Archives for Simple Living
Unclutterer and smart consumerism
We’ve been receiving an unusual amount of nasty grams lately regarding our practice of reviewing and writing about products on our website. As a result, we thought it might be a good time to review what Unclutterer is and its stance on smart consumerism.
Defining Unclutterer: An Unclutterer is someone who decides to get rid of the distractions (clutter) that get in the way of a remarkable life. Our website is for people who are or want to become unclutterers. It’s a site for people who are interested in getting and staying organized. Our motto is “a place for everything, and everything in its place.”
Consumerism: This website does not advocate freeganism, asceticism, or anti-consumer behaviors. If you want to live in this manner, we’re totally fine with it. However, it’s not required or expected of unclutterers.
Unclutterers have use for technology and tools and furniture. We appreciate not having to hunt and gather or live in caves. We enjoy the conveniences provided by the modern world. There are numerous physical things that make our lives easier and free up our time to pursue the things that matter most to us. Because of this, Unclutterer promotes smart consumer practices.
What is smart consumerism? Smart consumerism is spending less than you earn. Smart consumerism is researching products before your buy them to make sure that you are getting the best quality that you can afford. Smart consumerism is only buying products that you need or that help you to pursue the remarkable life you desire. Smart consumerism is refraining from acquiring clutter.
Around our offices, we talk about simple, uncluttered living the way Albert Einstein did, “Things should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler.”
We review and write about products that we believe might be of use to some of our readers to better organize their lives. If we see something and think that it might help someone to get closer to their remarkable life, we put it in the queue to be researched and tested. There are tens of thousands of people who read this site on a daily basis. There are bound to be products that we review that aren’t of interest to every single one of our readers. So, if we review a product and you don’t need it, don’t buy it. Just remember that each Unclutterer is different and the product that would be clutter in your home might be significantly useful to someone else.
Noting this, isn’t our Unitasker Wednesday column a wee-bit hypocritical? Yes. But the purpose of our Unitasker Wednesday column is to have fun. This is a home and office organizing website, it’s not brain surgery. No one’s life is on the line, and it’s good to keep things in perspective and laugh once in a while. Everyone on staff owns at least one (or many more) items that have been featured in the Unitasker Wednesday column. We’re fine being hypocrites when it comes to having fun.
In fact, fun is a big part of what we do at Unclutterer. We want people to get rid of clutter and organize their lives so that they have less stress and more time for fun. My personal pursuit for a remarkable life involves a great deal of laughing and I love it when the people around me are happy. If you ever read something on the site and can’t figure out our tone, please just assume that we were trying to tell a joke and failed. Our goal is to help our readers, not offend them.
Do you have a question about smart consumerism or Unclutterer? Let us know about it in the comments.
Popularity: 14% [?]
Piegato One shelves
Whenever I see a piece of furniture that is brilliantly simple, my first thought is, “I want to share that with the Unclutterer readers.”
This week, I learned about the Piegato One shelves and instantly wanted to share them with you. They’re designed by Matthias Ries and will be manufactured by his company MRDO Products. The shelves ship flat and then you bend the metal into place with very little effort:
A short video shows how to setup and install them.
I know that the industrial look isn’t everyone’s favorite style, but you can still appreciate that such a beautifully engineered product exists. This shelving system is simple, streamlined, and wholly uncluttered.
(via Dwell)
Popularity: 19% [?]
Surprise benefits of an uncluttered life
At 1:30 yesterday afternoon, my husband made an off-hand remark about his parents coming to visit from Chicago. I was in a zone, still focused on a phone call from that morning, and only really heard “my parents” and “dinner” and “arrival.”
About an hour later, I came to understand that he said, “My parents just called and they’re arriving around 8:00 tonight. I think we should take them out to dinner when they get here.” He meant 8:00 p.m., as in six and a half hours from when he first mentioned it to me. Surprise!
It’s exact moments like these when I am thankful that we live an uncluttered life. Instead of worrying about the state of the house or what we might feed our guests while they are here or anything hostess related, I simply nodded and told him, “good to know.”
The toilets and shower in the bathroom are clean, there is food in the kitchen cupboards, we have clean bed linens, and everything in the house is in its place. I ran the dishwasher a few hours earlier than normal so that it wouldn’t keep them awake (our “guest room” is a pull-out in our living room), but, except for having two wonderful guests, our schedule for the day was the same as a typical Wednesday.
