Category Archives: Simpler Living

Digital Fasting Update

By Claire Posted in Personal, Simpler Living Tagged , , ,

So it’s been just over a week, and I’ve stuck to my promise to stay off the Internet except for work and email, and I haven’t even gone near Candy Crush.  I did this in hopes that my stress level would go down.

Unfortunately, that hasn’t happened, but only because two family members ended up in the emergency room last week: one was in an accident, and the other had a stroke. They’re both doing better now, but having those things happen two days in a row definitely elevated my stress level.

But that’s an unavoidable kind of stress. I do believe that I am slowly de-stressing now that I have no idea what’s going on in the world, who’s mad at whom politically, or who is behaving badly. Oddly enough, I don’t care. I’ve been chipping away at my to-do list, and working in the yard, something I do every year at this time. But this year I’m doing it without the time pressure that usually comes with it because I wasted part of the day surfing the Web and, as a result, am short on time. So I’m enjoying spring planting even more than usual.

I’ve crocheted quite a few dishcloths at night, when I would usually be playing Candy Crush, but I do miss it. More accurately, I miss winning; many times, Candy Crush means losing the same level for days on end, which got very frustrating, and I certainly don’t miss that!

In six days, I can go back online. To be honest, I’m not sure I want to. There’s a slower pace to my life right now, and I think it’s because time isn’t flying while I surf online. I like it; in fact, I may extend the ban. We’ll see……

Digital Decluttering

By Claire Posted in Personal, Simpler Living Tagged , , ,

Most writers are voracious readers, and I am no exception. I will read anything and everything. That’s why the Internet is so tempting to me. It’s like having my beloved Sunday Chicago Tribune (the overstuffed old version, not the pathetic scrawny thing they publish now) available new every day. As a result, I spend way too much time reading articles from all over the world online.

This habit is getting in my way, making me less productive. My to-do list is piling up.

To make matters worse, when I’m not reading or writing, I often fall into the trap laid by the world’s biggest time suck: Candy Crush. I’ve wasted a lot of time on that darn game….too much time.

So I’ve decided to take a break from these digital time-takers (time-waster in the case of Candy Crush!) and I am publicly vowing to only use the Internet for work and email, and to stop playing Candy Crush completely, for the next two weeks.

I started this regime yesterday, and so far, I’m doing alright. Last night, instead of playing Candy Crush while we watched a DVD, I crocheted a dish cloth. This morning, instead of checking the national and international headlines while eating breakfast, I’m writing this post.

I arrived at this decision partly because I read an article that suggested that we’re not meant to know everything that goes on around the world every day, that it’s too much stress for us. That makes sense to me. We’ll see if my stress level goes down over the next two weeks, or if instead, my husband finds me in a corner in the fetal position, arms tight around my laptop. I’ll keep you posted!

Decluttering Mom for Mother’s Day

By Claire Posted in Clutter, Personal, Simpler Living Tagged , , ,

Mother’s Day is this Sunday in the U.S., and though it’s been a tradition for years to inundate Mom with all sorts of gifts, from perfume to clothes to housewares to stationery……don’t do it!

If your mom lives with lots of clutter, the last thing she needs is more of it. And if she doesn’t live with clutter, it’s logical that she probably doesn’t want to clutter up her place with things she doesn’t need but feels she should keep because they’re from her kids.

So what should you give your mom for Mother’s Day?

Speaking as the mom of several adults, I think I vouch for most moms when I say we’d just like to hear from you. Seeing you would be even better! You don’t have to give us lace hankies, or cutesy dishtowels with clever sayings on them. We prefer your presence over your presents.

But if you can’t be with us on Mother’s Day, and you feel you must give us a gift, consider the options that are either temporary or experiences:

  • Cut flowers are beautiful. We can enjoy them for a few weeks until they wilt. We’ll always remember that they came from you.
  • Flowering annual plants are wonderful; they are so pretty and last all summer, making our porches and balconies look lovely.
  • A sweet treat is always appreciated; there are many sugar-free and gluten-free goodies available if your mom is diabetic or has specific dietary requirements.
  • Gift cards are always nice, and the gift of an experience is even better, like tickets to a concert, or a few hours at a spa.

The very best gift, of course, would be an experience with you. No clutter, just joy!

Clutter and Different Generations: Today’s Young Adults

By Claire Posted in Clutter, downsizing, Simpler Living Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Today’s young adult generation seems to have far less clutter than their parents or grandparents have (or had). I think there are a couple of reasons for this.

First off, they’re not faced with the level of temptation that my generation was when it comes to buying things. Many of today’s young people have no experience of wearing well-made clothes. They’ve grown up with poorly made clothes, cut from skimpy cloth. They see clothing as almost disposable. My children buy cheap clothes for their children because they’re readily available, and cheap in price as well as in quality. They’re too busy to search for high-quality clothes for their kids, and they can’t really afford designer kiddie clothes.

As for furniture, they’d just as soon buy a few cheap pieces from Target or IKEA and be done with it until it breaks. They have no interest in the solid oak furniture we have. Just the other day, I saw a 1980s entertainment center on the front lawn of an apartment building with a “Free” sign on it. It had stained glass windows and was made of oak; I remember when those were popular, and I’d guess the original owner paid several hundred dollars, maybe even a thousand, for it. But today, no one wants it.

Second, malls are dying, and even free-standing stores are disappearing. Everyone blames online shopping, and there’s no doubt that it has made a big dent. But I think the loss of the enjoyable shopping experience also bears some blame, and then there’s a third factor: these days, many adults are literally addicted to their smartphones. They don’t have time to go shopping, and they don’t see the need to spend money on lots of store purchases besides food and personal items.

If they need anything, they can buy it online, but they prefer to spend their money on experiences that they can document on social media. They’re too busy taking photos of their latest restaurant meal or vacation experience to go shopping. As a result, they don’t collect anywhere near as much “stuff” as their parents or grandparents did.

In addition, many of them can’t afford a house because of the huge disparity between housing costs and income in many places. Previous generations were able to afford a house when they were fairly young, giving them that much more time to fill up every nook and cranny. But many of today’s young adults live in condos or apartments; some still live with their parents. Also, quite a few of them have to move frequently for their careers, so they don’t want a lot of stuff weighing them down.

For those reasons, most of them probably won’t have the problems with clutter than many of their elders have. That’s wonderful, but that also makes it more likely that they will be completely mystified by our huge collections of stuff. And if we don’t go through it all and get rid of what we no longer need before we die, they’re not going to be very happy to do it for us after we’re gone.