Moth, Rust, and Mold

Moth, rust, sub-prime mortgage crisis... and mold.

The bible has a quote about material things that starts,“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy...". Hmm, nothing about mold (or the Great Recession). Probably because the authors were desert dwellers living in simple hand-built homes.

Basically, no moisture, no mold. And no mortgage, no meltdown.

For 9 years before moving to the Atlantic side of Canada, we lived 5 meters from the Pacific Ocean. It was more humid than any other place I lived previously, which includes being born in the semi-arid climate of the Palliser's Triangle of the northern Great Plains.

On the prairies things dry up and blow away, so for many years I knew nothing of the power of molds. Now we live a few foggy kilometres away from the ocean, which surrounds our area.

I am convinced mold is nature's way of making sure there aren't too many things sitting around unused.

Mold spores are a common component of normal household dust. They are found everywhere, and can grow on almost any substance when moisture is present. These amazing life forms can grow in temperatures from 0 to 35 degrees Celsius (32 and 95 °F). Yes, they are persistent.

In a high humidity climate, like on the coasts, things that aren't in use, and circulating in and out of storage, are in danger of molding. It is relentless. A rolling stone in coastal humidity of 96% may gather no moss, but it still molds.

The worst thing is when something you don't need or want succumbs to one or more of the thousands of known mold types. I guess if it isn't being used, you deserve to have it broken down into its component parts and returned to nature.

But really, how is it that even after downsizing to the point we fit everything we owned into a travel van, upon arriving here 6000 km away, we realize we still have things we don't want or need? How does that happen?

I think it is the round leaf sundew stickiness of material things.

Stuff is easy to acquire, and difficult from which to get unstuck. Almost three years later we are still finding things that are not doing any work for us. And if something starts to mold, it is creating work. Mold in a house is a bit of an emergency that must be dealt with immediately.

Which makes me think, "How much time do we spend maintaining, storing, moving and shuffling our possessions? Or worrying about them? Or keeping them safe from theft, and dust, and breakage?"

The answer to that is probably, "Too much time". They aren't possessions, they are possessing. Possessing us and our precious time. Things are so needy, always vying for our attention. When they are taking more than they give, it is time to get unstuck, and let them go.

We are nearing the end of dealing with our current moldy mini-crisis, which turned out to be yet another wonderful opportunity to get rid of even more excess baggage. The Universe is telling us something, still.

1. You can live more freely, joyfully, and less moldily, with fewer things, and

2. Run a dehumidifier (we borrowed one from our landlord) to make sure the things you do need and want don't succumb to the whole moth, rust and mold routine.

I am getting closer all the time to my ultimate goal of being able to fit all my possessions into a shoebox. Thanks, mold, for helping nudge me in that direction.

Complicated Simple Living

What if you want a simple life and your partner doesn't?

You want to live simply. Your partner does not. What do you do when your simple living plan gets complicated by relationship stressors?

It almost seems a likely showdown since up to 80% of relationship splits occur primarily due to expectations surrounding money and how it should be spent.

Developing a frugal lifestyle was straightforward for Linda and I as we were more or less on the same page from the beginning of our relationship. But what if it wasn't that easy?

A comment was left on NBA recently that highlighted a reader's personal struggle with relationship complications surrounding simple living. They wrote:

"I am really struggling with my partners 'stuff' habit. I have personally been simplifying my life for a number of years now and all my possessions fit inside my small car. I realise that simplifying is a long process but the fact my partner doesn't even have the inclination to do so is somewhat frustrating. 

I find it very hard to spend a lot of time at her house as the clutter mentally drains me. 

We have been together 3 years and I have managed to put up with it for this long, but it is becoming to much. Any advise would be appreciated."

Communication is the key to any relationship, and talking about money is something that should happen early on to avoid complications further down the road. If we are gentle with each other, forgiving and loving, we can often work such things out. But not all the time.

Is it possible to convert someone to the simple life? How do we include a recalcitrant loved one in our dream of a simpler lifestyle, and convince them that "life is simple, and the simple thing is the right thing", as Oscar Wilde said?

Is this a irreconcilable difference? At what point does one decide to cut one's losses and move on? I am afraid I don't have many answers.

What would you advise? How is our simple living lover to proceed with his more prodigious partner?

Steed And Covered Wagon In One

After a hard, hot day of driving even this cramped and chaotic bed is luxurious. I had
to move 3 guitars each evening before we could make music, snoring.

A good quest is generally aided by a faithful steed. A valiant and reliable workhorse can do wonders when it comes to covering great distances in a short period of time. Our van has been like a faithful steed AND covered wagon all in one.

