Saturday, August 13, 2011

Do I Detect a Trend?

Do I perhaps detect a craving for sanity and simplification? Duh. Look at us. Economic crises. Dysfunctional homes, joblessness and desperation as far as the eye can see.

That may account for a trend I’ve been noticing both in the news and as I peruse the Top 100 Entertainment/Book blog list. This morning alone I’ve encountered three posts reviewing books on Amish and Mennonite values. In the last month I’ve seen TV specials on these simpler and more successful lifestyles, plus a number of online articles extolling the merits of reducing your living space to 380 sq.ft. Hmmm…the modern-day hippie equivalent of dropping out?

 No, we are grownups looking for a reasonable way to survive. And no government program or feeling of entitlement is going to hand it to us.
So…we’re looking to a subculture with a workable system. We’re tired of being owned by material things. We can no longer afford the liabilities imposed by former prosperity. In short, we want to get real. Judging from the popularity of these homely and minimalist concepts, we may actually be onto something.

Want to see what I mean? Here’s what’s called a Lego style apartment http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juWaO5TJS00&feature=related Something like 86 sq.ft. and incredibly clever. Then we have:




2 comments:

~ Steff said...

I blogged a little about something similar I noticed in the last couple of years - the push for simplification, for appreciation of the "good things in life" - meaning dinners with your family, board games, books - things that are truly important instead of stuff, stuff, and more stuff.
I love the trend, and the idea. The only problem I've noticed is that places advertise "buy our stuff to live simply". Um...no?

Mary Fagan said...

Yeah - that's the only hitch to an otherwise welcome trend: It's still a marketing angle. Every time the economy goes into crisis I think, Aha! Now we're finally going to hit the wall and be forced to rethink our priorities! But somehow the love of excess persists.