The thing about minimalism as it\u2019s so often shown to us, is that it expects a high level of privilege.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I too, would like to be able to backpack my way across Europe with nothing but a backpack, but there are many things that stand in the way of that, least of all my inability to carry heavy bags for long without getting pressure hives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I too, would like to be able to own only three dresses for summer, maybe a cardigan and heavier coat for when it gets cold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But that, also, requires a level of \u201cabled\u201d I do not possess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As I\u2019m also the person who had to break down and buy more clothing when we landed in Denmark, having begun in Spain\u2026 \u201cminimalism\u201d often also begs a heftier wallet than I possess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The person saying \u201cI do not own a vacuum cleaner; I simply wash the floor by hand and call it dynamic meditation\u201d\u2026nothing wrong with that, except if I wash the floor by hand, I will spend the next three days lying in bed contemplating my sins against myself, in another form of communing with Spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So why do I keep coming back to this concept, instead of tossing it by the wayside as I would, say, the idea of being vegan?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Nothing wrong with, and many things good and right about being vegan; it simply very isn\u2019t for my particular meatsack.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I think Lucy Moon put it extremely well in this video<\/a> where she talks about why she no longer adheres to the tenets of having a capsule wardrobe.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n She says that she thinks she was sold a dream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that\u2019s also the thing about minimalism, where so much of it was selling us a dream, but we weren\u2019t really aware of everything behind the structure and deeper meaning of that dream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also in which perhaps we thought we were drawn to one aspect of that sold illusion, but we were in reality in search of another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A while ago, I asked: \u201cDo you really like everything cottagecore, living off-grid off the land, or are you just terrified capitalism is really going to come after you and you\u2019ll die starving and homeless?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With the minimalism sold us, I\u2019d like to ask: \u201cDo I really understand what I should be paring back, or am I simply hoping that if I just get rid of enough items, I will magically become physically able to tolerate more discomfort than I currently can?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And: \u201cDo I really like the aesthetics of a minimalist space, or is it that I can\u2019t keep up with my household chores as it is and I\u2019m imagining if I just got rid of everything, then chores will be doable?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And: \u201cIs this fixation on minimalism my attempt to pretend I have control over my life when I have zero control over what my body does and doesn\u2019t do?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And: \u201cAm I really just thinking, deep down, that if I trim my life down to the very barest necessities, bread and water and a mat on the ground, then perhaps I can start to regain the agency I had as an abled person?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That last bit is because of all the people saying minimalism = frugality = wealth building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Which, by the way, should be the first delusion to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Latte Factor, god rest its terrible guilt-tripping soul, is a fallacy when you\u2019re not making any meaningful amount of money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s the same way with what Lucy Moon was saying, how the capsule wardrobe as a concept was born from people who used to over consume clothing, who had mountains of clothing they could whittle down to what really suited them and what they loved and made them look and feel good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Minimalism as a financial gambit is simply another way to guilt poor people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s the Vime\u2019s theory of boots<\/a>, y\u2019see. Which, if you\u2019re poor \u2014 why are you getting rid of perfectly good clothing that you will need to eventually replace?<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for things fitting \u2014 it does make sense to get rid of clothing that is far too small or is so tight it\u2019s uncomfortable and you don\u2019t see yourself ever slimming into, but there\u2019s still a need for \u201cjust stuff to lounge around and be comfortable in, for days at home\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And when you lack spoons but you also need fresh clothing daily, then having too few articles of clothing because you chucked most of them for \u201csimplicity\u201d\u2019s sake is quite ridiculous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In my case, I do have a slight problem when I can never bring myself to throw away my threadbare lounge clothing, because it takes years for things to get that worn so they don\u2019t chafe. The alternative, which is unaffordable, is to buy loungewear in pure silk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I spent a few weeks a while ago where almost everything except silk was making my hives worse, so I was about to throw away some clothing that had become holey in their threadbareness, and now I\u2019ll have to work myself up to it again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All that, and I\u2019ll bet you\u2019re asking where I\u2019m going with this. Why I can\u2019t manage to answer the question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Okay. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So the clarified goal (as always) is to become more aware of what I do and don\u2019t do on a daily basis. The goal is to sort out what I don\u2019t want to live without and what I can live without.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s to figure out if there are reasonable alternatives to what I want so I can possibly streamline things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the case of disability, chronic illness, and associated poverty \u2014 sometimes the whittling down first has to do with people and situations rather than items \u2014 and then maybe you get rid of things that have to do with the people and situations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, in a couple of areas:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clothing: I keep wanting to get rid of the heavy winter clothing because it\u2019s useless moth food here in Taiwan, but I still have hopes of moving back to Boston one day and I don\u2019t want to spend the money to replace all my cashmere and long wool coats. There\u2019s space (just barely) for it in my parents\u2019 flat, so I\u2019m just going to hold onto it for now like I\u2019m trying to hold onto a dream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I already got rid of the \u201csexier\u201d stuff. The body-clinging cowled tops; the tight dresses; the strappy tops. It\u2019s not just that Taiwan has this weird purity thing with women\u2019s tits and asses where you shouldn\u2019t be able to see curves or it\u2019s pearl-clutching time. It\u2019s also that I no longer want to put up with