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Buy well, buy once

fellow.ventures

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Re: Buy well, buy once

#81

Post by mantas »

nebula8804 wrote: post #73
dublinben wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m fond of the conspiracy theory that the rise of minimalism is actually propaganda to placate Millennials who can’t afford the same level of material comfort as their parents and other earlier generations enjoyed.

What if its just Millennials discovering it own their own as a result of their reduced standard of living? The powers that be would want maximum consumption and minimalism goes against that no? Same probably goes for "vanlife". It is millennials just realizing they cant afford a home ever and so they improvise with what they can resource.

Consumption is not just buying things. And even in buying things, many so-called minimalists still buy a lot, maybe less in tonnage, but GDP-wise they still spend a lot of money.

Of course, there are zen style minimalists. But many seem to be in it for aesthetic.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#82

Post by 2muchcoffeeman »

0x53 wrote: post #41

I would love to be a minimalist. Unfortunately I have a wife who is the opposite of that and a woodworking hobby.

Hobbies are a great reason to accumulate stuff though. You can’t get good at stuff if you have nothing or need to hire gear all the time.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#83

Post by Gigachad »

tnel77 wrote: post #69
dublinben wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m fond of the conspiracy theory that the rise of minimalism is actually propaganda to placate Millennials who can’t afford the same level of material comfort as their parents and other earlier generations enjoyed.

Same with having children. “I don’t even want kids. They are needy, expensive, and tie you down.” All true, but having kids was never a choice for you given your financial situation so let’s not pretend you had a say in the matter.

It’s always a choice. People in 3rd world countries are having 5 kids in a mud hut without doctors.

It might not be a choice to have kids, and a new car while also going to the cafe every day. But having kids is always an option.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#84

Post by safety1st »

joshcanhelp wrote: post #75
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.

Thank you for this, it put into words my uneasiness with this practice. Our household definitely has too much stuff and we always seem to be at battle with it but minimalism just feels like a mirror image problem.

> Replacing broken or worn items often feels like a nightmare of upheaval and system change

It seems like if this is where someone's application of minimalism lands them, they have missed the point.

On that note I went from owning one pair of shoes last year to three. It was a great non-minimalist decision. My shoes now take three times longer to wear out, and now I'm always wearing shoes that are more useful or more fashionable for the situation (or both) than what I used to wear.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#85

Post by mildchalupa »

throwaway22032 wrote: post #34
rootsudo wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>192 makes no sense to me. I've probably got 192 items in my kitchen alone, just from wanting to be able to cook and serve a meal for 4 people because it's nice to eat with friends. A fork is a worldly possession, after all. You're assuming people are the same as you - I follow the same but I live out of suitcases and can travel at a moments notice for the best flights and pick up an airbnb somewhere. But this is the…

Is the idea that you're renting apartments and counting the pots and pans, toilet brush etc as not being yours because you leave them with the house? So my bath mat is "mine" because I own the house and had to buy it myself, but yours isn't because it's rented? Because if we can cut that out then yeah, now I own far fewer things. It seems like a weird distinction to make.

Well you see I have a mortgage and if I walked away they would take everything within the house thus I don't own anything other than the clothing on my back.

Same with the cars.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#86

Post by Gigachad »

nicbou wrote: post #68
sagarkamat wrote: post #63

My relationship to stuff is at a weird point. I've watched a bit too many documentaries about impact of overproduction on our world to a level where I tend to over analyze and over scrutinize every purchase, probably to unhealthy levels. I tend to use objects i have to the point they become unusable, trying to get their full worth. But at the same time, I've realized that buying the best of everything every time is n…

Buy used. You pay less and nothing gets produced. I have the same obsession as you and this is how I reconcile with it. If I'm not ready to meet someone across town I probably don't need it.

Buying used has become a huge pain. The platforms are absolutely full of scammers and time wasters, the items are either overpriced or immediately purchased by flippers, and they often aren’t very accessible without owning a car.

I prefer to just buy new, where I can have stuff delivered, and then use it until it’s completely worn out or obsolete.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#87

Post by mildchalupa »

ip26 wrote: post #36
nonethewiser wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think its a bit different. When you can buy whatever you want, you realize stuff doesn’t really improve your life.

However, not having to drive to Home Depot every single time you need a screwdriver does. As does having more than one bowl.

That's the spirit. Everything is a single use item if you are rich enough.

Re: Buy well, buy once

#88

Post by ta988 »

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.

That sound pathological, why would you do that to yourself

Re: Buy well, buy once

#89

Post by nvy »

nextos wrote: post #21
nvy wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>There is nothing special about having just 100 items. Depending on where you are located geographically there may very well be something special. I live in the PNW and I bet if I counted all my forks, spoons, coffee cups, pots and pans, etc., I'd have more than 100 items right there, to say nothing about my tool chest. Between my home office and my wife's purse I probably have 100 pens and pencils around the house.…

I meant it's nothing to brag about. I agree that in many situations, it'd be inconvenient to own so few items as it'd leave you unprepared for e.g. emergencies. But if you are renting a condo downtown, as it was my case, you may want to trim down your possessions as much as possible. Nonetheless, I think people tend to own too much stuff and this prevents focusing on what actually matters, it's a bit like with bloate…

>Nonetheless, I think people tend to own too much stuff and this prevents focusing on what actually matters

On this I agree with you wholeheartedly. It's very easy to accumulate cruft that one "might need later". I have a whole toolbox full of that shit. I might actually need a bunch of random capacitors, who knows?

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