Unplugged and uncluttered
Back in May, Oprah aired an episode titled “The ‘What can you live without?’ experiment, Part 2.” Oprah asked two families to unplug and unclutter for one week and see how it changed their lives.
I didn’t see the episode, but on Friday, CNN.com published an article about it in their Living section. I found the results of the experiment to be exactly in line with my personal findings after taking on a similar project:
It’s an important lesson Ron says the entire family has learned. “We don’t have to have all of this stuff,” he says. “If you have family like the family I have, nothing else really matters.”
Oprah herself appeared to be affected by the experiment:
In the spirit of living with less, Oprah went through her own closet to see what she could live without — and asked her audience members to donate 10 things from their own homes. “Now more than ever, we all need to think about those who have been hardest hit by our economy, and the extra stuff in our lives might be something that somebody else really needs,” Oprah says.
If you missed the episode like I did, you can watch clips from the show on oprah.com.
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Posted by Erin on Jul 14, 2009 |
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24 comments posted
Posted by Michele - 07/14/2009
I haven’t had cable TV for several years, for cost reasons, and my TV is a little older. After the digital TV transition, I had obtained a digital converter box, and I hooked it up — but nothin’, because I don’t have an antenna.
After almost a month of no TV . . . yes, I do miss it. I like having the news on while I’m making breakfast in the morning and while I’m making dinner and cleaning up in the evening. I never watched much daytime TV, and I watched very little nighttime TV. Without cable, there isn’t much to choose from; and I’ve been busy with law school studying anyway.
My choice at this point is either to get (or make) an antenna, or to get rid of the TV altogether, since it’s a doorstop right now. I think what I’ll do is wait until after the bar exam, then make an antenna and see if it works. If it doesn’t, then the TV may just go out the door!
Posted by Dawn - 07/14/2009
An easy way to get rid of things is by using the Freecycle program (www.freecycle.org). You sign up with the group in your particular area and post things that you want to give away for free. It’s super easy. I post things on occasion, offer front porch pick-up (that way I don’t have to be home and/or worry about strangers coming inside), they drive to my house and POOF the item(s) go to a home that really wanted it/them.
Gotta love it! I even find some things on occasion that I really love (scrapbooking supplies) and it’s all free!
Posted by Anita - 07/14/2009
I’ve got rid of a lot of clutter when I moved into a bachelor apartment in May. It was a relief to go through my stuff and get rid of what I could definitely live without. I still ended up bringing quite a few things that should have seen the inside of a recycling bin / donation box a lot sooner, mainly because it was all too much to go through at once. So a reminder, every so often, to go through those parts of my stuff that can be better organized or trimmed down is always appreciated!
Also: I don’t own a TV and don’t miss it one bit. Most of the stuff I’m interested in watching is either online or on DVD, with fewer annoying ads.
Posted by Janet - 07/14/2009
I unplugged my tv 3 years ago. I still don’t have one. I recently tried the tv again because my granddaughter said we needed one at my house to watch princess videos, it does not wrk so maybe I’ll buy a new one. I got hooked on 24 and House. I love PBS, but I could just rent the videos.
But, sometimes I do watch tv at other people’s houses, if they have it on.
Posted by SandyO - 07/14/2009
I’ll second Freecycling as a way get rid of stuff that even Goodwill won’t take. It’s amusing the type of stuff that people will find a use for – old towels, well-used clothing, obsolete electronics. I gave away an old TV set that did still work but barely. It keeps things out of the trash.
Posted by PJ - 07/14/2009
Yeah, I’ll take this with a grain of salt, considering who it’s coming from. Perhaps Ms. Winfrey should unclutter herself of a few of her homes, starting with that behemoth mansion in California. (Yeah, you can probably tell I’m not a fan of hers.)
Posted by Andy - 07/14/2009
Obviously we don’t “need” most of the things we have. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have them. A TV hardly counts as “clutter” (assuming it works). Even if you don’t watch broadcast/cable TV (I don’t) there are still DVDs, Netflix streaming, video games, etc. (all of which I do watch).
