in mud up to my eyebrows was just, "No Way! This is the best pocket Ever! There's lots more here!!!" Now what I wanted with an extra bucket of crystals, of little actual monetary value, is a mystery, but I was getting such fierce joy out of extracting them... obsessive. I'm ok with a buffet because of the viceral signal to stop. Without that, I'm a loose cannon, whether it's gathering more or removing "excess".

I wish I had the visceral signal stop. But I really don't. I have to do in consciously -- which is hard around Indian food and pizza.

[iris lilies]

There is a little voice in my head when I go fishing. It tells me after a certain number of fish (usually less than the legal limit): "Okay, amigo. You've got enough. Paddle on home."

But sit me down at an Indian buffet and that voice is nowhere to be found! lol

So I quit buffets 7 or 8 months ago.

I am working on making my own Indian buffet. When I get these dishes down, I will invite my friends who like Asian food.

So far I have mastered Chicken Korma and samosas and the cooling cucumber/yougurt dish.

I need to continue work on Beef Biriyana, I am just not getting it right.

Then, I then need to learn a hot spicy meat-only dish for the dieters in the group who don't want any carbs.

[Ultralight]

I am working on making my own Indian buffet. When I get these dishes down, I will invite my friends who like Asian food.

So far I have mastered Chicken Korma and samosas and the cooling cucumber/yougurt dish.

I need to continue work on Beef Biriyana, I am just not getting it right.

Then, I then need to learn a hot spicy meat-only dish for the dieters in the group who don't want any carbs.

Awesome!

[kib]

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


mmmmm, iris, care to post any of the recipes? my attempts at Indian food from internet recipes are always a spice catastrophe. Pickle juice in the vindaloo? that can't be right. Check, Karen, it wasn't right. gak.

[JaneV2.0]

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.

[catherine]

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.

Thanks to the demographics of Central Jersey I'm in Indian buffet heaven with several in the area and a few can walk to.

I am working on making my own Indian buffet. When I get these dishes down, I will invite my friends who like Asian food.

I'm very impressed!

[freshstart]

I like to buy myself something I actually want, buy friends things that I hope they want, and enjoy good food and companionship this time of year. I doubt anyone I know would want a hypothetical goat or a zip-lining "adventure."

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.

[JaneV2.0]

Bellevue has a strong Indian contingent--lots of Microsoft employees live in the area--so that's where I usually go. There's an intriguing Indian market there, too. I'm sure when I visit it, I'll come home with more poppadoms and pickle than I can eat in a year.

Iris Lily, do you use a cookbook, or any particular website? Will there be pakora and poppadoms at your dinner?

I'm thinking about devising a LC recipe for kheer. Maybe using ricotta or mascarpone. The important thing there is the combination of flavors.

[freshstart]

I had an awesome philosophy professor in college, and this was back during the early 70s hippie days--she definitely leaned in that direction (In my mind, proof of that was in her unshaven armpits). But even so, she used to take off on John Lennon's line, "Imagine no possessions. It's easy if you're rich."

So, yes, there can be smugness in waving the simple living/minimalist flag. My MIL was a model simple liver but that was just how she lived--she didn't wear it like a brand.

the minimalist woman in the article that took her whole family to London, with the church singing and all that crap. That must cost a fortune, how is that really minimalist? Just because it's an experience or a bonding time with family, it's minimalist? I don't agree. She's a pick and choose minimalist in my book. It's like what Jane said about poor people living minimalist. Yup, it's easy if you're rich....