Simplifying Life

ceridwen

Oh yes.. I remember about the yurt! Waiting news on that one from you!

ceridwen

Re earlier comment about "eating seasonally" - like most people I barely know what food is in season when.... on the "work in progress list" at present. Can certainly see that eating that way must be cheaper - cant say I fancy the thought of pumpkins and more pumpkins at present...but, like I said, this bit is work in progress status at present.

Always amused to read the regular blow-by-blow account of the weeks menus by the Dervaes family on the journal part of their website - as in eating seasonally from their (virtually self-sufficient in everything) plot (the 14 Dec post being a typical one):

http://pathtofreedom.com/journal/

malvena_2

I dumped a high pressure job in october for a new job i love:D (dumping £5000 in wages at the same time):eek: . Funnily enough the new happy me doesn't seem to spend any longer. Its also given me more time to declutter my house and sell whats good enough.

For the first time in years I look forward to every day.

:xmassign: :snow_grin :snow_laug :xmassign::xmastree:

pigpen

We don't have a tv licence.. I begrudge the price of it for the [EMAIL="!!!!"]!!!![/EMAIL] you get on it.. we have a tv for the PS2.. but no TV aerial.. and the TV licencing people haven't been to check in the last 10+ years. In fact in 14 years they have been twice within a few months.

We do get letters asking if we now have a tv and if so telling us to buy a licence.. I just ring and say no we still don't have one and they never bother.

Most meals are cooked from scratch now.. something I am very proud of.

I do packed lunches for the children.. HM bread bombs, buns and jellies often feature in them too!

I started having my nails done, wearing make-up and going to the pub! lol

Kaz2904

I have been baking bread in an effort to cut down and simplify. I have a long way to go before my life is as simple as I would like it to be. Maybe I should just try to tackle it one step at a time. I am working on decluttering my home and therefore my mind.
I have freecycled some things and made myself feel great by giving away things I don't love. I got my breadmaker from freecycle.
My frying pan handle broke off so I'm getting it fixed- don't need a new one do I?

rosieben

The minute I found the OS forum I began moving towards a more simple life without even realising it! From being a happy member of the must-have consumer culture earning very good money, I became a bankrupt with just an instant access savings account and a pre-pay maestro. I find it so easy to manage my money using cash. I’m not able to work, so purely by that fact my life is much simpler. I’m still decluttering but thats a work in progress.

I don’t buy magazines because fashon, make up and such are of no interest to me and having spent all my working life in the midst of gadgetry and IT innovations I’m bored with most technology; an ipod is so far down my wish list it isnt even on the list! (top of the list is a dehydrator incidentally – thanks D&DD! )

My clothes, shoes, bags come from ebay or charity shops, books from Amazon sellers, furniture from second hand or charity shops. I’ve been reviving my sewing, knitting and rugging skills and have so many ideas for projects I hardly know where to start. I grow vegetables and herbs in containers or buy local and whats in season.

Economics forced me to give up the car but that has taken away so much worry that its been a blessing in disguise. And because I cant just nip to the shop I’ve reduced my spending too.

I feel more in control that I have for many many years and always looking for more ideas to simplify. All of this has happened slowly and almost subconsciosly and largely as a result of my changed finances. If anyone had told me 5 years ago that I would be happy living like this I would have laughed them out the door but now I cant imagine living any other way!;)

dND

Hi Rosie,

As the saying goes, Every cloud has a silver lining.

My breakdown a few years back was actually a godsend. It made me rethink my life. I find it really difficult to keep at one thing for any length of time now so 'normal' work became impossible. I downshifted and moved to France and have never been happier.

rosieben

JenniO wrote: »

… I guess I realised we only have 1 life and so better try filling it with good memories or else what have you really done all these years? Been miserable but got the bills paid? There's more to life and thank god I'm finding it now. …

Truest thing I’ve read on these boards for a long while!! :T :T :T

JoJoB wrote: »

...
Will be moving into rented accomodation for a year then finally the really big move to a simplified life - living in a yurt.

I’d love to hear more about yurt-living too

dolly_day_dream

The simple life is easy once people can accept that you are not defined by money or possessions. Last Saturday I met some friends who were in the midst of Christmas shopping and they wanted to know why I wasn't similarly laden. "Easy - my presents are either home-made or have been accumulated over the year from Charity shops!" I know that my family will value the gifts because they have been thought about and each is unique. When I made whisky marmalade as presents for colleagues at school they were overwhelmed. The simple life is not about doing less as far as I can see it is about doing things that matter to you. I now listen to the radio far more but am sewing/knitting/crafting at the same time. I have never owned a car and use my bus journey to and from work for reading time. We cook from scratch and am atempting to grow our own food. Stay in tune with nature and the slower things in life and I can guarantee that you will feel better - I know that I have never been happier despite being at my lowest economic ebb for as long as I can remember.

rach

for me, giving up shopping for lent about 5 years ago was a real turning point (seriously!). before that i used to go shopping to amuse myself on my day off and spend money i didn't have on stuff i didn't really want or need. starting a budget and using cash helped a lot too.

i am currently getting ready to get married and move to London. we're planning to give up the car when we're there and just hire one for holidays, i have got rid of loads of clutter and excess possessions in preparation for the move, the stuff just feels like a weight around my neck! when i went in the loft the other day i found all my notes from my masters degree, boxes and boxes of them...but i am going to recycle them now as i know i will never use them.