As we begin to decompress from our continental crossing we are more and more grateful for our van for getting us here safe, sound, and with some gold coins left in our leather pouch.

The green containers contained our kitchen and pantry. They slid out from under the bed for use.

Our bed was made up of 5 large plastic bins. Each one was filled with our stuff, put in place, then all were covered with a plywood base. A 4" custom cut piece of high density foam purchased at an upholstery shop went on top of the platform for a mattress.

Some of the best sleeps we have ever had were in our 'wagon' on this makeshift bed. It had a distinctively gypsy feel to the arrangement. It was simple and it was enough. After a hard day of questing it was divine.

We couldn't have completed our quest without our commode.

Somewhat less conversation-ready is our commode. When it comes to going, the only more basic way to go is to dig a hole in the ground. Since it is often difficult to dig a hole, and since so many washrooms are not accessible (including some with the wheelchair symbol on them), it was crucial for us to have our own facilities.

There is something about using such a simple commode that makes one think of life and waste disposal in a completely different way. Every day we lived in the van we had to find a secure place to dump our waste. It quickly became one of the biggest challenges of our travel routine.

Our modern day self-propelled covered wagon made our quest not only possible, but enjoyable.

Once we got into the groove of living in such a confined space it became more pleasurable than we could imagine. It was spartan, harsh, and void of the everyday comforts most of us take for granted, but we love it.

Or maybe we are whacked out on adrenaline, adventure, freedom and new possibilities. We are also suckers for self-improvement in the vein of 'whatever doesn't kill you…' The trip didn't kill us and we are stronger for it. Or we will be after a week of naps.

Now our faithful steed is having a well-deserved rest after carrying us over 6000 kilometres to our new home. Its next task, after fixing one or two of its well worn shoes, will be when we are ready to forage for furniture.

Crap

This is what all advertising comes down to - "Please! Take our crap."

The world is awash in crap. There is always someone trying to sell you crap, rent you crap, and even give you crap. It is insidious and it creeps in everywhere it can, disguised as something you actually need.

After downsizing from a 586 square foot apartment to 275 cubic feet of interior space in a van, I have seen the full extent of my crap. Every. Single. Piece.

It was heavy. Heavy, heavy crap. Heavy in mass and heavy in psychic load.

It was a lot of work to get rid of it all. At times it was hard to give it away. I can't imagine the complications of trying to get someone to pay to make my crap their own. Half the time I feel guilty for burdening other people with my unwanted crap, even if its free and they think they want it.

I would make the world's worst salesperson. "You don't need that, or that or that…"

Sometimes, though, no one wants your crap. You can't even give it away. Many people have a lot of crap of their own already. One more acquisition and the garage is going to pop. Occasionally even thrift shops are bursting at the seams and turn donated crap away.

I like how author John Green puts it - "Crap crap crap crap crap crap crap stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid crap.”

I am learning to better see crap for what it is - a stupid impediment to living a free, unburdened life.

Sure there are possessions that add to life. Keep them. All the other stuff should be flushed.

Sell it, donate it, set it on the curb with a "FREE" sign. Compost it, crush it, cast it overboard. And most importantly, DO NOT bring any more into your crap-free sanctuary. Even if it is free.

Free Yourself From Consumer Slavery Monday

Emancipate yourself from consumer slavery; none but ourselves can free our wallets.

Bob Marley dared us to emancipate ourselves from mental slavery, and reminded us that we are the ones with the key to the cell door. The bar code image above reminds us that we can be imprisoned and enslaved by the things we buy, as well as the work that we do to support the consumer lifestyle.

"Do possessions make you rich? I don't have that type of richness. My richness is life."  

By freeing ourselves from consumer slavery, which is just another manifestation of mental slavery, we  free our wallets as well. We break the chains of the consumer society so that our repressed desires of a more authentic existence can come forward.

Once free from the clutches of consumerism, we can begin to build the life we want - a creative, joyful, self-directed life. It turns into a project where your life is your art, and your art is your life, just the situation that Bob Marley created for himself during his career.

Consumerism and its slave drivers can only imprison us if we let them.

Make the commitment to not let them, to break free, and to become an impartial observer of your own life. When that happens, you can see where you are giving away your freedom and where you are serving your masters.

Then you can take your freedom back. Emancipation can be yours.

"The greatness of a person is not in how much wealth they acquire, but in their integrity and ability to affect those around them positively." 