It’s surprise situations like these that I like to focus my attentions to when I’m doing my 30 minutes of chores each evening. Being free from unnecessary stress is a powerful motivator when routinely taking care of the small things. A little bit of work each night means that there is never a big issue to solve, and house guests can show up for surprise visits without causing my stress levels to soar.
Now, I just need to be a detective and figure out how this visit never made it onto our family calendar.
What benefits have you found with leading an uncluttered life? Tell us about them in the comments.
Popularity: 17% [?]
Not getting things done? Try WSD
I want to welcome guest author Tim Chase and his “family friendly” version of WSD. His system is just as simple, just as much fun, but with a less-adult vocabulary.
Thanks to my local public library, I’ve joined the ranks of folks who have read David Allen’s Getting Things Done. However I became bogged down in the implementation details. Then I stumbled across this article on smallist.com and in a lightbulb moment I recognized it as a similar technique I’ve watched my father use for years.
Failed by GTD
Overwhelmed by GTD’s buzzwords (contexts, ubiquitous capture, tickler files, 43-folders, buckets, etc), the simplicity of WSD is appealing:
- Find something to write on.
- Find something to write with.
- Finally, and most importantly, WRITE STUFF DOWN.
GTD also seems to promote beautiful yet expensive implements — PDA/smart-phones, Moleskine® notebooks, space-pens. WSD has no such pretensions. While you can use your PDA/smart-phone, your Moleskine or your space-pen, you can certainly employ a wide varity of writing surfaces and implements.
Writing Surfaces
Write on whatever is handy — 3×5 cards (Hipster PDA-ized or otherwise), Post-It® note pads, cheap spiral-bound pocket notepads, envelopes, margins of newspapers or magazines, or even paper-towels, napkins, tissues or toilet-paper in desperation. You can carry them with you at all times or just as needed. I prefer to only carry paper when I know I may not have something on which I can write. A box of old business cards and a small whiteboard in the kitchen for grocery lists; page-a-day calendar sheets in the study for to-do lists; a small tablet by the bedside and in the car; Post-It pads at work. For other places, I simply take a little pocket-sized notepad (a four-pack at the local dollar-store).
Things on which you should not write your important brain-droppings: receipts, bills you have to pay, cheques, paper currency, contracts, library books, the Dead Sea Scrolls, or the Magna Carta. Unless you copy them off ASAP to something less transient (and in the case of library books, the Dead Sea Scrolls, or important constitutional documents, I suggest removing your writing from them first).
Writing Implements
Writing implements also abound — while you can use your space-pen, that $180 gold-encrusted beast engraved with your name and business, or your favorite Hello Kitty® glittery gel pen with the glow-in-the-dark purple ink, I lean toward the cheap and abundant options. You’re not illuminating monastic manuscripts, you’re getting an idea out of your head and onto paper. Out and about, I usually carry a Papermate® medium-point point pen because they write well and come in 12-packs for under $2 (USD). Occasionally, I augment with a #2 automatic-pencil, also obtained in multi-packs under $2 (USD). I’ve found that the long narrow “tool pockets” in carpenter jeans/shorts hold my writing implements so they don’t jab my thighs like a regular front pocket can. And they make for a snazzy quick-draw holster effect when you whip out a pen on demand.
Depending on your location, you may find you don’t need to carry a writing implement. We keep stashes of implements around the house — in the nightstands, in the desk, in the catch-all drawer, in the bill drawer, in the cars, etc. If you’re the type who steals pens from coworkers and banks, cut that out. Or, at least give them back. At conferences, many companies hand out business-branded pens for free. In addition to the craft-boxes, parents likely find crayons under foot, in couch cushions, up noses, and on the floor under little Johnny’s wall-art. For those who do their best thinking in the shower, you can find shower/tub crayons to scrawl on the shower wall.
Conclusion
Get something to write on. Get something to write with. Write stuff down.
Popularity: 22% [?]
Uncluttered packaging
A graphic design student at the School of Visual Arts in New York, Steve Haslip, designed a prototype for a mailing envelope that transforms into a clothes hanger. As far as we know, the design isn’t yet manufactured. But, we absolutely love it and hope that someone starts using it.
From the product description:
The concept was fairly simple: I buy t-shirts online and they always come wrinkled and I always run out of coat-hangers. So I designed a sustainable, reusable way to send and keep your t-shirts. As you open the package you create a coat hanger. The packaging could be made from recycled material whether it is card or plastic and the only waste is the green tear-away tab.