Posted by Tom - 07/14/2009
I can live very nicely without Oprah and CNN, thank you very much.
Posted by momofthree - 07/14/2009
I second the living without Queen O and her house in CA…
She wants to downsize like I want to accumulate more stuff!!!!
920 SF house, 5 people, (2 parents, 2 teen girls, 1 teen boy) and we have managed JUST FINE!! Cramped, yes; happy, yes; give time and energy to many groups, yes; cluttered at times, yes; do without a lot of “junk”, yes; do alot with out having alot, YES!!
But do without TV? NO FLIPPIN WAY!!!! I need my almost daily “fix” of Gary Sinise, William Fichter or Kurt Russell!! My secrets revealed…I have all three of them set on cable DVR…so that IS a must fixture in my house..never to be considered clutter!!
Anything we don’t want anymore goes to the local AMVETS or Vietnam Vets collection trucks. My thinking is: IF I wouldn’t want a item secondhand, then they don’t get it. Most of what they get is clothing, outgrown, but not out-used!
Posted by Jeff - 07/14/2009
I can do without TV, Oprah, and CNN.
I lived with cable television for my first 24 years on this Earth, and a couple months ago I dropped it and – looking back – am absolutely amazed at how brainwashed I was.
Posted by Julia - 07/14/2009
I’ve spent evenings, the last couple of weeks, going through closets and shelves and pulling out all kinds of things to donate to a non-profit garage sale fundraiser. Most of my pottery collection went to family members. Boxes of sweaters I’ve “been meaning to” take to Goodwill. Extra sets of linens I don’t really need. Art (inexpensive) that no longer suited me.
In the end it was two carloads, and there may be one more. It was a great joy to unload so many things that are “too good to throw away” (I just don’t have the time or inclination to deal with selling stuff by-the-piece.)
Unfortunately the apartment doesn’t look any better, because most of this stuff was in closets – but it’s a great first step!
Posted by Carol - 07/14/2009
I live without cable just fine. I did buy a convertor box and an antennea but I almost never turn my tv on anyway.
Here’s something no one’s mentioned yet, books. I love books but no longer see a reason to own them. Libraries are free, you can reread them as many times as you want, and the books take up almost no space in your house. I’ve also discovered I can live without my toaster.
Posted by Battra92 - 07/14/2009
I have issues with the hypocrisy of “the Oprah.” 10 things to her are very different from 10 things by a compulsive hoarder. She also has the money to replace those when this fad of hers goes away.
Posted by Susan - 07/14/2009
We have no cell phone, no cable tv. We have dial-up for the computer. We don’t buy books anymore because we use the public library. We quit smoking so no ashtrays, etc. No dishwasher at present but maybe in the future? Our driveway is recycled mulch free from the power company’s tree trimming program. But we have lots of other junk in the shed out back that is just too darn good to get rid of. LOL
Posted by Jennifer - 07/14/2009
How sad that some would take the point of the article as an excuse to Oprah-bash. I think the whole gist of the learning what you can live without thing is fascinating and worth looking into. I know there are many things I can do without and have done without. Any suggestion on things I’ve overlooked is very welcome. Even someone like Oprah. I don’t watch her show, but I understand she’s done a lot for a lot of people. But who am I to judge what they do with their hard work and success?
Posted by Mletta - 07/14/2009
For those of you non-Oprah fans, you perhaps are not aware of how much the woman also gives to charities, how many people she has helped and how much humanitarian work she has done. No, she doesn’t publicize everything she’s done for others.
Hate her if you will, but don’t begrudge her her “stuff.”
Frankly, there are plenty of people with more than she has who have done next to nothing for charity.
Mr. Bill Gates spent years giving NOTHING to charity. Until he got married and had kids. Then, surprisingly, he discovered charity and giving.
If you’re all so happy with what you have, what does it matter what anyone else, including Oprah, has or doesn’t have, gives away or doesn’t? Hmmmmm
Methinks too much protesting.
We’re humans and with rare exception, we have “stuff.” It’s neither good nor bad, but what you “attach” to it.
And a note on freecycling: It really only works if you have good people participating.
