seeing My Minimalist Self
Some quest out minimalism, others have minimalism thrust upon them. Like greatness, we aren’t all the time ready.
Having purchased a tiny bungalow in Ventura Ca, I soon realized that the 1500 Sqft of stuff, simply wasn’t going to fit in 600 sqft of cottage. Don’t get me wrong, I love the cottage. For one thing it’s ours, ours and the banks, but still ours in some real sense of the word. I don’t even mind it being small. Small is okay. Tiny, however is troublesome.
Hdtv
For a solid year, I tried to make do with the ready space, in relation to the number and size of belongs owned. This meant that the large wicker shelving unit was stuffed in a corner, and the huge oak bookcase took over nearly a whole wall. The rest of that wall was given over to the old but faithful, tube-in-an-oak-cabinet television set. The bookshelf held my law-school books, the Tv had the clearest picture, and two great speakers you could turn up adequate to shake the windows if you were in that mood.
It can’t be denied that these things worked, they were useful. In another life, a life with 1500 sq ft to work in, they weren’t any qoute at all. In the Lilliputian world of the new cottage, they became unwelcome giants.
So began my quest for a minimalist living space.
At first it was difficult to part with things. Keeping in mind the joy to come of an uncluttered home, I forged on. Soon I was tossing stuff like the pros on the television shows. (Of course they are tossing Ops – other peoples stuff.)
Old coats and unread magazines older than last week? Gone. The second pasta strainer? Outta here. I was not, however, prepared for the Domino Effect. Once I carefully to get rid of the oak bookcase, many — if not most, books had to follow it out the door. Where would the stuff that was on the wicker shelves migrate to? How would I watch the Tudors without Old Faithful.
Minimalism is tricky in other ways too. You’d think that because you are getting rid of stuff, you’d be rescue money. You have fewer things, so less money. I laugh at the innocence! Getting rid of the old Tv meant I wanted a super-thin, hang on the wall, 32″ Hdtv, priced at 0. Getting rid of other large items meant I could see more of the old carpet. Two minimalist inspired, buff tan jute area rugs and a visit from the neighborhood rug cleaner and I was out another 0. Minimalism doesn’t only mean fewer things, it means new improved minimalist-type things replace older, clunkier things. That isn’t a bad thing, it’s just costly.
Don’t let me give the impression the process was all bad. As things left and space increased, a feeling of roominess replaced the old cluttered-in stress. You could walk the length of the living room and not encounter a particular thing to slow down your progress. You could do jazzercize in there, if whatever still knows how.
If you are going to tackle the fine art of minimalizing your space, I recommend you do so alone. Or at the very least only with persons who you do not live with. There is a follow worse than the Domino follow coarse to minimalizing. I call it the Rebound Effect. The Rebound follow works like this. You take a big old not-minimalist whatsis, and put it outside. It’s time to come you say, lies with the thrift store pickup, trash or some passer-by who can’t live without it. You’ve made the emotional break with said whatsis.
You physically removed it from the house. It’s gone, until that is it rebounds. You may find it in the same place you removed it from, or in a neighboring spot inside your abode. How did this happen? have you lost your mind? No, dear struggling minimalist, you have not. You simply failed to faultless the removal of the whatsis, because you let those that live with you reclaim and replace it! The dear husband, son, or daughter who reclaims and rebounds items back into the home is the enemy of the minimalist! You must take care to preclude rebounding. Call the thrift store pickup on a day your loved ones are not at home. Sneak items out and drive them to new homes without any audience. Gift items to friends on the health they take it Now.
Time, you see, is the friend of the rebounder. Don’t let your non-minimalist items linger.
If you can navigate the three easy steps of being minimalist, you too can have an airy, spacious, uncluttered home. simply remember to:
– Get it out
– Get more out
– Don’t let it come back.
When loved ones ask, just smile and say “What whatsis?”
seeing My Minimalist Self
Tags : vcanhealth.com
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