You owning stuff Vs Stuff Owning You.

[TeeDee]

Bit of a introspective reflective type question for those that wish to contemplate and comment -( apologies to those that find this kinda thing a nuisance - I'll try to come up with a " Why 'X' knife steel is best " type thread )


Is there a philosophical/life sweet spot of stuff that we own and possess even in day to day life? There is a a feeling of 'lightness' and freedom to not owning much and keeping your world ( and its possessions ) small - travelling the world from a backpack or bergen can be a unique and carthartic experience away from the grudge and grind of everyday life.

But equally if you go to far down this road of minimalism ,for too long for me I suspect it could lead to some type of , pseudo-anxiety issues? Living in a Van ( never done that long term ) will give a unique freedom and liquidity to the structure of life but I wonder if people need or miss the tethering of a sole place and things that adorn it?

It seems that 'Decluttering' is a term of life practice but we never intentionally set out on a mission to ' clutter ' - as in " My house is looking bare I must go and find items to clutter it "


I guess this thread is a bit more of an open question about consumerism , nesting , living & moving light and general open question to those of us that have found various experiences of owning many , many things and certain personal epiphanies about that.


I went to my shed the other day - to tidy it - I realise after many hours of trawling through its contents and items I was feeling somewhat apprehensive about tackling the shed in the first place - it had become a dumping ground ( out of sight , out of mind ) of all those things that were part of my past but not necessarily part of my present - and unless tackled would still be there mentally attached to me in my future...






Anyone else have similar opinions ,views , experiences , revelations etc .

( At least its a unique question for a Monday Morning )

 

[mikehill]

I moved house in April and took the opportunity to donate/dump virtually everything I’d acquired over decades.
It was a great experience and now I love having just the essentials to live with and a few luxury items, guitar and a few knives.
I love having space around me now and it’s so much easier to keep the house clean. Best thing I ever did.

 

[Wander]

A reasonable question.
I'm not a minimalist (though compared to some I certainly am), nor a magpie either.
All through my life I've never formed an attachment to objects. Sometimes to my detriment, to be honest.
Back in the late 80s, when BB guns appeared over here, with a group of friends we often went 'BB gunning' (as we called it - it's called 'airsoft' now) in the local woods. Once we stopped doing it got rid of the guns. Same with paintballing - had all the bits but once we stopped, off they went. My friend still has his, because he says so many memories are tied up with them. My reply is to say that I still have the memories as well but I don't need the objects for that. Of course, we're both right.
Once something becomes surplus I have no difficulty in getting rid of it.
Don't get me wrong, if I have a use for something I am happy to purchase it and I am happy to purchase the right object at whatever price.
But I don't crave objects. I don't intrinsically covet things and I don't get 'ooo...shiny!' about anything.

In fact, I've reached kit nirvana. I have all the right things for what I like to do at the level I like to do it.

As for clutter.
I don't mind meaningful clutter. A couple of examples. My mother - if there's a spare inch on a shelf then she has to fill it. But she fills it with those ornaments you find in supermarkets - resin things of animals dressed in old fashioned clothes. Meaningless tat, all over the place.
Now, my grandad (long since dead, alas) had a shelf in his house that he called his 'curio shelf'. It was just odd things he'd found or resonated with him. There was no rhyme or reason to it. The shelf was absolutely cluttered (I'm sure it would have expanded if my nan had let him). I found it compulsive looking through the items.
I don't mind that kind of 'meaningful' clutter in the slightest.

I've always had a state of mind where I feel uncomfortable feeling attached to more objects than I can carry. I've no idea where that frame of mind comes from - nothing traumatic or triggering has ever happened in my life. Of course, I own more than I can carry (not least a car!) but I'm not attached to more than I can carry. If there was a fire in the house I'd have no problems turning my back on just about everything, with no hard feelings.
Again, no idea where that attitude came from, nothing's ever happened in my life that could have precipitated that feeling. Go figure.

It's a liberating attitude, but sometimes I feel I am missing out.

 

[Erbswurst]

Do the things serve you or do you serve the things? Apart from a few sensible spare parts that's exactly the limit.

 

[Broch]

I confess, I am a bit of a hoarder. I've had too many times when I've got rid of something only to need it two weeks or two months later.

My grandson was helping me look for a bit of kit last week. We were out in my studio (think stone gabled, wood clad, small barn) going through some boxes that are stacked on shelves - full of the wife's sewing and knitting resources, my art and leather resources, camping gear, electronics project gear, radios .... you get the idea. Suddenly, he stopped and said, 'no wonder your house is so tidy Taid, everything is out here!'. Maybe that's the secret, have the bulk stuff away but ordered, and you can keep your immediate environment clutter free (ours isn't, just relatively so). OK, not everyone has a barn, but maybe a small room, a shed, or the loft. I'm sure the secret is to make that storage 'tidy'.

Anyway, I must clear the garage and my workbench, I can hardly get in

 

[slowworm]

I don't have much that I'm overly attached to but have collected quite a bit of useful stuff over the years (and quite often use it).

