Lifestyle Minimalism thread

[JennyDog]

I've had the idea of going on a bit of a lifestyle minimalism/sustainability kick for a little while, first kicked off by these wonderfully aesthetic neocities pages here and here, and talking to a few friends. When I was young, I used to idealize having a lifecycle where everything I owned could fit into 2 suitcases and a backpack, which was close to what I had in college. I definitely do not have that lifecycle now.

So I've decided to sort of lean into it more and see how I enjoy it, and I'm kind of curious about other people feel about this or their changes and how it fits into their own unique lives. I don't do a ton of research or anything, and I try to have zero judgement about this because it's honestly more of a life style feelies for me and I wouldn't be shocked if the impact of all of this is ephemeral or negative, or even impossible to measure.

So uh yeah, the big changes I've been doing or planning to do and I guess introspection about it?

• Use as much non-car transit as possible
  I'd say I'm 70% there: I live the car free lifestyle and use transit/metro and walking around primarily. For the more complex cases that doesn't work, I use cabs or ubers. I looked a bit into biking but I think it doesn't work as a transport method where I live, although there's plenty of areas that are good for biking as excersize.
• Using tote bags instead of getting bags at shop
  I like doing this a lot, and I assume it's helped me body wise with moving weight around. I have a cart I need to oil the wheels of since it's been super squeaky, but that way I use almost no bags.
  Also I feel cute and trendy walking around with a tote bag ^^.
• I've gotten reusable hot and cold coffee mugs to try and cut down on disposable plastic consumption.
  This has been a bit hit or miss: it only tends to be bougie coffee shops and Starbucks that take these.
• Getting most new regular clothes from thrifting, with the exception of like socks, shoes or more specialized gear.
  This one has actually been working out pretty well! I also donated a bunch of clothes instead of trashing them so I assume they'll get a lot of ue.
• Using a water-bottle instead of disposable plastic water bottles.
  Also working out ok.
• Generally buying foods stored in non-plastic (glass or metal containers) and recycling that as needed.
  This one I've been making the effort, but very hit or miss -- a lot of stuff still has some level of disposable plastic coverings
• Goal: Making more food at home, and eating more vegetarian food.
  Not super good at this, eating out a lot is probably my next big lifestyle change.

It's also been a bit of an interesting case to think about this because my apartment complex has had a lot of power outage, and I've become more aware of how much minimalism also means having to react if something breaks, or access to solid stable electricity -- I don't think this lifestyle could handle not being in a well off city center!

So yeah, curious about folks thoughts and introspection <3

[Pogckets]

v solid list

I do my best to practice all of that except non-car transport.

Another idea you might entertain is changing from laundry detergent and dryer sheets to soap nuts (and/or castille soap) and wool dryer balls. Less expensive, just as effective and less of a footprint. Also more control over ze chemicals.

And Im a big fan of portable furniture, floor cushions, futons, tatami &c

Two suitcases is super ambitious, I primarily drive an SUV and have entertained the idea of modding it to accommodate living. But where would all my plants and books and kitchen appliances and bedroom accoutrements go *flails*

Some of my happiest periods in life have been in studios with limited amenities.

[JennyDog]

Ooh, is the portable furniture so that it's easy to move around/moves are as a big deal? or is more for the multi-utility of them?

[maru]

I've been going through a similar period, and I know a few friends who have as well. I sort of feel like it's an intra-generational, tidal thing.

When I was young, I used to idealize having a lifecycle where everything I owned could fit into 2 suitcases and a backpack, which was close to what I had in college. I definitely do not have that lifecycle now.

I had quite similar thoughts. When I made video games I only owned clothes and a computer. I moved house kind of a lot, and it was pretty easy to resettle because I didn't have any furniture. Maybe like a minivan full of boxes at most? If we're talking about "a lamp" or etc. And the two consequences were that I feel like I put my whole heart into the abstraction machine; I was doing nothing but manipulating information and grappling with the Ether directly. At the time, I felt that if I didn't literalise my environment, I couldn't construct a complex self. If I didn't reflect back at myself in the environment, see my desires and loves reified, there would be not a lot to me.

Recently I sort of wonder if that was true or not; I started to think about the more basic self as the "truer self" — the one that was just pure doing — and everything since as acclimating to a lifestyle that restricted what actions I felt free to take.

