Has Minimalism bitten anyone?

[O2Bfree]

Great points... A tip that the wife and I do: We try not to buy each other things. After 15 years, we learned it ends up in a closet or unused somewhere. Sometimes, we even try to out-do each other and that's a whole other topic. Anyway. We try to gift experiences and not things.

Same here. We stopped exchanging birthday and Christmas gifts years ago. DH bought inexpensive little things for a year or two before he was confident that I wouldn't be upset if Santa didn't come or if I didn't get a birthday gift.

I do however still like the look of a pile of presents under the Christmas tree. So, I've accumulated a collection of Christmas tins and decorated boxes to put under the tree. They were all free from various places, and don't take up much space, fitting into each other and into a couple grocery bags for storage. And they'd be easy to toss if necessary.

 

[Fedup]

My husband and I only buy stuff that we need, but my kids are not minimalists. They don't like their books thrown away, well at least one kid who is a book lover. So now we have to have some storage in the garage for the books.

 

[unclemick]

I never made Buddha happy. Came close once post Katrina when everything we owned fit in the back of a 99 Chevy Silverado.

Stuff wise it's been downhill/or uphill depending on how you put it ever since.

We keep trying. One house down. Farm auction over two Saturdays in September.

Heh heh heh - Basement and Garage semi cleared out. De-clutter nauseatingly resembles WORK! an no no for a happy ER type.

 

[aja8888]

If anyone is planning on decluttering an early or mid 2000's corvette convertible in great condition for a great price, PM me. Must be automatic trans so DW can drive it.

 

[Katiek]

When I was in my 20's and 30's, I moved a lot which helped me declutter as a natural part of life. But I've been in same home for almost 20 years now, and I've accumulated so much stuff. One of the things I really want to do when I FIRE is go through everything and keep only the things I really use and enjoy.

I expect to move at some point again in my life, and if will be even harder to declutter 20 years from now.

 

[Bestwifeever]

NO! Not even close.

We have some stuff we were given for wedding presents 50 years ago! It in a cabinet somewhere. We have crystal we bought in Germany when we were stationed there, Never use it. There is lots of other stuff. It is my curse I plan on leaving the kids!!!! If the want the cash they have to get rid of all the crap. Why should I!

You could use that stuff and enjoy it imo. Get rid of whatever you use instead of it. You'll break some of it and lose some of the silverware (don't ask how I know this) and you'll make some memories and rekindle others.

 

[Dawg52]

I got rid of a lot of stuff when my mom and aunt passed a few years ago. Sold their homes and donated a ton of items to charity. But, bought a condo on the coast and a small home in my home town. Will probably maintain my lifestyle through my 60's but may consolidate to one home after that. Might just move to the coast full time and live in a 55+ community with no yard to maintain. If I do that.....I will certainly go through a decluttering process. Will see......might drop dead before I have a chance to do so.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Going to estate sales and seeing houses packed to the brim with stuff like 4 sets of china made us want to declutter before we ever got to that point.

We still have too much stuff, but I do only have one set of plain white, almost indestructable Corelle dinnerware these days.

 

[Fedup]

When I was in my 20's and 30's, I moved a lot which helped me declutter as a natural part of life. But I've been in same home for almost 20 years now, and I've accumulated so much stuff. One of the things I really want to do when I FIRE is go through everything and keep only the things I really use and enjoy.

I expect to move at some point again in my life, and if will be even harder to declutter 20 years from now.

Good luck with the decluttering. That was definitely our intention when we retired 1.5 years ago. Not a single box was opened and discarded.

 

[Nightcap]

I got rid of a lot of stuff when my mom and aunt passed a few years ago. Sold their homes and donated a ton of items to charity. But, bought a condo on the coast and a small home in my home town. Will probably maintain my lifestyle through my 60's but may consolidate to one home after that. Might just move to the coast full time and live in a 55+ community with no yard to maintain. If I do that.....I will certainly go through a decluttering process. Will see......might drop dead before I have a chance to do so.

We inherited every time DW's parents downsized, until they reached the ultimate destination to which we must all arrive empty-handed. I had my own collection - an eye-glazing museum of antique computers from 1976 on up. I won't say we were featured on "Hoarders: Buried Alive," but we weren't far from it.

Four years ago, we bought this little condo in paradise and began slowly moving the essentials down. After a year, we gave up, called Pete's Rubbish Removal, and told them to start in the basement and toss everything that wasn't nailed down until they hit the rafters. I can't tell you how relieved I was to be out from under it all.

Still have a basement full of junque, er, precious memories.