My biggest problem is getting everything accessible so when I need something I don't need to search through several (well dozens) of boxes.

Ive recently been thinking of exactly what I need and current plans are to design and make a large bank of draws to try and organise many of the tools and bits and bobs I have. Then I can move on anything that I don't need.

The current climate doesn't help, when I find I do need to buy something often the items are out of stock in shops for months on end.

 

[plastic-ninja]

Very good question.
I’m a hoarder of Smaug proportions. I don’t actually buy that much but I find a “good reason” to keep it when I do. I have inherited lots of intriguing objects from various sources too which adds to the volume. I have more kit than I need; like most on here I suspect.
Every now & then I do attempt a clearing of my cave but I think I value things over money, so proceeds usually produce more things!
In my defence I rarely buy anything brand new, so at least I’m not powering the multinational consumer culture. I also avoid plastics as much as I can & try to minimise air travel & long road trips.
However I do still berate myself on a regular basis for having way too much stuff.

 

[Toddy]

We do so many things, practice so many different crafts, and yes we could do it minimal kit, but why ? I love books, I love good tools, I love excellent materials, I have a lot of memories in the stuff I have. Pieces made for me from friends, my G.G. Granny's china, Himself's Mum's silver, that kind of thing. Keep them tidy, packed away safely if necessary, and pull them out and use them in season, and I do.

I don't want to live in a Bento box. I think the Kondo lady is genuinely mentally ill even if she has transitioned that illness/compulsion into a (first) world wide clear out that has swamped charity shops and left so many wishing that, like Broch said, they'd hung onto useful stuff.
I think only the wealthy can, especially with what we're facing, afford to throw away in the sure and certain knowledge that they can just buy whatever they need new when they need it.

Going out and about minimal kit is fine and a great exercise, and a lot easier to carry, but I don't want to live that way at home.

Mrs Four Sheds (and a greenhouse) Toddy

 

[Scottieoutdoors]

Minimalism is what I want.

Bulks of sentimentality is what I have.

When it boils down to it, I'd be happy to live in my fjallraven trousers from now on, but duty calls for various things and it becomes a case of "I need my suit for xyz" I need casual smart, I need smart but not a suit" etc...

I also have a myriad of sentimental items that I am not yet prepared to part with, partially due to their sentimentality, but also due to their inability to actually be replaced again.

What I really need is a small small cottage in the countryside, a larger garage for camping stuff, kayaks, surfboards etc and then somewhere else a climate controlled storage unit where I can put everything I don't use day to day..

That and a van life camper and I'd be sorted...

Meanwhile keep your eyes peeled for flying pigs

 

[British Red]

We have a lot of stuff. I have no desire to part with any of it. We have;

Stuff to feed and process chickens,
Beer and wine making stuff,
Stuff to cure and smoke bacon,
Stuff to grow things,
Stuff to can, freeze and dry the things that we grow
Stuff to harvest and process our fuel

I could go on

For me "minimalism" equates to outsourcing the production of our life's necessities. That's something that is the very opposite of how we choose to live.

I'm quite sure that a carpenter would not wish to "declutter" the tools of their trade. We don't wish to reduce our capabilities for self reliance.

 

[punkrockcaveman]

I would put myself on the more minimalist end of the scale. I think having lived in a house where my mum would save everything (Inc. The cardboard tubes from bog rolls for making blue Peter style stuff in the school holidays- I thought it was embarrassing but all my mates on the street loved it), has made me want the opposite, knowing where things are, and that they are all useful.

It grinds me up if I have put money into something that I haven't used. Sometimes it's a little over the top, where I will force myself to use said item enough times that it makes economical sense to own it, I.e. my kayak, I have made sure that I have used it over 20 plus occasions @£600 it means it was under £30 a use- much cheaper than any rental option. A bit anal I know! I even budget for things I 'need' based upon how much use it is likely to get- the more use, the more I can spend on it, the same if said item is likely to be lost or broken.

In the same breath, I hate going into a situation not being able to make the best out of it because I don't have a piece of kit ready for it. For example this year I had a berry picker ready for the season, and consequently have harvested around 6lbs or so which would have been a real pain by hand.

I used to covet expensive fishing gear, until you realise how good cheap rods and reels are these days (don't get me wrong there are plenty of red herrings that don't fit that statement) and I have lost and broken expensive gear previously. Again a fragile and expensive piece of equipment will generally have a short lifespan.

 

[3 Feet High and Rising]

I moved house in April and took the opportunity to donate/dump virtually everything I’d acquired over decades.
It was a great experience and now I love having just the essentials to live with and a few luxury items, guitar and a few knives.
I love having space around me now and it’s so much easier to keep the house clean. Best thing I ever did.

Mike how do you know or would know you not going to need said item your donate or dump!