Do you know of additional product packaging that keeps clutter and waste away? We’re always on the lookout for great, uncluttered design.
(via Packagings of the World)
Popularity: 17% [?]
Defining simplicity
When I was starting my transformation process from a clutterbug into an unclutterer, I wanted a checklist to tell me what I needed to do to live simply. I wanted there to be a clear line that told me if I did X, Y, and Z then all of my stress and anxieties would instantly be relieved. I wanted there to be zero ambiguity and I wanted someone else to make the hard decisions for me.
I never found such a list, and I’m glad that I didn’t. How I define simplicity and how I put it into practice in my life is very different than how you see it and live it. We’re complex human beings, and, ironically, that makes our definitions of simplicity complex.
When I was seeking my definition of simplicity, I repeatedly turned to three quotes for inspiration. If you’re looking to define simplicity and what it means to you, maybe these quotes will spark your process:
“Things should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler.” — Albert Einstein
“Simplicity is an inward reality that can be seen in an outward lifestyle. We must have both; to neglect either end of this tension is disastrous.” — Richard J. Foster
“I can explain it best by something which Mahatma Gandhi said to me. We were talking about simple living, and I said that it was easy for me to give up most things but that I had a greedy mind and wanted to keep my many books. He said, ‘Then don’t give them up. As long as you derive inner help and comfort from anything, you should keep it. If you were to give it up in a mood of self-sacrifice or out of a stern sense of duty, you would continue to want it back, and that unsatisfied want would make trouble for you. Only give up a thing when you want some other condition so much that the thing no longer has any attraction for you, or when it seems to interfere with that which is more greatly desired.’” — Richard Gregg
These quotes aren’t dictionary definitions and they’re not precise, but they serve me well. How do you define simplicity? What guides you toward simple living?
Popularity: 15% [?]
Seven benefits of uncluttering
Today, we welcome Gregory Go. He is one of the personal finance and frugal living bloggers at Wise Bread, and a contributor to the new book 10,001 Ways to Live Large on a Small Budget (available this May).
I come from a long line of packrats on my dad’s side of the family, and I definitely have a tendency to hold on to too much crap. But keeping my inner packrat in check is easier when I remember these 7 benefits of uncluttering.
1. Save money.
What if it only cost you $2 to read a brand new book that costs $24.95? Pretty good deal, right? Trent at The Simple Dollar shares his secret to reading brand new books for cheap (or sometimes even for a small profit). The key? Sell them as soon as you’re done reading to capitalize on the still-hot demand.
If you get rid of stuff you don’t need quickly, you can recover some portion of what you paid for the item. It’s like getting a discount on your purchase price. The faster you dump it, the bigger your “discount”.
Uncluttering (physically and emotionally) also makes a huge impact on your financial health, as Erin explains in this guest post at The Simple Dollar:
You will stop making impulse purchases because you can consciously evaluate a product and ask yourself if you really need it. You don’t operate on automatic pilot. You can easily foil retail marketing efforts. You don’t approach shopping with a “some day I might need this” attitude. You can better evaluate products because you’re aware of their components and inspect their quality. You are a mindful consumer, which is beneficial to your wallet and your commitment to simple living.
2. Make beer money.
In addition to books, electronics like cellphones, CDs, televisions, and computers are other items that retain more of their value the sooner you sell it. Dump it as soon as you don’t need it anymore. More money and less clutter for 30 minutes of eBay time? That’s a good deal.
Here’s a quick tip from The Digerati Life on how she cashes in on her clutter:
Post photos of your items on craigslist or some other web classifieds site for your local area. Ebay or other online auctions should work too if you’re able to ship the item. Amazon is great for used books, CDs and DVDs. Price your item well. I do this by checking what the going rate is for the item then knocking off 5%. Rules would obviously be different for auctions - try no reserve.
You probably won’t get what you want for your stuff, but anything is more than what you get if that crap stayed in your closet. Here’s an active discussion on Wise Bread about the kind of stuff you can offload on eBay. For example, Lynnae of Being Frugal shares in that thread:
I’ve sold “gently used” children’s clothing with some success. It does better in big lots according to size, and it helps if the clothes are name brand. Mostly I sell books, though. I’m a book-a-holic, and I always have extra books to get rid of. My books don’t fetch high prices, but every little bit adds up.