that kind of attention. Eight years into chronic illness and disability and I just have no patience with even wanting to be seen as pretty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It sucks that people, especially femme-presenting people, get abused for not being pretty. But I hate the lies that get offered when I pass as healthy and make an effort to be conventionally aesthetically pleasing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So it\u2019s now \u201coh, got offered a seat again on the bus because someone thinks I\u2019m pregnant\u201d clothing all the way because that\u2019s what\u2019s comfortable in all the aspects. Linen breathes better in Taiwan humidity, dries faster if I get caught in rain or if it\u2019s so hot I\u2019m dripping, and the looseness means less likely to get pressure hives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m keeping the \u201cfancier\u201d clothing. The nicer linen sundresses that one could wear to a semi-casual wedding, for example. Those would be incredibly expensive to replace if I had to go to another formal-ish event and they don\u2019t take up that much space. Eventually it\u2019d be nice if I could donate them, though, just to close the door on that kind of happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cookware:<\/p>\n\n\n\n I am probably going to get rid of the multiple-people type of bakeware if\/when I move out. Freezer space is at a premium and I will never want to eat 12 of the same kind of muffin in a row. They will absolutely grow mold in Taiwan humidity and heat before I can finish the lot, so that\u2019s just added stress. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I also won\u2019t need the 13×9 baking pans once I\u2019m no longer cooking for four people. Nor the 5 liter casserole pan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After decades of owning an electric hot water dispenser, I\u2019m also going to skip buying one for myself in order to save on electricity bills. I\u2019m also almost definitely skipping the electric rice cooker because I don\u2019t eat enough rice to justify the cost and the counter space. I might, however, buy a Datung electric pot because I can make rice in that. I also might not, because counter space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As much as I\u2019d miss my 5 quart cast iron deep skillet \u2014 I will probably try to find a good home for that as well. It\u2019s tremendous for making fried rice for four people, but that\u2019s about all I use it for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s an odd feeling decision, because I\u2019ve always enjoyed feeding people. One of my favorite things is testing out recipes and then inviting people over to show off my results. But the fact is, I simply don\u2019t have that kind of energy or stamina any longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In that vein, I will also need to really pay attention to what I buy in terms of ingredients, particularly the easily spoiled ones like leafy vegetables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another example: I used to have both almonds and walnuts in my baking essentials, but I don\u2019t have either the energy or the appetite to consume both in a timely fashion if I buy from Costco and they\u2019re prohibitively expensive elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Storage containers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n My family hates how I collect glass jars so this is just going into its own category. I need to first figure out (see above) what food ingredients I\u2019m going to have and store on a regular basis, then pare down to what\u2019s reasonable. I should only have 5 containers of stock at any given time, for example. I shouldn\u2019t have more because it will absolutely just clutter up the fridge and will taste \u201cnot fresh\u201d by the time I get around to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Same goes for leftover containers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Disability theoretically loves the ideas of leftovers, but my particular brand of inherited orthorexia and ADHD often means that leftovers either get forgotten or ignored.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shoes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have a pair of slippers, a couple pairs of sandals, and I really need some wet-weather shoes, but that\u2019s about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m no longer allowed to buy anything with heels, even half an inch ones or wedges because my body won\u2019t hear of it anymore and I just need to face that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So that\u2019s my attempt to clarify things for myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I no longer want to pretend to be up for \u201cpartying\u201d and things like conventions and even weddings because that\u2019s outside of my capabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I go to Costco and another store with my mother, sitting in a car to and from, and I spend the next three days recovering. Conventions are just \u201cyeah no, my body will murder me\u201d and weddings are \u201comg, if I have to remain sitting for one more minute I\u2019ll cry\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I am no longer going to buy things like weights or exercise tracking type stuff the same way I\u2019ve stopped using things that track \u201cstreaks\u201d. I will exercise when I feel up to it and stop when I\u2019m tired or when things hurt and not worry how far away from 10k steps I am. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I will write when I can because I love it and not because I am feel stressed about not making the 40 credits required to get social security. And particularly not because I feel pressured to adhere to society\u2019s idea of what constitutes being a reasonably productive member of society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m going to have to accept I will likely never entertain at home again, because everything about hosting is exhausting. I love it, but I can\u2019t clean, cook, clean after cooking, then hang out with people, then clean up myself, all in one day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So everything that has to do with these things I no longer do or no longer want to do can and should go. Before anyone worries that means society will turn its back on me because I\u2019ve rejected it \u2014 I regret to inform you that as a disabled fat woman, \u201cconventional\u201d society already had.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And we\u2019ve passed 2000 words and my back wants to murder me, so I\u2019m going to leave the question of skincare stuff, supplements, and social media for another day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The thing about minimalism as it\u2019s so often shown to us, is that it expects a high level of privilege. I too, would like to be able to backpack my way across Europe with nothing but a backpack, but there are many things that stand in the way of that, least of all my inability… Continue reading
Back to the capsule wardrobe thing. One of the basic ideas is you don\u2019t keep duplicates or similar items and you get rid of things that don\u2019t fit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Why I was trying to do the tracking of cookware I actually used, but that\u2019s a semi-failed experiment.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m mostly keeping what I have, despite there being quite a bit of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If this sounds like I\u2019ve given up on most of the things that are conventionally accepted as \u201cnecessary\u201d to be part of society, well, yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n