Saturday, December 15, 2018

Minimalism

Minimalism: The Path to an Organized, Stress-free and Decluttered Life
pub. Gwyneth Snow, 2017
207 pages



Although I associate minimalism with the mindset of people on YouTube who own less than a hundred things, or live out of a 2-liter backpack, the minimalism in this book is a far more approachable form. The first half of the book takes a look at home organization and decluttering before focusing on the personal side of minimalism -- like the insight it can offer to our relationships.  The essence of the book's message is this: figure out what things and what people in your life truly bring happiness, and let go of everything else.  Although the message of this is similar to Spark Joy, a popular work on decluttering,  Minimalism distinguishes itself from other books on decluttering and simple living  by examining the origins of minimalism proper in art, later expanding on them in a section on interior decorating, and referencing principles of yoga.   I found the work most valuable for its decluttering tips on cleaning kitchens, closets, and so on. In the last few months I've drastically reduced the amount of clothes I bother with (limiting myself to whatever fits in the closet and my dresser),  donating boxes of read-once-and-never-again books to Goodwill, and eying my DVD albums with a glint in my eye. The author doesn't address books and such,  beyond suggesting readers switch to ebooks, so the application there was limited for me.  However,  the price can't be beat....it's being offered for $0.00.

10 comments:

  1. i need this book... i have a totally illogical, rabid hoarding habit... but how can i... is my mantra... with 2500 books, six bicycles, two cars, one house, and a dog and a wife, how can i reduce? even thinking about it induces agony of the spirit! hahahah ack

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  2. I'm at a similar spot with PCs...I have 3 for different needs and constantly think about other ones!

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    1. actually if i was a computer aficionado, i wouldn't think 3 would be too many; in some of those techie movies they show a room with walls covered with them...

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    2. Well, I've got my main PC, and then Vista and Win98 units I use for retrogaming. The Vista PC was also my previous main pc, so it has lots of files on it I haven't quite moved over yet...but I've got the important stuff like music.

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  3. I'm *slowly* trying to de-clutter - even getting rid of..... I don't know how to say this..... [gulp]... Books. Over my Christmas break I'm planning to go through my DVD collection and pick out all my mistakes and give them away to friends and @ work next year.

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    1. Say it ain't so! ;-) Are these books you've already, though?

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    2. I gave away about 8-10 books this year @ work including a few I hadn't read. I'd read the 1st in the series and found it so bad I couldn't bring myself to read the next two. I have another trilogy like that [urban fantasy] that's going into work with me next year once I find the 1st book again [one of my tasks over the Christmas break!]

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