Monday, June 4, 2007

Stumbling Blocks...

Sheryl and I have been going through some things and seeing what we could discard or give away to clutter our house less (amazing how cluttery a house can look with kids' toys) and to pursue aspects of simplicity. And in doing that, I've realized how attached to certain things I am.

  • Books - I love my books. Before a couple of weeks ago, I had a ton of books that I had in high school, college, and from when I was teaching that I just didn't want to get rid of. Books I hadn't cracked in years or even books that I had multiple copies of for various reasons. Even on my theological shelf, I had to pull some things to make room. It was a hard, hard decision to get rid of some of those.
  • Gadgets/Electronics - Had we the money and the space, it would be very hard for me to not run out and get a big huge Hi - Def TV with all the bells and whistles and to have the latest PDA phone and a new computer every year. I love tech toys and I love playing with them and having them. And that's not to say that we don't have some nice tech toys, but I can look at a catalog or a website and almost start drooling over the stuff I don't have, but really, really want. This area in particular, I need accountability for, and thankfully, Sheryl gives me a lot of it (plus trying to stick relatively closely to a budget).
I'm curious about what some of the other stumbling blocks to simplicity others have. Is there something in particular that tempts you to ignore a call for living in a simpler way?

Phil

5 comments:

lance said...

tools!! i love tools for any job. i have some tools that i have never used but might one day. i think i can never have enough tools so i hoard them.

i also love electronics but they are easier to resist.

david wilson said...

We get lazy on the weekends and go out to eat more than we probably should (e.g., baja burrito, calypso cafe).
On the other hand, Sarah has helped me to not buy an excess of clothes. In my former days, I would go to the mall and buy new clothes about every month. Ridiculous.

Christy said...

My girls' clothing. It's like I've regressed to childhood and am getting to play dress up with live dolls now.

Carrie, The Modern Housewife said...

I've been thinking of this one as we're moving and unpacking tons of boxes. My biggest problem begins with this....Wedding Gifts. I have things like ice cream makers & pizza stones that have never been opened. And I think...What's worse? To get rid of something that I might use & that someone payed 'good money' for? Or to get rid of it, for the sake of simplifying my life? And then maybe one day I'd like to use it, but can't. SO, for right now, I have tons of stuff I STILL have never used from a special day 5 years ago. Anyone have thoughts on all the stuff that we really don't ever use?

Philip said...

As a bachelor, this may sound strange, but I have a lot of home decor-type things that serve absolutely no purpose, like wall art! Why do we feel the need to redecorate our homes and keep up with man-made standards of how nice our dwellings should be decorated?

Also: coffee. A note to Starbucks drinkers: Cafe Estima is the only fair-trade coffee we offer. Insist on buying Estima, and spread the word!