midwest neurotica

This morning, I read yet another essay on our obsession with stuff and how it is controlling our lives. I, like many of you, watch TV shows on multiple channels about decluttering, clearing out and cleaning up. A sense of simplicity has become ingrained in me, but where do we draw the line? Is our addiction shifting from stuff to anti-stuff, so much that we can no longer take pleasure in material goods? Is the purpose of simplicity really to sit around and marvel in our lack of stuff? Is stuff really that bad?

So in response to the unclutterer blog posting that alerted me of this essay, I posted this comment:

I’m trying, I really am, but how does the stuff-less person engage in their hobbies? Do they have only stuff-less hobbies? I sew, knit, paint, draw, scrapbook, lead a girl scout troop, read books & magazines, watch movies and have the tools and materials for these endeavors. Most items are not things you use up in one sitting. What am I missing?

So, for the rest of us, those that enjoy our well-edited collections and spend time with our families “doing things”, what is the ideal we are shooting for? At some point simplicity becomes nudity. While it is important to be comfortable in your own skin, having some fuzzy socks is surely a lot more cozy!