• I try not to hoard. I don't always succeed! You ever watch those LGR videos where he has like warehouses full of retro computing stuff? I respect it. I see the necessity for someone to do that, to curate it all. But I feel like the opposite kind of person.
• I've started selling off things that seemed extraneous. I was going to sell my entire book collection but my roommate loves and collects books, and felt like it would be a waste if I did. I got an e-reader and started collecting books to read on that, instead.
• I felt like this even applied to computing until I became a bit more reliant on cloud hosting. I'm actually stumbling backward here — instead of hosting all my music in Apple Music I Syncthing across all my computers, but it means that even my phone is a fine custodian of large collections of data for any new computer I get. I just wanted to retain this feeling that if I lost my laptop, if it snapped in two, I wouldn't care. Nothing is specific to it.
• I've always been averse to owning property for similar reasons. It's trite to say, but I don't feel ready to tie myself down to anything. I want to explore and keep moving.

[JennyDog]

I've been going through a similar period, and I know a few friends who have as well. I sort of feel like it's an intra-generational, tidal thing.

Yeah, I feel like environmentalism is always a bit of a theme sitting around. It's tempting to say that it's part of being exhausted by the digital plenty? But it's not like that's changing, and I even heard from a video that on fashion-tok [sic?] maximalist design is coming in again. Which isn't necessarily opposed?

I had quite similar thoughts. [...] And the two consequences were that I feel like I put my whole heart into the abstraction machine; I was doing nothing but manipulating information and grappling with the Ether directly. At the time, I felt that if I didn't literalise my environment, I couldn't construct a complex self. If I didn't reflect back at myself in the environment, see my desires and loves reified, there would be not a lot to me.

The first time I thought about living a hyper-minimalist two-suitcases type life, I was embracing a very life-of-the-mind type interest in Mathematics and later linguistics. I think it's something about having a very rich set of mental (and/or digital) constructs being what you spend a lot of energy on is part of what made that a bit more appealing.

I also came from a hoarder house: primarily animal hoarding, but earlier regular hoarding as well. I think it's easy to point to that as the "obvious" thing that encourages minimalism, because with animal hoarding there's lots of animal sick and sometimes fecal matter, and I think a common coping method is generally not minding them but having a few areas or things (the bed I was sleeping in, my computer) that you ferociously protect and freak out if it gets dirty or damaged. I think the animal hoarding really started getting bad as the whole life of the mind spending all my time thinking about integrals?

• I try not to hoard. I don't always succeed! You ever watch those LGR videos where he has like warehouses full of retro computing stuff? I respect it. I see the necessity for someone to do that, to curate it all. But I feel like the opposite kind of person.

I think something I feel along with the minimalism thing and idealizing living in a smaller place is wanting to have either a bit of a "home-base" or a backup storage location. One of my sort of unrelated fantasies is dating/marrying into a family that has one of those big multi-generation or Big households with lots of siblings, and having that as a homebase I can visit fits in with it.

• I've started selling off things that seemed extraneous. I was going to sell my entire book collection but my roommate loves and collects books, and felt like it would be a waste if I did. I got an e-reader and started collecting books to read on that, instead.
• I felt like this even applied to computing until I became a bit more reliant on cloud hosting. I'm actually stumbling backward here — instead of hosting all my music in Apple Music I Syncthing across all my computers, but it means that even my phone is a fine custodian of large collections of data for any new computer I get. I just wanted to retain this feeling that if I lost my laptop, if it snapped in two, I wouldn't care. Nothing is specific to it.

Books are the other big thing I've kept, but I've leaned on having a kindle collection a lot more since I got it. Apparently the libraries where I live have a setup that lets you borrow ebooks temporarily, and I might lean into that too -- but ebooks are so small, and the impact of the physical space means I don't notice them as much.

I've never really figured out syncing software despite using Dropbox for a bit -- I either do very manual saves of folders, or Microsfts builtin backup one. I introduced one of my friends to Chromebooks and he's been using it for his writing project, and he is very happy that Chromebook + Drive means he can kinda view the laptop as almost disposable -- I definitely would lose at least a few things if I snapped my laptop in two.

For my next computer purchase, I've been contemplating getting a decent home tower or home tower + small home server setup, and getting a Chromebook or cheap laptop that I can remote into my server for more serious compute.

• I've always been averse to owning property for similar reasons. It's trite to say, but I don't feel ready to tie myself down to anything. I want to explore and keep moving.

Yeah, something about making Serious Commitments to owning things you can't carry around in a bookbag feels like you're making a vote for who you want to be not just now, but in the future.

[Pogckets]

Ooh, is the portable furniture so that it's easy to move around/moves are as a big deal? or is more for the multi-utility of them?

Easier to move, rearrange rooms. Make space. Minimalism can = space to roll around. And to set a scene at will. Like a theater.

[Pogckets]

How many pairs of socks does everyone own?

Im counting now, paring down a wardrobe

[JennyDog]

Oh I'll need to count but easily 15-20, I'm actully pretty bad about wearing them down and need to learn how to darn them.