3. Get more space. Afford more house.
What percentage of your home is used for clutter storage? You may be shocked to learn the percentage of your rent or mortgage payments being used to store that old TV, extra couch, and broken coffee maker.
All I can afford here in Los Angeles are small apartments far away from the beach. If left to my packrat ways, half (or more!) of my rented space would be used to store crap. By purging regularly, I’m getting twice the apartment. I can also move a little closer to the beach because my rental budget doesn’t have to buy as much space.
4. Help others.
Why horde that second blender when your college-bound nephew could use it for mixing margaritas? Or how about all those clothes you never wear anymore?
The stuff you don’t need anymore might be useful for someone else. Donating your unused stuff is a fine way to up your charitable budget without using cash.
Bonus: Giving your stuff away helps the environment. If old toasters, hair dryers, and books are handed around to different people, less stuff would need to be produced. Give your old stuff a new lease on life with a new owner, and save the planet at the same time!
5. Save time.
Without all that clutter, it wouldn’t take so much time to prep your home for guests. Regular household chores (vacuuming, dusting) will be faster and easier without so much stuff lying around. Having less stuff piled up on your desk also makes it easier to find that important piece of paper when you need it.
6. Be more productive.
What is your current R.O.O. (return on organization)? Being more organized will provide a positive return in time (and we all know that time is money). The returns can be quite significant.
It is estimated that increased R.O.O. can yield up to an extra two hours of productive time a week.
Decluttering is so powerful it actually creates time! Get things done by getting rid of clutter.
7. Reduce stress.
Eliminating clutter reduces your stress level. Instead of your home being a sanctuary from the stress of work and real life, it adds to your stress level. It’s a terrible feeling when home is more stressful than the workplace.
Ready to purge?
Here are more helpful posts on how to unclutter:
- Instructions for Decluttering Your Home in 5 Easy Steps (Unclutterer) - Alex Fayle explains in less than 500 words the thought-process of organizing your home.
- 10 Ways to Declutter and Put Cash In Your Pocket (The Simple Dollar) - All of that stuff stored in the closet is money just sitting there gathering dust. Here are tactics to use to clear out a lot of your unused stuff (freeing up space in your home) while also putting some cash in your pocket.
- 9 Tips for Decluttering (Zen Habits) - Zen master Leo Babauta offers his best tips for getting and keeping your space clutter-free.
- How to Get Rid of All Your Crap (Wise Bread) — “Professional Hobo” Nora Dunn explains what she did with all her stuff when she left her cushy Canadian life for the adventure of vagabonding.
Good luck, fellow packrats! If I can part ways with my crap, you can definitely do it too.
Popularity: 14% [?]
Sure-thing investing
Once again, I would like to welcome Lauren Halagarda as a guest author on Unclutterer. Her ROI advice is perfect for the tax season. Lauren is a spectacular professional organizer living in the Washington, D.C., area.
We invest our time, energy and money on buying and acquiring things while futilely trying to achieve the life we want. I can assure you that you gain more return on your investment when you switch your focus from buying stuff to being organized. Here are just a few examples:
ROI: Self-confidence.
Put an end to the apologies you make for being late, forgotten commitments, and lost or misplaced information or belongings.
Investment: Time management basics
Stop over-scheduling. We often try to fit in “just one more thing” before moving on to our next commitment. We end up running late, frazzled, overwhelmed, and distracted. STOP and THINK, how long will it really take to get there or prepare for that meeting? Are you being realistic about traffic? Parking? Etc. Honestly, the worst thing that can happen is that you will be early. The horror! Bring a magazine or book and catch up on your pile of reading. Yes, you know, I’m talking about that “I’m gonna read it someday” stuff that has taken over your horizontal surfaces.
ROI: Quality Time with loved ones
Stop spending your “free time” maintaining, cleaning, storing, battling through, and tripping over your stuff.
Investment: Letting go
Let go of the stuff that you don’t love and don’t use that gets in the way of stuff that is important — which isn’t really stuff at all, is it?
ROI: $$
Investment: Clear your Kitchen
Unclutter your kitchen, rid your cabinets of idle appliances and gadgets, toss the excess plastic storage with no matching lids, and clear your counters of unused spice racks and unitaskers. Instead, create a functioning kitchen where you have room to breathe and the ability to access what you need. Involve the family (including children) in the cooking experience. Not only will you save money by not eating out as often, but you will be teaching your children a lifeskill.
