Buy well, buy once • Hacker News Board

Re: Buy well, buy once

#101

Post by metadat » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 4:51 AM UTC

throwaway74513 wrote: post #91

nicbou wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I used to be interested in minimalism, but I realised that they just obsess over objects in a different way. I wanted to save money, avoid maintenance and reduce my mental load. I found people who keep spreadsheets of their stuff and debate whether it's okay to own tools or multiple coffee cups.

> I used to be interested in minimalism, but I realised that they just obsess over objects in a different way. This is really interesting, particularly since you use the word “obsess”. I meet all of the criteria for OCPD (obsessive compulsive personality disorder — NOT the same thing as OCD), except for “unwilling to throw out broken or worthless objects, even if they have no sentimental value”. In fact, I’m quite th…

In case you haven't already, please consult a professional. Do yourself the favor, you're worth it.

Edit: @asddubs: thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts, though you never know what reality faces the person on the other end of a link, which is why I still try. Sometimes you might be surprised. And thank you for helping get my karma back to an even number, all is well again. Your friendly friend, MD.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#102

Post by hn_throwaway_99 » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 4:51 AM UTC

throwaway22032 wrote: post #10

This article, and people posting in this thread are saying that they own 100 or 200 things. I can't believe this at all. My utility room, which basically just has stuff like cleaning products and rags/cloths etc, has more than 200 items in it. It's all useful, we're talking things like bleach, deodorant, shampoo, handwash, etc. My house probably has 50 or more pieces of art on the walls and then another 50 pieces of…

To be fair, I don't think it really makes sense to count consumable items like the bleach, deodorant, shampoo, handwash, etc. examples you gave. I wouldn't expect him to count the milk in his fridge or the olive oil in his pantry, either. Point being that just the natural day-to-day use of that stuff uses it up.

But yeah, I agree with the general point.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#103

Post by hotpotamus » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 4:57 AM UTC

nicbou wrote: post #64

jrflowers wrote: post #35

I enjoyed this article about the minimalist man getting two minimally useful extra wallets.

I used to be interested in minimalism, but I realised that they just obsess over objects in a different way. I wanted to save money, avoid maintenance and reduce my mental load. I found people who keep spreadsheets of their stuff and debate whether it's okay to own tools or multiple coffee cups.

I think Dieter Rams captured it best with the phrase, "less but better". It's more or less the ethos I try to (and seldom do) achieve.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#104

Post by leipert » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 5:00 AM UTC

My grandma always says: “We are too poor to buy twice”.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#105

Post by pygar » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 5:00 AM UTC

personally I "buy mid-range, and replace when it breaks". Not obsessing over your possessions is freeing.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#106

Post by nbernard » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 5:01 AM UTC

aardvarkr wrote: post #98

emodendroket wrote: post #94

I vacillate on this a lot. On one hand, yes, it's nice to have well-designed items that last decades or a lifetime. And obviously we're awash in disposable goods at great environmental cost. On the other, who hasn't been burned by buying a garment "for life" that no longer fits, no longer appeals to us, or otherwise gets rendered unusable? Or buying a beautiful, premium tool that only sees one or two uses? Or having…

For the tool conundrum, I’ve found that the best course of action is to buy the cheapest option (within reason) to start with. If you don’t use it, no sweat, it was cheap. On the other hand, if you use it soo much that it breaks it you outgrow it then you get to buy the best version of that tool. At that point you know what you like and don’t like, as well as what’s worth paying extra for, so you end up with the perf…

On the other hand, you risk considering a whole tool class as not very useful, when actually it is just that the one you own is crap...

Re: Buy well, buy once

#107

Post by hotpotamus » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 5:01 AM UTC

mberning wrote: post #56

In a way I admire committed minimalists. But I often wonder what their long term lifestyle is like. Surely many of them are single (or they only count the items which are solely theirs). They surely rent at a higher rate than own property. They surely own vehicles at a lower rate. And so on. I just get this picture of a person in an urban area, living alone in a studio apartment, dependent upon everyone else for basi…

Steve Jobs was known for living in such a way that I don't think was entirely a put on. He did own vehicles but refused to put license plates on them apparently for aesthetic reasons. Ironically, it seems like having a lot of wealth helps with the minimalist thing.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#108

Post by asddubs » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 5:03 AM UTC

metadat wrote: post #101

throwaway74513 wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I used to be interested in minimalism, but I realised that they just obsess over objects in a different way. This is really interesting, particularly since you use the word “obsess”. I meet all of the criteria for OCPD (obsessive compulsive personality disorder — NOT the same thing as OCD), except for “unwilling to throw out broken or worthless objects, even if they have no sentimental value”. In fact, I’m quite th…

In case you haven't already, please consult a professional. Do yourself the favor, you're worth it. Edit: @asddubs: thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts, though you never know what reality faces the person on the other end of a link, which is why I still try. Sometimes you might be surprised. And thank you for helping get my karma back to an even number, all is well again. Your friendly friend, MD.

seems like a useless piece of advice to give to someone with that level of awareness about it.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#109

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 5:06 AM UTC

asddubs wrote: post #108

metadat wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In case you haven't already, please consult a professional. Do yourself the favor, you're worth it. Edit: @asddubs: thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts, though you never know what reality faces the person on the other end of a link, which is why I still try. Sometimes you might be surprised. And thank you for helping get my karma back to an even number, all is well again. Your friendly friend, MD.

seems like a useless piece of advice to give to someone with that level of awareness about it.

[deleted]

Re: Buy well, buy once

#110

Post by Fr0styMatt88 » Sat, Jun 10, 2023, 5:08 AM UTC

nebula8804 wrote: post #71

notatoad wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

or if throwing it away makes you feel bad, give it away. either it finds its way to somebody who will value it, or somebody will throw it out for you. either way is a win.

Giving it away has now haunted me. Father passed away two years ago and a bunch of computing equipment he bought for me had been donated years before he had passed when it was worth very little. Now in this post covid era all of those things are 'vintage' and super expensive. I have tracked down some of the original equipment through the people I originally gave it to but it has not really been possible to get those…

I'm going through my own journey with this at the moment, the thing I keep telling myself is that "this item will have a better life somewhere else" and "my house isn't a landfill". It's tough though.

Plus selling stuff is a full-time job really and it's annoying AF if it's not your day job. So I guess the question is - are you going to ever sell it? If not, then it doesn't really matter if it's expensive, it's just taking up space.