LIVING LESS 8-28-05

LIVING LESS
08-28-05

Anyone from America will recognize the phrase “Living Large”. But here in Germany I’m “Living Less”. First of all, everything here is smaller. The roads are certainly smaller, which means the cars are smaller. (Therefore some of the traffic problems are bigger) The stores are smaller with less selection than in America. (the local Wal-Mart Supercenter is the size of an old-fashioned WalMart in the USA. Ahhhh, the good ole days). Food comes in smaller packages (b/c most people walk to the store and must carry their purchases home, then carry them up several flights of stairs). Most kitchens are smaller with less storage. These things prompt a lifestyle change in that most people shop more frequently and for less amounts: none of this stockpiling we do in the USA. Living space as a whole is less, so furniture stores like IKEA, (my new all-time favorite store), which sell clever furniture that maximize space and storage ideas, do so well. My wardrobe (there are no closets in Europe) is maybe ¼ the size of our closet at home – and Jeff and I both share it. (Goes without saying that our clothing inventory has shrunk drastically. The only problem is that we have more winter clothes which take up more space) We’ve had to create storage solutions for coat hanging, storing the vacuum and ironing board and kitchen supplies.
But living less doesn’t mean living without. I’ve found that I spend less money because I’m not buying in bulk – therefore I only buy what I need. There’s also less spontaneous buying since I have to lug stuff up 4 flights of stairs. We eat better because I have to plan more intentionally and buy the ingredients fresh daily. I spend less time cleaning since I have less, which gives me more time for more important things like family, friends and language learning. I can find what I’m looking for a lot easier since I don’t have to weed through a lot of extra things. And I’m finding I’m enjoying what I do have even more. So bring on the lesser lifestyle – it’s been rather refreshing so far!