 

[Cobra9777]

When I first retired, I went through a decluttering phase... closets, drawers, pantry, attic, storage areas, garage. We donated lots of stuff and had a garage sale, but threw most of it away. I think we had 5 or 6 CRT TVs and monitors that nobody would take at the garage sale even though I had them labeled "free." I had to pay the city $15 each to dispose of them. We've also been remodeling, painting, redecorating, etc, and that's resulted in additional decluttering as we move from one room to the next.

But the overall impact is nothing I would characterize as "minimalist." We both have our "stuff" and it brings us nothing but positive experiences. DW collects holiday decorations for every occasion, recipe books, sewing stuff, hobby supplies, arts and crafts, old photo albums, and stuff from when the kids were in school. It's all neatly organized in plastic bins that fill several closets and some attic space. I have my "music room" with guitars, amps, speakers, keyboards, old stereo equipment (Klipsch Cornerhorns), albums, music books. And then there's my woodworking shop.... I'll stop there. Point is, minimalist bug?... No. Decluttering and organizing?... Yes. "Attachment" causes suffering?... sounds like BS to me. YMMV.

 

[Teacher Terry]

If stuff is stored in plastic bins are you ever using it or looking at it? If not I don't see the point.

 

[gerntz]

Never put our money in a large home, so have nothing significant to minimize - except our assets which I don't care to do .

 

[Cobra9777]

If stuff is stored in plastic bins are you ever using it or looking at it? If not I don't see the point.

Of course, otherwise we wouldn't have it. The bins are just for organization and decluttering.

 

[Souschef]

If stuff is stored in plastic bins are you ever using it or looking at it? If not I don't see the point.

I sort of agree. When we moved here in 2007, my wife stored 3 big plastic tubs in our shed. When i asked her about them, she told me her sons would go through them after she passed away

 

[RobbieB]

I have 3 of those bins and just went though them and now I only have 1.

Tossed it inna trash. Now to move other stuff into the 2 empty bins.

Ya have to stage the stuff for a couple of years before you toss it inna trash.

Frugality must be fought gradually -

 

[ERD50]

I love my stuff, my various toys.

Home theater that's better than the cineplex, vacuum tube stereos in the office, bedroom and garage. Motorcycles. 4 different outdoor cooking appliances. Firearms for target. Fishing stuff and a boat will be added when I get the house done.

I'm just a big kid who likes to play.

That's the spirit! I enjoy my 'stuff', otherwise I'd get rid of it.

I still don't understand the problem people have with 'stuff'. It'd be different if I was renting a bunch of storage space for stuff I'd never use, or if every room in the house was filled to the rafters, but it's not (just a couple rooms ).

Rustic: if you have ever had to clean out a house of someone you love after they die it is horrible when it is filled to the brim. I urge you not to leave that mess to your kids. ...

Once it's clear I won't use stuff, I'll get rid of it. If I really stop all woodworking, I'll get rid of my piles of wood ends and cut-offs. But until then, I plan to keep it. At some point, I'll make a list for the kids of anything of value or to give away to someone who could use it. But they won't have any problem throwing all the other stuff in a dumpster. You can pay people to do that. It's the identifying what's what that's the time consuming thing.

-ERD50

 

[haha]

DW is 4'11", 100lbs, but she is like an ant in that she can lift about 300 times her body weight if she's carrying my stuff to a dumpster.

LOL!

I had a farmhouse and acreage, several outbuildings, and tons of stuff. My ex and I still owned it jointly. neither of us would ever move back, too painful and too unhandy. I no longer owned a pickup, I was afraid of the cleanup, and also did not feel like giving her an ultimatum to get what she wanted so I could get a cleanup service to just have at it.

Finally a miracle happened. Some guy had put together acreage around our place, but would have a better package with our county road frontage. One day his agent showed up at my door in the city with an offer. I took a few days to check that someone hadn't struck oil nearby and called ex telling her that I wanted to sell and asked her if she could get her stuff within a week. She never even went over there, and she signed off on a cash deal for house, ground and junk.

It was like a month of Christmases for me. Talk about being out from under a real burden.

My parents had an enormous 1880 mansion in a city. My Mom could not throw anything away. She grew up on a farm, and at age 16 they had a big fire that consumed all her dolls, clothes, mementos and I think that she never really got over this loss. After they died, the sons had to find some way of keeping our sister out of the cleanup as it would have taken 20 years with her in on it. I just came home, and my two brothers took the heat of blocking her.

I absolutely would not inflict this on my sons when I die, which I hope to do while still living here.

All of this aside from my giant stroke of luck on the farm was really bad news. Now I live in 700 sq feet, no car, very few clothes, most books on Kindle, no record collection anymore, a very short inventory cycle for consumables, no freezer.