Here in NYC, we have had some great and some horrific experiences with freecycling. (Some people, for example, expected us to come and deliver what we were giving away, even small items! You’ve got people using freecycling now who do not understand the spirit of it at all. And in fact, what is now happening is that many people are taking the stuff for free to then sell it on craigslist or ebay. Sorry, I want someone to have it for personal use. Not to help them build a business. In that case, I’ll sell it myself! It’s been very discouraging.)
Posted by geekgrrl - 07/14/2009
The problem is – and don’t get me wrong, I think uncluttering and giving away excess stuff is a fantastic idea – but when you get down to it, the ’stuff’ that we don’t NEED isn’t NEEDED by other people either.
Is anyone going to donate a washing machine in good condition? An efficient electric column heater with a timer for a baby’s room? A ’spare’ set of solar panels?
At an Australian size 10-12, (slim but not skinny) I can easily find great quality cast-off clothing in the thrift stores, while my plus-size friends find it much more difficult. Fashionistas with personal trainers don’t tend to cast of a size 20 at the end of the season.
Posted by geekgrrl - 07/14/2009
Oh and TV and electronic games are a soft target. We enjoy watching TV together (luckily here in Oz the free-to-air stations are reasonable) and we all play World of Warcraft.
Posted by The Chatty Housewife - 07/14/2009
I can’t express how good it feels to do a clean sweep of ones home. I recently did a clean sweep of my home and got rid of (donated/gave to friends) the following:
clothing that wasn’t being worn/didn’t fit
craft supplies not being used
half finished projects no one is interested in finishing
books we don’t want to read again
decor we are tired of
things we don’t have room to store
things we have to reason to keep
… and so much more. I can’t believe how much unused stuff sits in homes across the world!
Posted by Anne - 07/14/2009
Michele – Have you considered listening to the radio? You might find it a good replacement for the background noise a TV provides.
Posted by Krys - 07/15/2009
Things I can do without? Phonebooks, land line telephones (amazing how much space opens up when 3 phones and an answering machine go away!), exercise equipment (walks with the dogs and baby are good exercise, and soup cans work just as well for weights), and a desktop computer with all the baloney that goes with it (using a laptop now – takes up much less space!).
As for donations, I keep a pretty box in the closet, and anytime I decide an article of clothing isn’t working for me anymore, I toss it in the box. Once the box is full, the contents go into a bag and out to the car to be dropped off at Goodwill during the next errands run (there is a very conveniently located Goodwill next door to our grocery store).
And, may I just say that despite the fact that it’s a little hypocritical of Oprah to be preaching “doing without”, she HAS been there, and I would bet everything I own that she recalls VIVIDLY what it feels like. She’s one of the most philanthropic people on Earth (I mean that literally, not hyperbolically), and I believe that she is absolutely sincere when she talks about giving to others and helping those less fortunate. Again, in her case, that’s EVERYONE, but you take my point.
Posted by Michele - 07/15/2009
@Anne — in fact, I do keep a radio on for morning news. But I find I prefer morning TV news to radio news. In particular, I like to see the satellite weather reports, and the TV news has a different focus on local area news than the radio does.
Posted by Laura Cococcia - The Journal of Cultural Conversation - 07/16/2009
This is so critical – we don’t need all the stuff we have. I’m in the process of moving to NYC and of course, will have a smaller apartment, so I have to downsize. The best way for me to do this is to have someone come over (she’s coming today) to be a sanity check on what I really need and don’t need. Always ask for help when you need it! Thanks for remind us about what’s important.
Posted by Michael - 07/21/2009
Mletta: “Mr. Bill Gates spent years giving NOTHING to charity. Until he got married and had kids. Then, surprisingly, he discovered charity and giving.”
This is patently untrue and, if you weren’t so insignificant, you could easily be sued for slander. It’s also worth noting that Gates began his philanthropy years before Oprah did.
I think your Oprah-fandom has clouded your judgment, which is not my problem, but when you start to ignore the facts, you cross the line. A simple trip to Wikipedia would benefit you enormously.
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