- Bob Marley

World Peace Day

"You can't separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom."
 - Malcolm X 

Today is World Peace Day. I celebrate it because finding peace has always been one of my primary goals in life. This includes my quest for a simple life, which has been mostly about creating a peaceful lifestyle devoid of unnecessary stuff and stress. Reducing the physical and mental clutter that is so abundant in the modern world has been an important part of my personal search for peace.

Usually when we think of peace we think mostly of the absence of war. But to be in a state of peace requires the absence of a lot of less obvious things.

Peace also requires the absence of exploitation of people and the environment. It requires the absence of greed, envy, hate, and judgement. And it requires the absence of a garage stuffed to the rafters. These are all things that lead to personal strife and eventually, war. Well, maybe not the messy garage...

Whenever I am looking for help in clearing out my cluttered psychic garage, I inevitably run across the amazing woman known as Peace Pilgrim. Born in Egg Harbour City, NJ, she devoted the last 28 years of her life to a personal pilgrimage for peace.

Peace Pilgrim vowed to "remain a wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until given shelter and fasting until given food." Between 1953 and 1981 she walked 40,000 km (25,000 miles) while spreading her simple message and waiting for peace to come to the world.


"This is the way of peace," she told all who would listen, "Overcome evil with good, falsehood with truth, and hatred with love."

I share some of Peace Pilgrim's thoughts on achieving personal peace  because I believe that world peace must start with our inner peace. When we are at peace with ourselves, the world becomes a more peaceful place for everyone. Peace starts at home.

Peace Pilgrim's Steps Toward Inner Peace
Adapted from: http://www.peacepilgrim.org/


1. Assume the right attitude toward life.

Face life squarely and get down below the froth on its surface to discover its verities and realities. Solve the problems that life sets before you, and you will find that solving them contributes to your inner growth. 

2. Live good beliefs.

No life can be in harmony unless belief and practice are in harmony.

3. Find your place in Life.

You have a part in the scheme of things. What that part is you can know only from within yourself. You can seek it in receptive silence. You can begin to live in accordance with it by doing all the good things you are motivated toward, and giving these things priority in your life over all the superficial things that customarily occupy human lives.

4. Simplify life to bring inner and outer well-being into harmony.

Unnecessary possessions are unnecessary burdens. Many lives are cluttered not only with unnecessary possessions but also with meaningless activities. Cluttered lives are out-of-harmony lives and require simplification.

5. Purify your body.

Are you free from all bad habits? In your diet do you stress the vital foods - the fruits, whole grains, vegetables and nuts? Do you get to bed early and get enough sleep? Do you get plenty of fresh air, sunshine, exercise, and contact with nature? If you can answer "Yes" to all of these questions, you have gone a long way toward purifying the body.

6. Purify your thoughts.

It is not enough to do right things and say right things. You must also think right things. Positive thoughts can be powerful influences for good. Negative thoughts can make you physically ill. Be sure there is no unpeaceful situation between yourself and any other human being, for only when you have ceased to harbor unkind thoughts can you attain inner harmony.

7. Purify your desires.

Since you are here to get yourself into harmony with the laws that govern human conduct and with your part in the scheme of things, your desires should be focused in this direction.

8. Purify your motives.

Obviously your motive should never be greed or self-seeking, or the wish for self-glorification, you shouldn't even have the selfish motive of attaining inner peace for yourself. To be of service to your fellow humans must be your motive before your life can come into harmony.

9. Relinquish your self-will.

You must subordinate the lower self by refraining from doing the not-good things you are motivated toward, not suppressing them but transforming them so that the higher self can take over your life.

10. Relinquish the feeling of separateness.

All of us, all over the world, are cells in the body of humanity. You are not separate from your fellow humans, and you cannot find harmony for yourself alone. You can only find harmony when you realize the oneness of all and work for the good of all.

11. Relinquish your attachments.

Only when you have relinquished all attachments can you be really free. Material things are here for use, and anything you cannot relinquish when it has outlived its usefulness possesses you. You can only live in harmony with your fellow humans if you have no feeling that you possess them, and therefore do not try to run their lives.

12. Relinquish your negative feelings.

Work on relinquishing negative feelings. If you live in the present moment, which is really the only moment you have to live, you will be less apt to worry. If you realize that those who do mean things are psychologically ill, your feelings of anger will turn to feelings of pity. If you recognize that all of your inner hurts are caused by your own wrong actions or your own wrong reactions or your own wrong inaction, then you will stop hurting yourself.


Living simply can help us achieve personal and global peace. When we have one, we will get the other.

May peace be with you and yours on this day, and always.

