Jezebel 
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New York, 9:21 PM
Thu Nov 26
3 posts in the last 24 hours
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12/15/08
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The cell phone I have now is that same cell phone I bought in 2004. And I'm about to get a new one, because this cell phone is doing that "Button? You pushed a button?" thing and causing me to dial things like "41" instead of "411" or "nghwjk" instead of whatever word it was I was trying to type in the first place.
And what will replace it? Whatever is most exactly like my beloved phone -- a phone with a decent display and texting capabilities, camera optional, NO EMAIL, NO INTERNET, NO NOTHING.
Look at me, bucking a trend!
12/16/08
12/15/08
I also need to live in an aesthetically pleasing place, which is where a lot of my cheap but cute things are for. My apartment in Dominica is better decorated after 3 months than friend's places back in the states.
So ultimately I have decided I *am* materialistic, but in a way that I am okay with.
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I have lots of nice big area rugs, but my bed is just a mattress on the floor. My "dining room" is a folding table and folding chairs. My "sofa" is a futon mattress thing on the floor, piled high with soft fluffy pillows and comforters. I don't own a car or a TV.
A lot of this was out of necessity--I'm living in a bachelorette pad after being in a cohabitative situation for several years, and all the furniture is still with the ex-cohabitant to whom it belongs.
But even though I don't have a lot of swanky new heavy hardwood furniture (that I would have had to buy on credit, most likely) everything is clean and soft and good-smelling, there's always a comfortable place to sit, I have just enough cookware/tableware/cutlery to make some kickass feasts. And yet, when I have friends over, they gape at the austerity of it. They can't imagine how I could possibly live like this. But IT WORKS. I have enough for me and that's all I need. Why in the world should I feel like I have to spend a few thousand for a matching hardwood dining room set? Why in the world should I get an enormous HD TV and matching entertainment center?
12/15/08
I will never forget moving to my first solo place after a horrible breakup after college. I moved to a tiny one bedroom with my childhood dresser, a futon, a $10 set of dishes from Target, one pot, some books, and a tiny tv. Eventually, I acquired a chair.
The first morning I woke up there, it was snowing outside, and I felt so safe and free and like I needed absolutely nothing more in the world.
(Well, okay, a job. That took another couple scary months.)
12/15/08
If you're happy with it, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. It strikes me as pretty rude for people to come into your house and remark on your austerity.
12/15/08
It's especially weird here in the NYC area. When they got their first apartments on their own (some of which were glamorous studio apartments in Manhattan, bankrolled by their parents) some of my peers went into insane amounts of debt to finance the sleekest sofas and chic chairs and biggest TVs and moodiest lighting. I'm the weirdo for being pretty happy with my flatpack stuff.
I didn't mean to come off as a minimalistic snob or pretending than I'm "better than" anyone.
12/15/08
12/15/08
It felt even weirder when I went to my new job, as everyone made significantly more than me and drove the cars to "prove" it. Fortunately, I scored some awesome guilt-ridden wedding gifts from them when I was laid off three weeks prior to the big day, so, bonus.
12/15/08
The bulk of my current stuff is books. I will never part with my books. Also, its been really hard for me to part with stuffed animals from childhood. I think its because my mom gave me most of them and she passed away 8 years ago.
Otherwise its an awesome feeling to get rid of things.
12/15/08
12/15/08
But I won't get rid of books, either. I consider books to be intellectual wealth. They don't take up space, they "inform" my apartment. And I have a bin of stuffed animals in my closet, but it's only one bin, so I think it's under control. Part of the lesson of that show is knowing when something isn't a problem and doesn't need to be ripped from your life.
12/15/08
I have always had a huge problem getting rid of silly little things. I used to have boxes and boxes of things that dated back to elementary school. One time my mom found a box of notes from junior high in my apartment and couldn't believe I still had it. Finally, the last time I moved, I sat down and went through everything and confined everything down to one or two boxes.
I've gotten much better about sorting through what to keep and what to throw out since then. I also refuse little knick knacks as gifts because that type of thing is where my problem started.
12/15/08
@gra: My father's hoarding makes my mother crazy. He routinely goes through the trash on the pretext of looking for things that could be recycled, but really he's making sure she's not throwing away his stuff. It was much worse when he was going to auctions on a regular basis. They recently remodeled their house and I was hoping that would be an excuse to get rid of stuff, but so far, no luck.
12/15/08
This being said, my rule is that I can never get a bigger place just because I need the room (with the possible exception of having kids), nor can I rent a storage locker. There is no way I need more stuff than can fit in a 2 bedroom apartment.
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And, is the upshot just that some women have a lot of clothes and handbags, no extra coin, and will therefore look dated in a few short months?
12/15/08
As someone who lives in a teeny tiny apartment, I am forced to live simply. And I like it! I don't have tons of stuff because I just don't have the space and it is very refreshing.
Okay, honestly, I'm broke, so this is what I tell myself to feel better.
12/15/08