Small investments in being organized will provide you with a huge payoff. If you are having difficulty getting started, check out the NAPO Professional Organizer Directory to find an organizer that’s right for you.
What are some small investments that you have made and what is the ROI?
Popularity: 12% [?]
National average home size decreasing
USA Today reports that Americans are building smaller homes:
New homes, after doubling in size since 1960, are shrinking. Last year, for the first time in at least 10 years, the average square footage of single-family homes under construction fell dramatically, from 2,629 in the second quarter to 2,343 in the fourth quarter, Census data show.
The trend for smaller homes is predicted to continue after the economy recovers:
“This will remain a trend. I don’t expect this (home size) to come back up,” says Gopal Ahluwalia, vice president of research for the National Association of Home Builders. Nine of 10 builders surveyed by NAHB this year say they’re building or planning smaller, lower-priced homes than in the past.
“We don’t need big homes,” he says. “Family size has been declining for the past 35 years.”
In 1982, during another recession period in US history, the Census Bureau reported the average new home was 1,710 square feet. Homes are currently more than 600 square feet larger, but the recent downward trend (in my personal opinion) is still a step in the right direction.
—
Speaking of home sizes, Unclutterer senior writer Matt was recently quoted in a MSN.com article on downsizing. “Cut your square footage in half.”
Popularity: 14% [?]
Ask Unclutterer: What should I do with old x-ray films?
Reader Piper submitted the following to Ask Unclutterer:
I have a bunch of old X-Rays hanging around. Various broken bones, MRIs and things like that.
I don’t really want to throw them away (I’m not quite sure why) but I don’t know what to do with them either. I know I’m not the only one that keeps these things because I’m moving into an apartment and found a couple of X-Rays from the previous occupant.
Right now, they live in the bottom of a dresser drawer. That doesn’t take up much space, but it seems silly to have a curiosity like that around but hiding in the bottom of a drawer. I thought about putting them on a window as a decoration, but decided that was just too macabre and weird.
What an interesting question!
First, you should know that the Environmental Protection Agency claims that x-ray films do “not appear to be hazardous waste.” This means that if you have them in your house in an envelope, you’re storing them safely. The films themselves don’t retain any toxic levels of radiation. I was actually worried about this for a while, so I was glad to learn that handling them was fine.
Now, just because you aren’t poisoning yourself by having them around, doesn’t necessarily mean that you should keep them. The next time you go to your doctor’s office, bring along your collection of x-ray films. Ask your doctor which of the x-rays are worth keeping, and which ones you can purge. If you have an on-going medical condition, your doctor will probably instruct you to keep all x-ray films of importance to that condition. However, your doctor will probably tell you an x-ray of a broken wrist you had in the third grade won’t be important to keep.
The x-ray films your doctor recommends you keep should be stored in your personal medical file in your home filing cabinet. If you don’t still have the envelope they came in, ask your doctor if you can buy one from her. They usually run about $1 an envelope (if your doctor even chooses to charge you). I don’t recommend displaying or doing anything crafty with these x-ray films since you or someone close to you might need to access them in a medical emergency.
Best case scenario, your doctor will offer to recycle any x-ray films you don’t need to keep. If she doesn’t, call your local hospital and see if they accept old x-ray films. If neither your doctor or local hospital recycle them, check your county’s website to see if they have a recycling program for such items or if a recycling center in your area does. Most old x-rays have silver in them, which means that they’re relatively valuable in the recycling market. I’ve never had any difficulty finding a recycling center that accepts old x-ray films.
If you want to do something more creative and artsy with your old x-ray films, I suggest only using ones that have out-dated information on them. An image of your bones while you were still growing is probably safer to use than an image of your bones as an adult. Or, if you had a pin put in your ankle, an image before you had the pin put into it would be safer to use since it’s not how your ankle currently looks. X-rays are very personal information and you wouldn’t want it to get into the wrong hands and have to fight an insurance fraud case.
Thank you, Piper, for submitting your question for our Ask Unclutterer column.
Do you have a question relating to organizing, cleaning, home and office projects, productivity, or any problems you think the Unclutterer team could help you solve? To submit your questions to Ask Unclutterer, go to our contact page and type your question in the content field. Please list the subject of your e-mail as “Ask Unclutterer.” If you feel comfortable sharing images of the spaces that trouble you, let us know about them. The more information we have about your specific issue, the better.
Popularity: 32% [?]
