4 ms·

Weird. I read the post and asked myself "where's the news?" I thought the majority of HN readers lived like this. I do, but without the custom tailoring or what

Weird. I read the post and asked myself "where's the news?" I thought the majority of HN readers lived like this. I do, but without the custom tailoring or whatever he was talking about. I can't afford that right now. Owning lots of stuff is a burden. Really is.

Nursie 14y ago
Can I ask how old you are? I don't want to be surrounded by clutter, but 'having a nice household environment', which involves the ownership of a fair amount of stuff, is high up on my list of things that make my life comfortable.
- thoughtcriminal 14y ago
  Forty.
  - Nursie 14y ago
    Fair enough, you have a few years on me, and that was not what I was expecting! I don't know anybody beyond their 20s that lives with quite such an extreme ethos about this whole thing. And most of my friends are hackers in one way or another. That said they're also mostly British and not part of startup culture.
    - feralmoan 14y ago
      Its interesting you keyed it to startup culture, there's probably a correlation there in having a producer mindset rather then being a consumer. I'm 35 and live to build, all my belongings fit in a suitcase and can skip to new countries or opportunities with a few days notice. Minimal is a fantastic lifestyle if you have the means and skill to exploit it. The idea of owning a house and having to fill it with shit just stresses me out.
      - neverm0re 14y ago
        > The idea of owning a house and having to fill it with shit just stresses me out. Friend of mine was twenty-three when his parents insisted he buy a home in Sunnyvale since 'he could afford to'. We got to the point of describing the place as an 'albatross' repeatedly, since it cost him many interesting opportunities had he not been nailed into place. He's now very happily in Japan and free of the burden of home ownership. I'm in my thirties and I've lived in quite a few places. Yet to live somewhere and say 'Yep, this is it. Nothing else to see, this is the best culture has to offer.' and then stay there. Minimalism simply works best to achieve mobility and it's not like you cannot find partners whom also feel the same way. I find a lot of the hostility and stereotyping over this lifestyle I see here fascinating. Buyers remorse most likely.
      - Nursie 14y ago
        I think it's a lot presumptious to say that people who do keep posessions are not part of producer culture, and that's not what I meant. I meant the startup world as a fashion or a fad which seems to attract people who are into all sorts of funny ideas. I don't associate startups with productivity, certainly not often useful productivity most of the time.
michaelt 14y ago
Well, there are varying degrees of 'not owning shit' - I don't own a great deal of stuff, but I own more than I have done in the past, and more than this guy who says he can fit all his possessions in a suitcase. I don't think I'd qualify by his standards - and maybe not by yours. For example, I have enough clean clothes to go two weeks without doing laundry; four pairs of shoes (trainers, formal shoes, safety boots, dancing shoes); six sets of plates and glasses (more than I've ever needed to use at once); cooking stuff like pots, pans, spoons, whisk, scales etc; a motorcycle; a set of motorcycle maintenance tools; three different coats (regular coat, motorcycle jacket for me, motorcycle jacket for passenger); kit for several different sports; desktop computer, personal laptop and work laptop; soldering iron; digital storage oscilloscope. All stuff I need to get stuff done, but certainly more than I could fit in a suitcase.

Nursie 14y ago

Can I ask how old you are? I don't want to be surrounded by clutter, but 'having a nice household environment', which involves the ownership of a fair amount of stuff, is high up on my list of things that make my life comfortable.

thoughtcriminal 14y ago
Forty.
- Nursie 14y ago
  Fair enough, you have a few years on me, and that was not what I was expecting! I don't know anybody beyond their 20s that lives with quite such an extreme ethos about this whole thing. And most of my friends are hackers in one way or another. That said they're also mostly British and not part of startup culture.
  - feralmoan 14y ago
    Its interesting you keyed it to startup culture, there's probably a correlation there in having a producer mindset rather then being a consumer. I'm 35 and live to build, all my belongings fit in a suitcase and can skip to new countries or opportunities with a few days notice. Minimal is a fantastic lifestyle if you have the means and skill to exploit it. The idea of owning a house and having to fill it with shit just stresses me out.
    - neverm0re 14y ago
      > The idea of owning a house and having to fill it with shit just stresses me out. Friend of mine was twenty-three when his parents insisted he buy a home in Sunnyvale since 'he could afford to'. We got to the point of describing the place as an 'albatross' repeatedly, since it cost him many interesting opportunities had he not been nailed into place. He's now very happily in Japan and free of the burden of home ownership. I'm in my thirties and I've lived in quite a few places. Yet to live somewhere and say 'Yep, this is it. Nothing else to see, this is the best culture has to offer.' and then stay there. Minimalism simply works best to achieve mobility and it's not like you cannot find partners whom also feel the same way. I find a lot of the hostility and stereotyping over this lifestyle I see here fascinating. Buyers remorse most likely.
    - Nursie 14y ago
      I think it's a lot presumptious to say that people who do keep posessions are not part of producer culture, and that's not what I meant. I meant the startup world as a fashion or a fad which seems to attract people who are into all sorts of funny ideas. I don't associate startups with productivity, certainly not often useful productivity most of the time.

michaelt 14y ago

Well, there are varying degrees of 'not owning shit' - I don't own a great deal of stuff, but I own more than I have done in the past, and more than this guy who says he can fit all his possessions in a suitcase. I don't think I'd qualify by his standards - and maybe not by yours. For example, I have enough clean clothes to go two weeks without doing laundry; four pairs of shoes (trainers, formal shoes, safety boots, dancing shoes); six sets of plates and glasses (more than I've ever needed to use at once); cooking stuff like pots, pans, spoons, whisk, scales etc; a motorcycle; a set of motorcycle maintenance tools; three different coats (regular coat, motorcycle jacket for me, motorcycle jacket for passenger); kit for several different sports; desktop computer, personal laptop and work laptop; soldering iron; digital storage oscilloscope. All stuff I need to get stuff done, but certainly more than I could fit in a suitcase.