Author: Anthony

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Minimalist Upkeep Part 2: Merging

Look for opportunities to combine two or more types of possessions into one. This will save money, space, and enable us to get more value out of the things we own. Technology has been assisting in this process since the invention of the computer.

Examples:

  • Pot holder and oven mitt (same thing).
  • Game console and computer.
  • Photo album, music, movies, and computer.
  • Toothbrush and bathtub scrub brush ….. just kidding (yuck).
  • Game console and streaming online TV.
  • Shampoo and Conditioner.
  • Thanks to the invention of mobile APPS (applications), we are able to merge lots and lots of things to exist digitally on our mobile devices (or computers). Thanks to the convenience of Apps, we do not need to own any of the following possessions:
    • Calendar (with reminders)
    • Mobile music player (MP3 player)
    • GPS device
    • Alarm clock
    • Game console
    • Flashlight
    • Compass
    • Camera
    • Audio recorder
    • Social media connection
    • Information portal (news, weather, etc)
    • and oh yeah ….. phone
    • SO MUCH MORE. Anything that doesn’t need to be physical, has an app associated with it.

All of these possessions can just be applications on a mobile device.

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Halloween season is upon us

Anyone who has been following me for over a year knows that I am fanatical about Halloween. In my home it is the biggest holiday of the year. Bigger than Christmas. Every year my wife and I watch horror movies in abundance and attend all the local horror themed events. We love to both to scare, and BE scared.

It was last year, just after the Halloween season, that the Christmas music started to be playing on the radio. Right smack on Nov 1st. ARGH that agitates me. Not just for the fact that it started TOO EARLY, but also for the fact that Christmas is the only holiday that gets so much support. I’ve never heard Thanksgiving music, Easter music, Valentines Day music, or  …….. Halloween music radio play. It was then I decided that there must be Halloween radio play somewhere. Well it turns out there is ….. however ……. my findings were disappointing.

There was an XM radio Halloween station, but we have to pay for XM radio. There were a few free online radio stations but they were very hokey and meant for children. No no. I was looking for something one could play in their car in the middle of the night down a dark country road, that might make them feel a tad uncomfortable. Something with not only horror themed rock and roll, but also Horror movie themes, and spine chilling sound effects being played in between all that.

Since I could not find such a radio station, I made one.

So from Oct 1st to Nov 5th, you can tune into “WHHR Hudson Halloween Radio” from your computer or mobile device through the mobile app “Radionomy”, and other apps Roku, Tizen, Sonos, and Windows. I have also embedded the radio station player in the sidebar of this website; just hit PLAY|>.

OR, you could go directly to WHHR via Radionomy HERE .

WHHR plays:

– Horror themed Rock & Roll.

– Horror movie themes.

– Halloween party tracks.

– Halloween classics.

– Spooky and spine chilling sounds.

(Let me clarify, that while this post is not particularly minimalist related directly, It does illustrate the living a minimalist life permits the time, mental energy, and motivation for creativity.)

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Minimalist upkeep Part 1: Cycling

In this series of essays I will be going over the different methods, “life hacks”, or tools that we can use to maintain a minimalist lifestyle. It is one thing to BECOME minimal, but it is often even more of a challenge to maintain a minimalist lifestyle with the influences of excess/consumerism all around us. Sticking to these rules will help curb the temptations.

 

 

Part 1: Cycling

Most of the things we need are things we already have. Ah, but these things don’t last forever. Shoes wear and tear, computers become obsolete and slow, clothes become tattered, and couch cushions become flat. When this happens we need to replace these things with newer and more modern replacements.

Now, I would hope that we all realize the necessity of this, and practice this. This is what I call “cycling.”

But this same concept can apply to so much more than our …… “perishables.” It would be wise to practice cycling with ALL our possessions. This is why in our home we institute a “Something in, something out” policy. That is: for every possession we acquire, something else has got to go.

Logically this makes sense anyway. As all the things we own take up some of our time to use. This means that adding something new to our lives, means devoting time to it. And if all our time is full (and it always is), then something else we own is being robbed of the time we once devoted to it. The question is: What is the thing that is losing time? That is the thing we must remove. So in a sense, everything we acquire is naturally cycling something out of our lives anyway; we are just not aware of it, and perhaps not de-cluttering (and that is a time commitment too).

 

– New clothes replace old clothes.

– Swimming pool replaces Volleyball net/court.

– Bicycle replaces Kayak.

– Cell Phone replaces LAN line (no brainer)

– Crib replaces poker table (Nursery replaces “Man Cave.” As make no mistake, once there is a child in your life, there will not be a lot of poker with the boys.)

– Mini Van replaces sports car (same principal).

 

With cycling we must be honest with ourselves: “Now that you have a swimming pool, are you really going to spend much time playing volleyball ……..really? Is it enough to make it worth keeping and maintaining both a pool and Volleyball court.”