Ruthless Simplicity: How to ward off doing more and burning out
Once again, I want to welcome the incredible Danielle LaPorte (author of the blog White Hot Truth) to Unclutterer. Read a more complete biography of her at the end of this article.
Last year was a biggie for me. I released a book, did speaking gigs in a dozen different cities, raised a bunch of money for my internet company, left that company for a new solo venture, and still made time to build forts and Popsicle stick boxes with my little boy. I knew that if I didn’t stand guard against the potential time, energy and stuff clutter that was coming my way, I was going to go berserk.
My initial inclination to planning for business growth was to do more. Work more hours. Put my kid into more programs. Just cram more into my life for a period of time. You know, weather the beautiful storm. But this time, I stopped myself. Maybe it’s maturity that brought me to my senses. Or maybe it’s all the sinus infections I’ve had from being over-worked. Or it’s the plethora of plastic toys and unanswered email that’s crept in while I’ve been juggling an ever-increasing more-ness to my life. But I finally had my eureka revelation and (I know, it may sound daft, you may have already mastered this incredibly obvious life lesson), but I finally realized that a girl can only do so much. Uh-huh.
When the going gets busy, the wise ones simplify … with a vengeance.
Managing chaos with beauty, quality, and ruthless simplicity:
- Commit to your creativity. This may sound like it should be the last priority on your packed to-do-list. When we’re busy, the creative things are usually the first to go, but creativity is like a super vitamin juice for the soul - a little bit goes a long way. Whether it’s just a love note that you write on a napkin, or some flowers you arrange for the dinner table – find little ways to keep your creative nature alive. Beauty-making helps you keep things in perspective.
- Get the best tools. Whether its more computer memory, a comfortable back pack, or a bus pass, invest in the best of what you use the most. Any carpenter will tell you that a house is easier to build with a sharp saw.
- Have it delivered. What last minutes trips and essential to-dos are consistently causing you stress? There’s probably a service to solve that dilemma:
- Arrange for direct deposits and automatic payments. I go into my bank only a few times a year (no more looking for a parking spot or waiting in line!) We auto-pay utility bills with an air mile-earning credit card, and write just one or two checks a month to the credit card.
- Get a food delivery service. Once a week, the food dude drops off organic veggies, milk and other yummers we’ve ordered. It costs about 5% more than our usual grocery bill, but race-to-the-grocery-store trips before work/daycare/appointments – no more.
- Send gifts through Amazon. It seemed like every girlfriend I have had a baby last year. I sent them all kids books directly through Amazon (you can fill out a gift card that is included with your order.) I give them the more personal, lovey prezzies when I see them in person (and know better what they really need).
- Get DVDs by mail. Now THIS changed my life. No more, “We have to watch this movie tonight,” pressure for the sake of the $5 rental fee. And no more late fees!
- Just say ‘no.’ Really. It’s a magic word.
- Insist on good service. I switched banks because I could never get a human on the phone and it took too long to get my business done. And as much as I liked her, I broke up with my hairdresser. She kept me waiting every single time.
- Give yourself a break. I adore books. I’d eat them if I could. But I actually committed to NOT read books for the first half of my very busy year. I also gave myself permission to be late with returning phone calls for six months. Sweet relief.
If you can see busy times coming, plan to do less, not accommodate more. Refuse to expand, insist on boundaries. Take your soul vitamins – be sure to do the little things that nourish your spirit. Reject anything that doesn’t foster your greatness, and put systems into place that support your freedom. Be ruthless. You’re worth it.
Danielle LaPorte founded www.whitehottruth.com because “self realization rocks.” Her blog is lauded as “kick-ass enlightening.” She is the lead author of the bestseller, Style Statement: Live By Your Own Design. A former think tank executive and communications strategist, Danielle helps entrepreneurs blaze their careers with her signature Fire Starter Sessions.
Popularity: 18% [?]
Downsizing in Scotland
Preparing for a move can be one of the most stressful experiences in life. This is especially true when you are selling and purchasing at the same time. Can a move to a smaller home make the experience less stressful? When preparing to move to a smaller home, Alison and Bill McCulloch of Bonnyrigg, Scotland, made a stress-free move by paring down their possessions to the extreme.
From the Daily Record article:
Deciding to sell the family home and downsize, the pair snapped up a two bedroom home in Bonnyrigg early last year.
But instead of waiting for their move in day to arrive, the canny couple set about making their first move in over 30 years as stress-free as possible.
They chucked out anything they didn’t need - including old furniture and toys.