I might spend a little more day to day since I rarely go to a suburban big box, but I spend my time now almost 100% on attractive pursuits. and almost no time maintaining infrastructure. I do not feel that this is virtuous, just way easier for me at this life stage.

Ha

 

[Fedup]

That's the spirit! I enjoy my 'stuff', otherwise I'd get rid of it.

I still don't understand the problem people have with 'stuff'. It'd be different if I was renting a bunch of storage space for stuff I'd never use, or if every room in the house was filled to the rafters, but it's not (just a couple rooms ).




Once it's clear I won't use stuff, I'll get rid of it. If I really stop all woodworking, I'll get rid of my piles of wood ends and cut-offs. But until then, I plan to keep it. At some point, I'll make a list for the kids of anything of value or to give away to someone who could use it. But they won't have any problem throwing all the other stuff in a dumpster. You can pay people to do that. It's the identifying what's what that's the time consuming thing.

-ERD50

The real stuff people can get rid off is cash. Send them my way if you talk about real minimalism. Try to live without that stuff and we shall see how's it working out. Interesting how people can discuss Budhism without understand the real underlying philosophy. I have been to a real monastery for monks and it was very quiet. No cash buzzing around. No worries about 4% SWR. Lol

 

[Totoro]

I never really upsized, but still feel like I have too much stuff. My 750 sq ft. apartment is scarcely filled.

Entire interior fits in small van - if it fits the bed base (2xone person sized) and couch, I'm good.

 

[Koolau]

DW took on the role of final decluttering following MILs passing. Her brother dealt with the valuable stuff (antiques, furniture, etc.) DW shoveled out the clutter (magazines, books, expired cans of food, etc.) One upside. DW is meticulous. She found a $20 in a magazine and then went through every one in the house. I think she netted $500+ out of the deal.

DW also did the whole "get the house ready for sale" when my mom went to the nursing home for good. It took DW 3 months (an entire summer). DW would find cards dating back 50 years, sit down and read each one, cry and then move on to the next thing. I was the one who found my dad's silver collection in the basement - MORE than $500, heh, heh. That's MY kind of clutter, but YMMV.

Reminds me of a co-w*rker who liked to say (often) "A man should leave this world with no more than he can carry on his own strong shoulders." I never had the heart to suggest most of us leaving this world have very weak shoulders at the end. SO, I would just say. "I agree, Frank. One million dollars in $100s weighs only 22 lbs. I think I'll be able to manage that when I'm ready to go." Frank was never amused. YMMV

 

[pb4uski]

I could be much.more minimalist were it not for my pack-rat DW. I am definitiely in a less-is-more frame of mind. We recently had to "clean house" in preparation for DD's bachlorette party and I asked DD of the clutter how much was DW's and how much was mine... DD ball parked it at 90/10.

 

[Lstansbury]

Its a balance. And the only way I could come close to FIRE as a single female, avg salary. After HB died (no life insurance), I had to downsize from 2500 sq ft to 690 sq ft. The constraints forced me to evaluate. Do I really need this? Want this? Want to carry, insure, move, dust, take care of this? Tough at first, then the momentum struck and I had to watch out that I didn't toss them things I "needed". Inspired by "Your Money or Your Life" book and Marie Kondo. Best thing I ever did for myself. I still have stuff. But it's stuff I really like. I still buy stuff, but it's stuff that is of value, I love, will use, keep, clean, etc. You can see my dining table now, and the beautiful fresh flowers on it. I feel happy looking at the bookcase with one row of fav books and two pieces of beautiful pottery that make me smile. (Couldn't find them before) I clean house in 15 minutes. And I don't feed the 1 percent's pocket like I used to.

 

[Danmar]

Certainly not a minimalist. Love to declutter but then just buy more neat stuff. Like to decorate in a "less is more" way though. Don't like to get a feeling of being crowded out of my own place. Like contemporary style in housing which often gives a minimalist "vibe".

 

[Totoro]

Interesting how people can discuss Budhism without understand the real underlying philosophy. I have been to a real monastery for monks and it was very quiet. No cash buzzing around. No worries about 4% SWR. Lol

Most of us: “You know, if you could learn to cater to the king you wouldn’t have to live on rice and beans.”
Monk: “If you could learn to live on rice and beans you wouldn’t have to cater to the king.”


Far from being a Buddhist, and not even understanding it well, I take away a few items I try to apply to my life, e.g.:

• Low attachment, including your own body. It's just a rental.
• Compassion and serving others makes you happy
• Happiness comes mostly from within
• No way to avoid suffering, many ways to minimize it
• Extremes don't do you good

Or the comedian (George Carlin?) version: "Don't be an *******". Most of the essentials in life are simple, none of them are easy.