My home office is also a guest bedroom and thus comes equipped with a double bed and a built-in wardrobe. The wardrobe has mirrored doors and, due to the dimensions of the room, I am forced to sit working parallel to my evil reverse twin. It’s almost like being at work — when I glance over, he glances over; when I pick my nose, he picks his nose. It is quite unnerving. Don’t worry though, I’ve slid opened the ward door so that he can’t see me writing this — or worse still, do some blogging of his own. Imagine that, an evil reverse twin blog!
Of course, now I have to look into my wardrobe when I stretch my neck. Twenty unironed shirts (my ironing service refuse to do more shirts than there are days when I have to wear shirts), a few suits, 6 pairs of shoes, and up above big computer boxes. I wonder if I need so many shirts or whether I could get by with, say, 7? Nobody needs more than 2 pairs of shoes, do they? There is a new craze in the minimalist movement to reduce your possessions to 100 items. Once you get down to 100 (some even count each sock as an item), you are more or less down to the essential. You will possess your possessions, rather than your possessions consuming you. At least, that’s the theory. In practice, getting so worked up about possessions shows that you are probably unnecessarily obsessed with stuff.
I was talking to a girl whose flat burnt down along with all her possessions. Every photo, every computer file, every item of clothes (save the pajamas she was wearing), everything was destroyed. People ask her whether it has made her have a zen acceptance of the friability of all things. She says, no it just makes her sad to lose the things she likes. Unlike Michael Landy, who famously shredded everything he owned in the name of art, it wasn’t done by choice. I wonder what Landy owns now? I wonder whether he is reluctant to buy stuff or goes on guilt-ravaged spending sprees? Personally, I would quite like to experience the feeling of getting rid of everything except a laptop and a few clothes. And a bag. And kitchen utensils. And a chair. And a table. And a bed. And my memory foam topper. And a few of my books . . . oh, it’s impossible!
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That is far too many shirts, you lunatic. I have 7 shirts, two suits, one pair of jeans and a few t-shirts which mostly get used as vests. And (hubris mode engaged) ONE pair of shoes! Alas I am taking up running again so tomorrow I shall buy running shoes. Today is the last day I can boast about the shoes.
I think I am down to a comfortable minimum amount of stuff now. Moving home helped. I still want to halve my DVD and CD collections but this will require actual sacrifices rather than the easy blowing out of junk.