And when the big day arrived, Alison and Bill moved in with just a bed, a washing machine and a microwave.
Although their circumstances are different than the one my wife and I faced a year ago, their preparation for the downsizing process was very similar. Getting rid of things you don’t need before you move is preferable to moving loads of things you won’t ever use. You likely will want to keep more than three belongings — like we did — but this story does sound very liberating.
Donating, selling, or recycling items that you do not need anymore can make the moving process much more manageable. We opted for a yard sale while relying on Craigslist to sell off larger pieces of furniture.
If you have recently downsized or plan on downsizing, please share your experience with us in the comments.
Popularity: 26% [?]
Downsizing: Millionaire edition
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is selling his ski villa in Utah and a home in Massachusetts. He’s downsizing from four properties to two. (The Utah home is pictured at right.)
The reason for this downsizing? From a Salt Lake Tribune article:
“The Romney children are all grown up with families of their own, and Mitt and [his wife] Ann have more space than they need,” spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said Monday. “So they are simplifying and downsizing.”
By cutting his property portfolio in half, former Governor Romney has indeed downsized. Holding on to two large properties on each coast of the United States could hardly be considered simple living, though. But it’s a first step.
Like many Americans, we’re always fascinated by which celebrities choose to live simply. Check out our “Celebrities” category to see who is hip to simple living.
Popularity: 9% [?]
Should the one-in, one-out rule apply to friends?
Lifehacker recently linked to an interesting article that ran on the BBC about friendship. “What’s the ideal number of friends” reported that most people have five very close friends, 10 more in a pretty close network, 35 more in a looser network, and then 100 on the outside that fall into the wee-bit-more-than-acquaintance category. This would mean each of us has about 150 friends in our social scene.
I found this interesting and plausible. My numbers are a little higher in the outer circles (I’m a social butterfly), but almost spot-on for the very close and pretty close network numbers.
However, mid-way through the article is a shocking but brief story about someone who regulates his friendships like inventory:
A newspaper columnist once told of her shock when, having struck up a rapport with a man over dinner, she was told at the end of the meal he had no vacancies for friends. He was operating a “one-in, one-out” policy. Six months later she received a card stating he was now available for friendship.
That’s an extreme example but many people view their friendships scientifically and regulate them accordingly.
When I first read these paragraphs, I was flabbergasted. What gall this man had! Then, the more I thought about it, the more I realized he was just saying what many people do subconsciously. When one friendship fizzles out, we fill it with a new friendship with someone else. We might not send cards announcing “you can now be my friend,” but we shift our priorities and move people around between the circles.
I think we all agree that a bad friend can cause clutter in our lives, but what about too many good friends? Can you have so many close friends that maintaining the friendships can interfere with other areas of your life?
What do you think of the one-in, one-out rule applied to friendship? Can your life be cluttered with too many close friends? I’m still mulling this around in my brain and I would love to read what you have to say.
Popularity: 8% [?]
Spherical minimalist living
Minimalism has reached all-new heights with the Free Spirit Spheres. Instead of finding a small corner of the world to call your own, you can swing from the trees in a ball of wood.
A description of Eryn, one of two sphere options from Free Spirit Spheres:
Made of Sitka spruce, Eryn is 10 ½’ (3.2m) in diameter giving her 1.8 times the volume of Eve [the other sphere model]. A well-appointed interior with galley, table/sitting area, double bed and loft bed, Eryn can sleep three. The loft bed has a weight restriction of 165 pounds. The galley includes a sink, small refrigerator, microwave and dishes.
Eryn has five windows. Two large windows; one next to the bed, the other beside the table, and two small windows; one in the door and one over the galley counter. A large skylight facilitates communing with the forest canopy and the stars. Every window is dished to the same radius as the sphere shell.
Eryn is insulated, plumbed and wired for 20 amps, 120/240 volt AC. She is easily heated with a small electric heater.
A view of the “kitchen” in the Eryn sphere (people included for scale):
A view of the “living room” and front door in the Eryn sphere:
There don’t appear to be any laundry or bathroom facilities in the spheres, so you would need to find additional methods to tackle these vital tasks. Otherwise, I think they look pretty cool. I don’t think I could live in one full time, but they might be perfect for a vacation. What do you think? Could you take up residence in a minimalist sphere?
(Thanks to reader Jessica for bringing the MSN article to our attention.)
Popularity: 17% [?]
