Small Living Journal

…and we’re back!

Sorry for the long silence… some momentum had been lost but has now been regained albeit at a slightly different pace. Small Living Journal will now move to a monthly rhythm and will be published on the first of each month beginning in January 2010. If you have topics you’d like the contributors to focus on please contact us.

This issue’s focus is on how technology impacts simple and small living. There are four articles in this issue:

• Gadgets and Simple Living: Is it worth the cost? by Tammy “RowdyKittens”
• My Other Side of Technology vs Smaller Living by Betsy McCullen
• Tiny Tech by Lelly
• Technology, Sustainability, and Human Evolution by Michael Janzen

It’s time for me to make a confession: I absolutely love gadgets. I don’t buy gadgets very often, but lately I’ve been fascinating about purchasing an iPhone.

On one hand, I see the usefulness of the iPhone. It’s a phone, camera, iPod and has amazing applications. If I purchased an iPhone, I could reduce the amount of stuff I carry around everyday. Also, being able to connect with friends and family with the touch of a few buttons is pretty cool.

On the other, hand what about the cost? On average iPhone plans run about $1,500 per year.

And I wonder about the implications of feature creep?

What do you think? Do gadgets, like the iPhone, enhance the concept of simple living? And are they worth the cost?

You can learn more about my downsizing journey by reading my blog, RowdyKittens, or following me on Twitter.

Is there such a thing as too much technology?  To me the whole point of simpler living is getting closer to this planet that we call home.  Right now we are so far removed from nature that we can not see if we even are causing any damage.  So instead of fixing what we are doing, we bicker about whether or not we’re inflicting any harm at all and then cram our lives with even more technology and gadgets.

I am no technological wizard and until I am able to design a house that cleans itself, makes my breakfast, and does my laundry, I think I’ll have to settle for conveniences that are readily available.  But to fit it all into a tiny house could be a challenge.

However, I’m sure that when living in a tiny area, it would help to keep clutter at bay by incorporating a few luxuries.  I know that last winter, at the beginning of the remodel that never ends, when I spent almost every minute in my 13′ x11′ bedroom, it would have been nice to have a Kindle e-book reader, so that I wasn’t tripping over boxes of books.  Or a scanner so that I wouldn’t have to have a file cabinet.  Or even just a proper closet in which to put all of my crap would have been nice!

I do know that when I design the tiny house of my dreams, it will have no tv.  No movies or sitcoms to suck my life force out of me.  Instead, I plan on taking my life and doing something meaningful with it, even if it’s only meaningful to me.

A number of readers have requested information on small spaces and finances, so we thought it would be interesting to devote an issue of the SLJ to this topic. In this issue, the authors discuss a number of financial benefits to small living.

Disclaimer: The authors in this issue are not financial advisers. If you chose to follow the advice in this issue, you do so at your own risk.

We all face many common obstacles while making the transition to a simpler lifestyle. In this issue of Small Living Journal we share some of our experiences and how we’ve worked through them. Some of us have also included what we expect to encounter along the way and how we plan to move through those future obstacles.  We hope you find it useful to hear our stories and look forward to your comments and questions.

Photo credit Wikimedia Commons

Read Issue 11- Obstacles and Solutions