Needs vs. Wants

[grasshopper]

For the Grasshopper family, it's never can we afford it, it's where do we put it.

 

[omni550]

A friend of mine, who is a minimalist already, has a "one in, one out" policy.

Before making a purchase, she decides (of what she already has) what she is willing to dispose of (donate, sell, throw away, etc.). Seems to work for her. She doesn't buy much and what she does buy is thought-through beforehand.

omni

 

[W2R]

"Needs vs. Wants".

This is what I need.

This is what I want.

I must be much older than you, because the second photo makes me cringe and groan about upkeep hassles. I'd so much rather live in a smaller, simpler place that wouldn't require so much of my precious time.

Often F and I go for pleasure drives, and sometimes we drive through the wealthier neighborhoods where many of the homes look like that. We marvel that anybody would choose to live in such a grand home, even if they were free (and that is far from the case).

I guess I'd prefer something like this (living on one side, with F living on the other side):

 

[Totoro]

We marvel that anybody would choose to live in such a grand home, even if they were free (and that is far from the case)

I think of almost all material possessions as a constraint and liability first and foremost. Same with job-linked status actually, although the right kind can be a huge asset (and attract females ..).

My guess is many people here have the same mindset. Our reward systems are tuned very differently. It's a pretty rare condition it seems with nice side-benefits (FIRE as an option).

We are social deviants

 

[NW-Bound]

I must be much older than you, because the second photo makes me cringe and groan about upkeep hassles...

I would say you are about 7-8 years older.

You are right about it being a hassle. So, the only way I would live in such a place is if I were so rich that a squadron of butler, maids, gardeners would take care of everything so I can concentrate on things that I like. Hmmm... Like what, I ask myself. Like making a different terrine, or trying a different recipe of moules marinières to feed my servants and ask them if they like it (well, I think they would always say it's the best they have had to please me, so that would not work).

But my superior memory reminds me that you once said that if money were no object, you would want a big multi-floor building, and just to live on the top floor to keep away from the riff-raff. So, everybody has his or her fantasy.

 

[W2R]

I would say you are about 7-8 years older.

Ah, I was right. You are a youngster with grand dreams.

You are right about it being a hassle. So, the only way I would live in such a place is if I were so rich that a squadron of butler, maids, gardeners would take care of everything so I can concentrate on things that I like.

But then you have to hire, pay, and oversee the staff of butlers, maids, gardeners, and so on. It is still a hassle and would impinge upon your free time. You would have acquired what is essentially a small business that you could name "NW-Bound Residence Upkeep Inc.". Then you get to figure out each person's hours, how much they earned, and don't forget the SS and tax withholding for each.

But my superior memory reminds me that you once said that if money were no object, you would want a big multi-floor building, and just to live on the top floor to keep away from the riff-raff. So, everybody has his or her fantasy.

Hmmm. That's true. I probably didn't really think through that fantasy since I wasn't taking it very seriously.

 

[W2R]

I think of almost all material possessions as a constraint and liability first and foremost. Same with job-linked status actually, although the right kind can be a huge asset (and attract females ..).

My guess is many people here have the same mindset. Our reward systems are tuned very differently. It's a pretty rare condition it seems with nice side-benefits (FIRE as an option).

We are social deviants

I hadn't thought of it that way, but you made a good point!

 

[FIREd]

I must be much older than you, because the second photo makes me cringe and groan about upkeep hassles.

You're not the only one...

If anything, we are moving towards living smaller, not larger. The second bedroom in our apartment is mainly a guest bedroom. It has only been used once in 2 years. So DW and I are contemplating moving to a 1-bedroom apartment when our lease is up.

 

[NW-Bound]

Ah, I was right. You are a youngster with grand dreams.

Not a dream. Just a passing fantasy while we are shooting the breeze.

But then you have to oversee the staff of butlers, maids, gardeners, and so on. It is still a hassle and would impinge upon your free time.

If you were so rich that you did not have to worry that you were way overpaying them, then they would do a really good job serving you.

I recently read Jordan Belfort's memoir, and he had excellent services by paying his helpers 2X to 3X the market rate. Problem solved.

Hmmm. That's true. I probably didn't really think through that fantasy since I wasn't taking it very seriously.

I am not convinced that if a $100M bag of cash fell down in your backyard that you would not go out to buy that high-rise building.

 

[W2R]

I am not convinced that if a $100M bag of cash fell down in your backyard that you would not go out to buy that high-rise building.

Have you ever dreamed about buying one of those industrial buildings that has an open first floor with no windows and only garage doors, like a warehouse, and yet has a second floor with one or two luxury apartments? Access to the second floor could be solely by means of a locked elevator. One could drive in, park inside the first floor (closing/locking the garage door remotely). Then one punches in the elevator access code and is swept upstairs to a secure and safe hideaway.

That dream is TOTALLY in the realm of fantasy, although if someone dropped $100M into my bank account legally then who knows?

 

[Totoro]

An underground cave with some cool toys.

Without bats.

Seals, dolphins, otters and orca's swimming around the cave exit would be nice though.

 

[W2R]

An underground cave with some cool toys.

Without bats.

Seals, dolphins, otters and orca's swimming around the cave exit would be nice though.

Nice touch! Well, as long as they are wild and do not have to be fed or taken care of.

 

[seraphim]

Only buy from places with a great return policy, and don't buy something new until you've returned the LAST thing you bought.


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[Walt34]

How about a helicopter camper? Winnebago had six built, mostly as a PR/advertising move.

 

[WestcoastRN]

A few years ago I read an essay regarding how our spending habits are insanely manipulated, controlled, and how the marketing machine permeates our lives. It was written in 2010 by a writer named David Cain at Raptitude. It literally changed me in ways that still resonate in my daily life...for example I rarely watch TV anymore. The essay is called "Your lifestyle as already been designed." Here are a few paragraphs I cut and pasted from the essay (you can read the entire essay on his blogsite, look under Archives, July 2010:
"As technologies and methods advanced, workers in all industries became able to produce much more value in a shorter amount of time. You’d think this would lead to shorter workdays.
But the 8-hour workday is too profitable for big business, not because of the amount of work people get done in eight hours (the average office worker gets less than three hours of actual work done in 8 hours) but because it makes for such a purchase-happy public. Keeping free time scarce means people pay a lot more for convenience, gratification, and any other relief they can buy. It keeps them watching television, and its commercials. It keeps them unambitious outside of work.
We’ve been led into a culture that has been engineered to leave us tired, hungry for indulgence, willing to pay a lot for convenience and entertainment, and most importantly, vaguely dissatisfied with our lives so that we continue wanting things we don’t have. We buy so much because it always seems like something is still missing.
Western economies, particularly that of the United States, have been built in a very calculated manner on gratification, addiction, and unnecessary spending. We spend to cheer ourselves up, to reward ourselves, to celebrate, to fix problems, to elevate our status, and to alleviate boredom."