TeeDee you need a bigger shed

 

[mikehill]

I hadn’t used the stuff for so long I was happy to give it to others. I’m not saying I’ll never replace any of it but I don’t feel the need now. The good feeling I have from having less clutter outweighs it all.
Of course, we are all different and I’m certainly not saying everyone would be better if they followed my lead.

 

[Scottieoutdoors]

We have a lot of stuff. I have no desire to part with any of it. We have;

Stuff to feed and process chickens,
Beer and wine making stuff,
Stuff to cure and smoke bacon,
Stuff to grow things,
Stuff to can, freeze and dry the things that we grow
Stuff to harvest and process our fuel

I could go on

For me "minimalism" equates to outsourcing the production of our life's necessities. That's something that is the very opposite of how we choose to live.

I'm quite sure that a carpenter would not wish to "declutter" the tools of their trade. We don't wish to reduce our capabilities for self reliance.

I guess it's not really clutter or "stuff owning you" if it's used.

Looking in my tool cupboard, I have stuff I own, but also stuff that owns me... I wade through boxes of screws, nails and all sorts trying to find 25's, 30's, 40's and 50's which are the most commonly used ones for my requirements, but I keep the 150's+ because "you never know". Wood, offcuts, spare bits...
I ended up clogging up a garage with a spare bath because "if I wanted to buy it, it'd cost me xyz" I realised I don't even have the space anymore due to reshaping, so what the heck is the point? Eventually had a purge of a whole load of stuff and it felt great.

 

[billycoen]

I have too much "stuff".I'm slowly but surely getting rid of things i had forgotten i had.My mate's daughter is getting into hiking and camping,so i've offered some bits and bobs to help her along,at least it is going to get used.

 

[Broch]

Having, not so long ago, emptied both my parents' and my wife's parents' houses I feel a real pressure to reduce the amount of 'stuff' we have; it would take our kids months to go through and sort all our stuff even if most of it went in a skip (actually, 10 skips)!

But, where to start? and what if I still 'need' it?

 

[Scottieoutdoors]

Having, not so long ago, emptied both my parents' and my wife's parents' houses I feel a real pressure to reduce the amount of 'stuff' we have; it would take our kids months to go through and sort all our stuff even if most of it went in a skip (actually, 10 skips)!

But, where to start? and what if I still 'need' it?

This is exactly what we faced as a family recently with my dad passing. Mum decided she was downsizing, before really reaching anything of Dad's good stuff she was going through skips of just junk that they'd both accumulated.

This is the hardest stuff to deal with... I'm now the owner of a whole horde of antique swords of various ages... enough to poke the eyes of half a dozen folks and no desire to get rid of them, but equally I need a castle with walls I can mount them on... or maybe this is where I can merge the "preparing for troubled times ahead" prepping... I'm arming myself

 

[Great egret]

I like to buy quality things that will last. My watch will outlast me, my car is from 1984 and i try to keep it running as long as i can. I built my own MTB, my other bike i inherited from my stepdad, it is from 1990. I need, an buy good quality tools. And, yes, i do not need more then 1 knife, but i do have more then 1 of them, (or 2 or 3 ....)
I have a very expensive stereo without surround (maybe a subject for another thread haha) But nowadays a lot is built as junk or to last a couple of years. plastic toys, bikes, televisions, kitchengear. And lets not forget IT gear, pc's, laptops, smart watches, phones, routers, etc
I'd like to stop working and live quiet in or near a forest in a small house with a large garage where i could repair and built things. It would be great if i could do that and make a living out of it. Unfortunately, mankind seems to be going completely the other way making it harder for people like me to live the life the way i would like to.

 

[SaraR]

It would help if it was easier to get rid of medium to large volumes of stuff in a responsible manner. E.g. I was so pleased when I found a place that accepted bin bags of clothes and textiles that were not fit for the second-hand market near Dad's.

I don't mind having to divide things up after material, but it's really annoying and off-putting to have to portion it up into tiny bags and then trying to find somewhere that isn't full already.

I hate throwing things out that could have a long life with some one else (just not me) and I'm not a car boots kind of person. (It's even worse when they weren't your things to start with!) So they sit around taking up space, until I have the time to hunt down a charity shop that wants boxes and boxes of ceramics and the like.

I think it would be great if more household waste and recycling sites had an area for stuff that could be (repaired and) reused. Plenty of things get thrown out that have plenty of life them yet.

 

[Scottieoutdoors]

@SaraR
I think the issue these days is that most things just aren't THAT expensive to most of the UK population. I find charity shops are rarely full of those that need to buy some clothes with their last few £'s but more full of people being thrifty or on a bargain hunt/or a party outfit hunt...

The aforementioned bath tub that I got rid of... I tried to sell it, I tried to give it away, but most people doing up a bathroom are spending quite a lot on the whole process, so to save £50-£100 on a 2nd hand tub is just pointless, especially as it had a couple small barely noticeable marks... but they were there nonetheless..

Think this is a lot like the "preparing for hard times" thread, very few people have experienced really hard times...