Author Topic: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less  (Read 7686 times)

elysianfields

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NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« on: March 10, 2013, 08:48:33 PM »
This guy's a bit annoying with his serial entrepreneurship, but he's quite Mustachian:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/10/opinion/sunday/living-with-less-a-lot-less.html?pagewanted=all

arebelspy

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #1 on: March 10, 2013, 09:36:44 PM »
I enjoyed that quite a bit.

Love that more and more of these examples are going mainstream.

Mustachianism around the web should be seen much more than Antimustachian wall of shame and comedy.  I feel like the last decade has been so much more of the latter, and we're starting to see more and more of the former.

Thanks for sharing.
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
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unplugged

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #2 on: March 11, 2013, 09:17:32 AM »
OP, I think you would enjoy Colin Wright. His videos and website are awesome and similar to the guy in this article.

mpbaker22

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #3 on: March 11, 2013, 09:19:56 AM »
From 2006, but I read it over the weekend.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5525283

Gerard

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #4 on: March 18, 2013, 12:57:48 PM »
Mustachianism around the web should be seen much more than Antimustachian wall of shame and comedy.  I feel like the last decade has been so much more of the latter, and we're starting to see more and more of the former.

I was thinking about this the other day. I'm happy to see the shift, if it's real (especially if it leads to non-crap small homes). But I wonder if the mainstream now celebrates educated, shit-together people living happily with less because for the next generation or two "less" is all that many educated, shit-together people will be able to aspire to.

ruthiegirl

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #5 on: March 18, 2013, 01:55:14 PM »
I have read this article 3 times and it just rubs me the wrong way. 

I get it, you had a gazillion dollars, spent money like a oil-sheik in Vegas, but oh, all of that money and stuff is sooooo complicated and the gorgeous house wasn't really what you wanted, so you buy a trendy apartment and land an international beauty, Olga, so you can wander the streets of Bangkok with a smile, but the relationship isn't quite right, and now you design small-scale housing, because you really think people ought to live within their means and consume less. 

I am cringing and slightly sick to my stomach.

arebelspy

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #6 on: March 18, 2013, 02:06:16 PM »
Would you rather he not make the change in mindset/lifestyle that he did?
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

matchewed

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #7 on: March 18, 2013, 02:07:28 PM »
Quote
I have read this article 3 times and it just rubs me the wrong way.

I get it, you had a gazillion dollars, spent money like a oil-sheik in Vegas, but oh, all of that money and stuff is sooooo complicated and the gorgeous house wasn't really what you wanted, so you buy a trendy apartment and land an international beauty, Olga, so you can wander the streets of Bangkok with a smile, but the relationship isn't quite right, and now you design small-scale housing, because you really think people ought to live within their means and consume less.

I am cringing and slightly sick to my stomach.

So his message is wrong because of who he is and the experiences he has had? What if he had crawled through poverty to come to the same conclusion? Would that have made his point any more right?

I would encourage anyone's realization about material goods not being the core of life whether that realization was born of fame and riches or of grubbing in an alley. Does Buddhism make any less sense if you knew that the Buddha was a prince?

Forcus

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #8 on: March 18, 2013, 02:35:29 PM »
Article didn't bother me at all. I imagine he is was like most people here, lost then found. I don't get much enthusiasm from people who were born mustachian, have unending drive, or a never ending positive spirit. I can't relate to them. I find much more interest in someone who travelled far along the wrong road to discover the right one.

Kriegsspiel

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #9 on: March 18, 2013, 04:05:05 PM »
Article didn't bother me at all. I imagine he is was like most people here, lost then found. I don't get much enthusiasm from people who were born mustachian, have unending drive, or a never ending positive spirit. I can't relate to them. I find much more interest in someone who travelled far along the wrong road to discover the right one.

Yea, damn you MMM!

Forcus

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #10 on: March 19, 2013, 07:39:07 AM »
Article didn't bother me at all. I imagine he is was like most people here, lost then found. I don't get much enthusiasm from people who were born mustachian, have unending drive, or a never ending positive spirit. I can't relate to them. I find much more interest in someone who travelled far along the wrong road to discover the right one.

Yea, damn you MMM!

LOL, yes I am definitely envious. I guess I can't completely relate.

