When we were in New York, it was not uncommon to find yourself invited into a 200-or-so square foot apartment, books piled under a kitchen sink that had toothbrushes beside it, belying its double-duty. It was always a thrill to see how friends and acquaintances managed to make these tiny spaces into homes. These cases, however, were not a matter of downsizing but more so a characteristic of New York’s interesting housing situation.
Our own studio apartment felt grand by comparison, all 55o-square-feet. It’s hard to imagine all three of us fitting there—now that there are four of us and a dog. We seem to accumulate toys the way the latter’s fur can attract foxgloves in an empty field (hardly trying). So I’m always particularly interested and inspired by tiny-home-dwellers (or airstream residents, in the case is pictured above) who can truly call themselves minimalists.
After-all, design minimalism is having a moment, but what does it really mean to downsize?
I wouldn’t say that envy is one of my biggest vices. But whenever the concept of “unplugging” comes up, I’m envious of those who are capable. The internet and social media are a big part of my life. I do everything I can to live in the present moment and resist the urge to check my phone when I’m around others, but sometimes it gets the best of me.
There’s a certain amount of social media I feel like is required by the nature of my work, but I’m certainly guilty of just bouncing around from app to app refreshing in moments of boredom or, worse even, out of habit: I realized the other day that I was opening Instagram again after having just closed it moments earlier… out of habit!
I’ve set those little alarms that tell me when I’ve reached an hour on Instagram and feel virtuous when it actually makes a difference. Then I get a notice about my average daily screen time and feel like I need to seek help!
Happy Valentine’s Day! Sending out virtual hugs to all of you today! I feel lucky to feel like I’ve gotten to widen my friend circle with this blog over the years—I tell everyone how the internet has been a really warm and welcoming place in the comment section of this site (and how shocking it is to read the comments, by contrast, in much wider-reaching forums—yikes!), so thank you!
I’m going to post some links that have caught my attention this week and then hurry off to try to make the school pickup special for the kids. Anything fun planned this evening? Hope it’s a good one. And to those of you who get Monday off, cheers to the long weekend!