Keeping It Light

"No suffering befalls the man who calls nothing his own."
- Dhammapada

Not everyone aspires to be a wandering monk, claiming ownership to nothing but a piece of cloth to wrap one's self in, and a bowl for food. That would be considered extreme for the average participant in Western 'civilization' where we have become weighed down by our possessions.
 
Deep inside, however, we know the sages are on to something. We can relate to them because we harbour a yearning for a slower, simpler life, free from a growing mental and physical clutter.

Most people consider some of their best days to be when possessions were few, and responsibilities minimal. Think about it for your own life, or ask others when they felt the most free, the most alive.

Often people will answer that some of their happiest days were their student days. They remember wandering down the road to knowledge with nothing more than a suitcase and a sense of adventure. People recall macaroni and cheese, tiny dorm rooms, and limited budgets not as examples of extreme hardship, but as the joys of a simpler life.

Some of my best days on this earth have been while living out of a back pack. Wilderness trips of up to two weeks, supported by whatever I could carry on my back, taught me the joys of keeping it light. It was just me, my boots, my back pack, and the grizzly bears. It was liberating and exhilarating, and a wake up call to the lies of economic 'authorities' that promote purchasing our way to happiness and prosperity.

While laying in my sleeping bag on the ground under a dome of stars, I would ponder the Big Question. "If I have everything I need to sustain myself in my back pack, what is all that stuff back at home for? Why am I working so hard to acquire a bunch of things that I don't really want or need?"

This line of questioning eventually caused me to quit my job to experience the freedom of traveling lightly for an extended period of time. I bought a round the world ticket and lived out of a back pack for an entire, glorious year.

While traveling I joyfully washed my six item wardrobe in a sink or bucket, and hung it to dry. I walked everywhere, shunning buses, taxis, and trains unless traveling long distances. I carried a small bundle of art supplies, and even a tiny library that shrunk or grew according to book swaps with other travelers. I had lots of time to use both.

Living with things pared down to the essentials appealed to me, and I have not looked back since. Today my possessions are sparse, and I am constantly acting to streamline them more. I am not down to a piece of cloth and a bowl yet, but I have recovered from the damaging effects of conforming to the regular life script of work - spend - sleep - repeat.

We are repeatedly told that the stuff we own is important for the enjoyment of life, but in the majority of cases this is so wrong. Wandering monks, and even our own experience, teach us that there is no freedom in the accumulation of stuff. Real freedom comes when you get rid of stuff, and stop lusting for more.

The less extraneous stuff we have, the less suffering befalls us.

Keep it light. Be free. Enjoy your life.

Of Mice And Men And Simple Living

My mom is good for sending me letters packed full of clippings, cartoons, and words of wisdom. I am surprised how many of these little nuggets have been surfacing as I go through my stuff in the on-going effort to create a world with no possessions. Well, at least a home with fewer possessions.

One of the items mom sent that I hung on to was a short story about finding meaning and purpose in life, and how living simply can facilitate both. There was nothing on the page giving authorship to anyone, so I am not sure who to attribute this to.

It is a nice reminder to keep things simple, quiet, and calm.

Of Mice And Men And Simple Living

A young man asked a sage what he should do to find meaning and purpose in life. "Live simply," the holy man told him. "Have only this small hut and the meager loincloth you wear. Keep the hut clean, your life orderly, and your mind quiet.

The holy man went on his way, vowing to return sometime to see how he was progressing. And this earnest young man began living his simple life.

After some time, he was distracted by the holes he found in his loincloth, and complained of it to his neighbor.

"You've got mice. Get a cat," advised the neighbor.

So he got a cat to get rid of the mice, but found himself having to borrow milk to feed the cat.

"Get a cow," suggested his helpful neighbor.

And he did. But then he had to find hay for the cow, until the neighbor counseled him, "Get a field and grow your own." The man did that, too. Before long, he acquired an estate, a wife, children, herds of cattle, machinery, servants, merchants to pay, profits to invest. His life was anything but simple.

One day, as promised, the sage returned and inquired of a farmhand about the young man. The servant had no idea who the holy man was searching for, so he took him to his master.

At the sages approach, the master of the estate vaguely recognized this tranquil man, who carried nothing but a staff, a pot of water, and the clothes on his back.

"What happened?" the holy man asked. "I left you here in a plain hut with a loincloth and instructions to quiet your mind."

The other man racked his brains to remember. He thought of his fine house, his servants in the fields, his splendid clothes. And he reflected on all the worries that accompanied them; the bills and duties and never-ceasing schemes for getting more things.

At last he remembered and blurted out, "I had mice."