We too have begun to radically reassess our needs in terms of living space, expenditures, "living on the treadmill" so to speak... Living well is not a matter of having stuff....
Materialism and money is like drugs ... Maybe because from the buddhist perspective materialism and spending are intoxicants that cloud the mind. There is no such thing as enough, you always want more, and the more you use the more paranoid you get...
I have made a commitment that from now until snowfall in autumn I will use my bike to commute and run errands (unless I'm hauling stuff then I will have to use my Subaru - in winter I can use my MTB) I will save money on gas, lower my carbon footprint, and do some good for my body. When I first started guiding years ago, I had a friend who didn't own a car and used his bike or kayak to commute. I was envious. I'm really going to try and build my life around not using a car.
We buy our food locally now (love shopping at Whole Paycheck but can't afford it with teenage appetites in the house) have joined a CSA and have shut off the luxury cell phone plans (four devices in the family) and gone to no-contract plans. It's really liberating.
Thanks for an awesome thread and all the courage you have shown Julia, Amelia, Karasu, et al.
Deep bows
Yugen
Materialism and money is like drugs ... Maybe because from the buddhist perspective materialism and spending are intoxicants that cloud the mind. There is no such thing as enough, you always want more, and the more you use the more paranoid you get...
I have made a commitment that from now until snowfall in autumn I will use my bike to commute and run errands (unless I'm hauling stuff then I will have to use my Subaru - in winter I can use my MTB) I will save money on gas, lower my carbon footprint, and do some good for my body. When I first started guiding years ago, I had a friend who didn't own a car and used his bike or kayak to commute. I was envious. I'm really going to try and build my life around not using a car.
We buy our food locally now (love shopping at Whole Paycheck but can't afford it with teenage appetites in the house) have joined a CSA and have shut off the luxury cell phone plans (four devices in the family) and gone to no-contract plans. It's really liberating.
Thanks for an awesome thread and all the courage you have shown Julia, Amelia, Karasu, et al.
Deep bows
Yugen
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