Worsted Skeins

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #11 on: March 19, 2013, 08:48:46 AM »
From the article:

Quote
I like material things as much as anyone. I studied product design in school. I’m into gadgets, clothing and all kinds of things. But my experiences show that after a certain point, material objects have a tendency to crowd out the emotional needs they are meant to support.

Ayup.

destron

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #12 on: March 19, 2013, 09:44:25 AM »
I really enjoyed that article. While the author's experiences do not match the majority of mustachians, he has achieved a good place spiritually. We should not spite him because of his success but strive to find as comfortable a place in our own lives.

chatsc

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #13 on: May 03, 2013, 10:24:25 AM »
I liked that article.  It was a bit preachy (yes, I get it, you live in 420 sq ft...) but kinda humble.  I think we can all relate to it, in some fashion.  I bought a lot of stuff when i was in my younger 20s. cds, dvds, books, cheap shoes that hurt my feet, etc.  It has taken me awhile to shed this junk, and I still find it in boxes in my basement from time to time.

It is freeing to live with less, and sometimes you need an article like this to remind you.


sheepstache

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #14 on: May 03, 2013, 01:48:42 PM »
I have read this article 3 times and it just rubs me the wrong way. 

I get it, you had a gazillion dollars, spent money like a oil-sheik in Vegas, but oh, all of that money and stuff is sooooo complicated and the gorgeous house wasn't really what you wanted, so you buy a trendy apartment and land an international beauty, Olga, so you can wander the streets of Bangkok with a smile, but the relationship isn't quite right, and now you design small-scale housing, because you really think people ought to live within their means and consume less. 

I am cringing and slightly sick to my stomach.

I sort of get a similar reaction.  This guy is a serial lifestyle hopper. I'm sure he could have spouted a coherent philosophy for any lifestyle he previously had while he was living it.  That's human psychology.

I'm not trying to get into "true-believer-ism" or criticize all these girls carrying cloth bags with "This is not a plastic bag" written on them.  But just because some lifestyle isn't the majority doesn't mean any individual espousing it has to be treated like the messiah.  Historical forces are really interesting to watch, but it takes understanding and insight (and I am not saying I have it but would like to aspire to it).  The likes of this guy or the 100-things guy or the trend of reusable drink holders are like trying to do day trade and get rich off of tiny price valuations rather than do value investing.  Are tiny movements the way you figure out which way the wind blows?  Are the tiny pinging of rocks the herald of an avalanche?  Are they signal or noise?  There are lots of trends, and it is  too easy for historians to look back and say, ah, yes, that was the winning moment... once they know which team won.

I guess another thing I am trying to say is that American culture is not as monolithic as Americans seem to like to make it out to be (said love of the black-and-white and non-nuanced sort of  being what holds us all together :D).  There are all sorts of subsets.  They break the surface for a moment and get recognized by the paper of record and then go back underwater.  I am trying to recognize that without denying that there are also huge sea changes in culture once in awhile.

sheepstache

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Re: NYT Article: Living with Less. A Lot Less
« Reply #15 on: May 03, 2013, 01:59:55 PM »
Quote
I have read this article 3 times and it just rubs me the wrong way.

I get it, you had a gazillion dollars, spent money like a oil-sheik in Vegas, but oh, all of that money and stuff is sooooo complicated and the gorgeous house wasn't really what you wanted, so you buy a trendy apartment and land an international beauty, Olga, so you can wander the streets of Bangkok with a smile, but the relationship isn't quite right, and now you design small-scale housing, because you really think people ought to live within their means and consume less.

I am cringing and slightly sick to my stomach.

So his message is wrong because of who he is and the experiences he has had? What if he had crawled through poverty to come to the same conclusion? Would that have made his point any more right?

I would encourage anyone's realization about material goods not being the core of life whether that realization was born of fame and riches or of grubbing in an alley. Does Buddhism make any less sense if you knew that the Buddha was a prince?

I think the reference to Buddha is a good one.  The same message has been delivered by different people and different religions for two thousand years yet every day people "get it" anew from a different source or a different speaker.  How you come to the message and how it is delivered absolutely matters and the path will be different for everyone.

If someone can get "turned on" to a message because of how it's presented then it follows that someone can get turned off  too. If the messenger didn't matter we could just post the ten commandments everywhere and all of mankind's problems would be solved.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!