Category Archives: Minimalism

Determining Your Net Worth

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During our home selling efforts, Len and I took the opportunity to review our net worth. Anemic by many people’s standards, we’re glad our “portfolio” isn’t made up of finances alone.

Three Oaks Recreation Area — Crystal Lake, IL

We enjoy a different type of wealth — the recession-proof kind that retains its value regardless of the economic climate.

And while the financial side of the ledger might look a bit bleak to some, here’s a glimpse at a few of the items on the non-financial side of our ledger:

  • Peace of mind
  • Physical health
  • Spiritual abundance
  • Loving relationships
  • Unlimited potential
  • Gratitude
  • Laughter

Holy Toledo — we’re not rich, we’re downright wealthy!

What’s your net worth?

Laurie Buchanan

“Whatever you are not changing, you are choosing.” — Laurie Buchanan

The Book—Discovering the Seven Selves
The Experience—Life Harmony

© Laurie Buchanan 2013

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Not Only My Heart — I Gave Him the Sky

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Believing that fulfillment comes from experiences, relationships, and good health, Len and I don’t typically exchange gifts.

Recently he made me a beautiful breakfast of heart-shaped blueberry pancakes and delivered it on a tray before I got out of bed.

I filled a pail of water to catch the reflection of the sky and gave it to him — wishing him, a pilot, a lifetime of safe flight as he soars through “his” sky.

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What’s the most meaningful non-material gift you’ve ever received?

© TuesdaysWithLaurie.com

 

Nary a Bat in My Belfry

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Len and I sold our commercial property in December because we’re relocating. We thought we knew where, but it’s still somewhat of a moving target — we’ll let you know when we figure that piece out.

We intended to put our home on the market April 1, but due to unforeseen circumstances (including four weeks in a non-weight-bearing cast), we’re currently making up for lost time getting our home ready to put on the market.

One of the items on our to-do list was to empty the attic space over the garage. In twenty years of living at the same address, things accumulate — big time! When Len got up there to clear it out, he discovered that:

  • Literally, we don’t have any bats in our belfry — or attic, as the case may be.
  • Figuratively we just might be crazy — or at the very least, eccentric!

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We created three sections in the garage to sort items: donate, throw, keep.

As a minimalist [who’s married to a maximalist], I don’t want to be possessed by possessions, so for something to make it into the keep section took quite a bit of negotiation on Len’s part because I want the next chapter of our lives to be footloose and fancy-free.

Are you more of a keeper or a thrower?

© TuesdaysWithLaurie.com

Of Mice, Men, Packrats and Squirrels

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Our home is located in what had been a grove of oak trees in days gone by. Most of the homes in our neighborhood have at least one huge tree in the front or back yard. Every fall we can count on being entertained by the antics of squirrels as they lay in stores for the winter. What they squirrel away is absolutely necessary for their survival.

Human beings are different. The National Association of Professional Organizers says that as a society we’ve acquired so much “stuff” over the last three decades that the self-storage industry is the fastest growing new industry in the United States.

According to the Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders Program at the University of California, San Diego, the overwhelming desire to acquire, save, and compulsively collect—hoard—can be attributed to a “unique pattern of brain function abnormalities.”

Research shows the inability to discard doesn’t play favorites; it can equally affect both men and women.

Are you more of a minimalist or a maximalist?

© TuesdaysWithLaurie.com