Maximum Gratitude, Minimal Stuff

If you spend any time looking at minimalist lifestyle blogs, you've probably had your fill of images of white walls, white furnishings, and modernist decorative items that look meticulously arranged for their designer photo shoot. The rooms look like no one lives there.  Certainly, no one sits comfortably or does any entertaining.  The beautiful table settings are arranged for guests to ooh and aah over.  No one has actually eaten a meal there. And you can bet those rooms aren't open to pets or children.  If any toys are photographed, they're handmade, artisanal, all-wood items arranged one or two per shelf.  What's missing is color, variety, personality, and anything that looks like it's been used or enjoyed. The happy truth I have some great news:  A minimalist life doesn't have to be this way!  It doesn't have to be colorless and matchy-matchy.  If you've been worried that becoming minimalist requires boring conformity, you can stop right now. ...

Here's the problem that can make decluttering feel like an ultra-marathon of decision fatigue.... When you pick up each item and ask "Does this make me happy?" you're suddenly confronted with all of the stories and feelings attached to that item.  Especially if you've owned things for a while, you inherited them, or you're in your empty-nest years, you have plenty of memories and emotions attached to your belongings. Ask a different question. Instead, ask yourself "Where will this fit?"  If the shelf in your linen closet will hold six bath towels neatly and comfortably, make that your "towel cap."  If the shelf in your kitchen will hold eight mugs without having to cram them in or play a frustrating game of Jenga, that's your "mug cap."  If your new, empty-nest-sized living room has space for a love seat and two easy chairs, it's time to donate or sell that huge sectional. None of these decisions are emotional.  They'r...

Are you someone who thinks that minimalism is just an aesthetic movement characterized by all-white everything in a large and mostly-empty room?  Or maybe you think minimalism is a fad embraced by the privileged few.  After all, how can you have "too much stuff" unless you have a high income? You're not alone in that opinion.  One of the characters in Liz Moore's engrossing novel The God of the Woods , encountering Henry David Thoreau's Walden * for the first time, thinks "Here was a rich person playing....  There were poor people far more resourceful and self-sufficient than he was; they just had the grace and self-awareness not to brag about it." My mom grew up poor.  She had plenty of knowledge and practical skills.  But that didn't stop her from aspiring to the "American dream" of a big house, expensive cars, a high-end wardrobe, and a growing list of luxuries and experiences. Earning a high income doesn't mean you don't outspen...

If I could save time in a bottle, The first thing that I'd like to do Is to save every day 'Til eternity passes away Just to spend them with you. I like this song.  Of course, it's nostalgic for me.  This Jim Croce hit was the theme for my long-ago Senior Ball in high school. If I could make days last forever, If words could make wishes come true, I'd save every day Like a treasure, and then Again, I would spend them with you. These words are more poignant because Croce died in a plane crash at age 30.  "Time in a Bottle" became a #1 hit after his death, not least because the lyrics deal with mortality and the wish to have more time – a wish underlined by the shortness of Croce's life. Never enough time The chorus of the song continues:  "But there never seems to be enough time/To do the things you want to do, once you find them."  Probably as long as human beings have been around, we've had the sense that life is too short, that we will neve...

Have you heard the term "beauty culture"?  According to encyclopedia.com , it's the system of beliefs and practices that dictate a society's standards of attractiveness.  It influences how we perceive and pursue beauty, whether through cosmetics, fashion, grooming services, diets, gym memberships, surgery, or something else. In our society, beauty culture is influenced by all forms of media, and it's big business.  Huge business , in fact.  The cosmetic industry, the fashion industry, the diet industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and so many more industries benefit from our beliefs that beauty exists only in narrow parameters beauty is essential for finding love and happiness the pursuit of beauty is worth any amount of money, time, effort, and attention "beauty rituals" equal positive self-care What beauty culture says about us Beauty standards are often an expression of prejudice.  But honestly, determining someone's value by how they look is som...

We tend to think of anxiety as a bad thing, and do a lot to avoid it or numb ourselves to it.  But anxiety isn't always an enemy.  It's an alarm system.  It's our bodies' and brains' way of getting our attention and letting us know that something is wrong.  Just like a smoke alarm lets us know there's a fire, anxiety is a signal that alerts us to danger. Constant, low-level anxiety has several negative results for our mental and physical health, so it's important to figure out the cause and take what steps we can to relieve it.  Of course, we can't insure ourselves against every bad thing, but often there are steps we can take to gain more control and make our situation better. In other words, don't ignore the smoke alarm, or let it continue to sound off.  Put out the fire! The sources of financial anxiety When it comes to personal finances, many of us are playing with a dangerous, raging fire.  Just consider some of this data from the United States,...