Comments on: Discipline and Pleasure

By: Liz

Liz — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 13:36:00 +0000

That’s a really interesting way of thinking about it. My husband has often said that a big part of what he loves about learning new computer languages is that delicate balance of creating form within constraint. It’s also why he is a songwriter rather than a blank verse poet. I’ll have to think about my own responses to this idea; they are much less clear.

I’ve certainly found that looking at austerity as a challenge to live within boundaries rather than as a deprivation makes it much easier to adjust to, given that we started making these changes due to financial pressure. I like the motivations of the Riot for Austerity much better…

Liz in Australia

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 13:11:00 +0000

I wouldn’t generalize about poor people, too much. I know some who are very careful with their money, and some who’ll spend what they have like fools. Comes to mind, the young woman who took the $100, cash, a nurse gave her out of her pocket becuase she’d exhaused all the other resources so she could buy meds and came back a couple of days later, the baby still very sick, to show off the fake fur coat and hat she’d brought for the child with the money.

Of course, there are people across all income levels who do daft things. I just think its not a good idea to idolize one group as have self-dicipline.

MEA

By: rhonda jean

rhonda jean — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 20:40:00 +0000

This is such an eloquent and thoughtful post, I had to comment. It is true - less is more.

Lately I often think about how things balance out and how one thing accentuates another. It’s a beautiful thing really. Who’d have thought that by consuming less we would appreciate what we do consume even more.

Thank you for your blog. I appreciate and enjoy it.

By: jewishfarmer

jewishfarmer — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 18:57:00 +0000

Hi Beam - I honestly haven’t done anything really big yet. That is, we’re whittling things down the slow way at this point. We had already picked most of our low hanging fruit, so we’ve been making fairly little changes and preparation for some big ones. We’ve been eating cheese-and-chutney sandwiches, for example, in the “get-all-the-condiments-out-of-the-fridge-before-turning-it-off” but mostly so far, and trying to put together a regular minyan (Jewish prayer group) here so that we’ll have to drive to synagogue less often.

But otherwise, so far nothing spectacular - fewer showers, extending out our trips even to the local store (I’m hoping to go a whole month now that the garden is in full swing), and resisting the temptation to buy stuff ;-).

We’ll know a little more when the electric bill comes in, and we tabulate the month’s gas usage. But we were already below 50% in most categories, so we’re at the slow and incremental stage. I’ll post more about the details at some point soon.

Sharon

By: Marnie

Marnie — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 18:16:00 +0000

Hi Sharon,

One of your best - the discipline shows in your writing as well, which makes it a pleasure to read. Thank you.

Marnie

By: ByTheBay

ByTheBay — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 05:05:00 +0000

Well said! And I think we can’t emphasize enough the way that class plays into this. People who struggle economically have always known how to have self-discipline, out of necessity… However, I think that even folks with less means are bombarded by this culture of consumption so that the desire (masquerading as a “need”) for *stuff* is pervasive at every economic level. I think country living helps me have more self-discipline than I had in the city. My garden simply will not grow, weed, water or harvest itself (let alone get rid of those horrible little insects that are eating my collards!). I have to get out and do that even when I don’t want. I can’t just walk down the block to buy coffee at Starbucks, I have to either drive 3 miles into town or make my own (and clearly making my own is the better and easier option here). But still, I struggle with self-discipline and saying no to unnecessary things and structuring my time and tasks.

By: David

David — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 04:43:00 +0000

So true. Limits are equated with oppression in our culture, more’s the pity.

By: Beam

Beam — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 00:42:00 +0000

Hi Sharon,

What have you done differently than before the Riot for Austerity? I ask in all sincerity, not at all meaning to contradict, as one who reads your blog daily. It's just with all you've done before, it's difficult for me to pick up on what has changed.

What helps me are examples from others involving the simple things to measure. Examples such as how much power you use per month, how much fuel, etc., etc. These are things that are readily understood. Use of the Kill-a-Watt meter which I learned of a few months ago, for instance, helped me to reduce from 1100 kwh/month (obviously excessive, even with 2 adults and 2 teens) down to 900 or so, and still working on cutting further. (Please wish me luck!)

Your writing, as always, is eloquent, and for that, as always, my thanks.

cheers,
Beam