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Ancient Minimalist Wisdom

I used to think that being fed up with “stuff” was a symptom of modern times. Globalization has made material goods inexpensive and widely available, and satisfying our consumer desires has become almost too easy.

However, philosophers have been railing against materialism for millenia — well before megamarts and “everyday low prices” came on the scene.

I thought I’d share some of this ancient minimalist wisdom with you today. First, because I think it’s inspirational, and second, because I have a thing for philosophers (in my book, brains are much sexier than brawn!).

I’ll be on the road for a few days, so hope these deep thoughts will tide you over until I return.… {Read more}

Real Life Minimalists: A Working Rachel

Every Monday (when I have participants) I post Real Life Minimalists, a profile of one of my readers in their own words. If you’d like to participate, click here for details.

I don’t have anyone scheduled after today’s post, so I’d love to receive more stories. I know there are more Real Life Minimalists out there — don’t be shy! :-)

Today, A Working Rachel tells us about her minimalist lifestyle, and her own experiment with the 100 Thing Challenge. She also writes about personal finance on her blog — check it out to learn more!

A Working Rachel writes:

Hi, I’m Working Rachel.… {Read more}

Minimalist Living: 100 Things I Don’t Own

Thank you so much for visiting!

If you’re interested in minimalist living, I think you’ll enjoy the following posts:

Minimalist Living: Questioning the Couch Minimalist Living: Life Without a TV Minimalist Furniture: The Bare Essentials What’s in a Minimalist Kitchen? My Tiny Apartment Tour: Minimalist Bedroom How to Create a Minimalist Bathroom The Minimalist Linen Closet 10 Steps to a Minimalist Office 7 Steps to a Minimalist Wardrobe The Minsumer Movement: A Quiet Revolution… {Read more}

Real Life Minimalists: Me

[Earlier this year, I ran a series called Real Life Minimalists, in which I invited readers to submit their own stories. I’d love to revive it, and thought I’d start by jumping into the ring myself. If you’d like to participate, click here for details.]

When I started this blog, I had no idea what kind of response I’d receive (to be honest, I never expected more than a handful of people to read it!). I didn’t know if people would find my minimalism a little weird, somewhat wacky, or way off the deep end. Most of all, I didn’t know if there were any other kindred souls out there.… {Read more}

Extreme Light Travel

A few months ago, I wrote about the contents of my carry-on (Minimalist Travel: What’s in My Suitcase). This is the only bag I travel with, whether I’m going away for one week or three months. You can read about it in detail in my earlier post, but generally it contains a packing cube of clothing, a toiletry bag, and odds and ends like guidebooks, energy bars, camera, iPod Touch, umbrella, etc. in the pockets. After years of overseas travel, I had this system down to a science.

Now that I live in England, however, I’ve been spending a lot of long weekends visiting European cities.… {Read more}

Minimalist Philosophy: Cherry Blossom Living

. “If there were no cherry blossoms in this world How much more tranquil our hearts would be in spring.”

-Ariwara no Narihira, Kokinshuu

Every year, I look forward to cherry blossom season with great anticipation. I love to sit under the pink clouds of delicate blooms, and wax poetic on the beauty of life. (A few years ago, I fulfilled a lifelong dream, and spent two glorious weeks in Japan doing just that.)

When we lived in the US, my husband and I planted our own Yoshino sakura in our backyard. We’d while away whole afternoons lying under its branches, drinking sake, reading haiku, and letting the spring breeze scatter thousands of pink petals upon us.… {Read more}

Declutter Your Jewelry Box

Let’s face it—we all have clutter in our jewelry boxes: broken chains, gifts from old flames, grandma’s wedding ring, an uncle’s old watch. Jewelry, however, can be especially difficult to purge. Unlike most clutter, gold and gemstones have intrinsic value—tossing them in the trash is like throwing money away.

Good news: the price of gold is near its all-time high, and jewelers everywhere are buying it from people like you and me. (It may seem contradictory that jewelers would want to buy gold at such a high price, but they make a profit by selling it to a refiner.)

Here’s how it works: clean out your jewelry box of all the bits and bobs you no longer want.… {Read more}

Minimalist Entertainment: Watching Sheep

Lately, I’ve been spending a lot of time watching sheep. I know that sounds strange, so let me explain…

I’ve always been a city girl at heart. I love the people, the buildings, the culture, the vibe; going to bars, cafes, and restaurants; and attending the opera, the orchestra, and the ballet.

Recently, however, my husband and I have discovered a wonderful new pastime: walking the public footpaths of the English countryside. As an American accustomed to fences, private property, and “no trespassing” signs, I was completely taken aback by the concept of the public footpath—in essence, it’s a right-of-way that lets you stroll through the fields, pastures, and meadows that belong to someone else (how amazing is that?).… {Read more}

The Top Ten Ways to Declutter Heirlooms

I was recently cleaning out some bookmarks (digital decluttering!), and ran across this oldie-but-goodie from the New York Times:

The Tyranny of the Heirloom

In the article, the writer interviews several people who feel compelled to keep the things they’ve inherited — a Victorian settee, an ugly painting, a massive sideboard — despite their dislike for them. Some do it out of guilt, some to hang onto memories, others to preserve their family “history.”

I can relate, as I inherited my grandmother’s twelve place settings of china right after I graduated from college. I dragged them around with me for years, carefully packing and unpacking them during moves across three states.… {Read more}

The Minsumer Movement: A Quiet Revolution

Something wonderful happens when you start living a minimalist lifestyle: you begin to really think about what you consume, and question the necessity of every purchase.

How amazing would it be if such mindful consumption became the norm? Not only would we all have more time, more money, and more space in our homes; we’d also have a healthier planet, and more resources for future generations.

In order to promote such an idea, however, we have to define it and give it a name. We have to let others know it’s a viable lifestyle alternative, and provide support to those pursuing it.… {Read more}