We are not hoarders. And, yet… Preparing for the adventure ahead has been nothing if not an exercise in reducing our material possessions. When it’s all done, we will have reduced by about half — clothes, furniture, and miscellany. At first it was easy. We shredded mountains of old documents, disposed of collections of magazines […]
Hoarding, Scarcity Thinking and Greed Read More »
Always in big woods when you leave familiar ground and step off alone into a new place there will be, along with the feelings of curiosity and excitement, a little nagging of dread. It is the ancient fear of the unknown, and it is your first bond with the wilderness you are going into. You
Facing the “ancient fear of the unknown” Read More »
How else to spend your first full day of “vacation” than to wait at the Civil Registry Office, the purgatory of all things government in Portugal? We had set aside today to take care of some critical paperwork to get ourselves situated in Portugal. G needs to establish his residency, and we both need national
Survivor: Bureaucracy Edition Read More »
After the initial surge of selling, recycling or tossing the junk you have amassed, then the harder decisions come. The pace slows. The heart races. If you are to completely embrace the minimalist mantra of decluttering, you will eventually run head-on to the thing, that one thing, that makes you catch your breath. The cult-like
The Importance of the Impractical Read More »
We have spent the last four weeks in a frenzy of cleaning out. Household goods to Salvation Army. Nicer work clothes to Goodwill Boutique. Books to the Friends of the SF Public Library. Office products, wrapping paper, art supplies and ribbons to Scrap. Toxics (paint, yard chemicals, etc.) and e-waste to the dump for safe
The “overheat” warning light lit up on my paper shredder this evening. And we still have two file drawers to go. God knows what else we’ll discover as we peel back the layers of 20 years accumulated stuff. We have been purging, tossing, donating…and yet it still feels like we haven’t even made a dent.
The Overheated Shredder Read More »
There’s nothing like the reality of moving into “European” (read: small) quarters to make you reconsider the amount of accumulated stuff you have in your life. While I have been on a campaign to reduce, reuse and recycle for a long time, I’ve realized how much further we have to go as we start down
Is this forever? No. We plan to return. This is still home for both of us. Are you selling your place(s)? No. See above. When are you leaving? G leaves in May. I’ll be wrapping up the rest here, including client projects, and will be heading out mid-summer. So G has a job; what will
You’ve got questions. We’ve got some answers. Read More »
What would compel a successful couple, blessed with many fabulous friends, living in a world-class city with a little wine country getaway, to hit the pause button and head out to Portugal? We’ve been asking ourselves that exact question for a few weeks. Why Lisbon A year and a half ago, when G and I
This weekend I spent 24 hours (I’m excluding sleeping time) with 300 people in the Santa Cruz Mountains at 1440 Multiversity for the first On Being Gathering. There is so much to say about this experience, but I am still processing it and making meaning. What is most striking was the ability to connect with
The Anchor and the Sextant Read More »