This is BF’s partial story.
He too, is a minimalist, but his parents (well, his father) trained him to be like that from young.
When they were kids, they weren’t poor in the sense that they were living paycheque to paycheque. They had money, they had savings, but they never spent it.
It wasn’t because his father was cheap and wanted to hoard the money, it was more that his dad hated STUFF.
He hated carrying, holding, storing and having STUFF.
He also felt that possessions in life were useless because you couldn’t eat it (note — he grew up during the war where there was no food available whatsoever).
BF joked that to his parents, Money = No Object(s)!
Here are some funny anecdotes from our conversations:
No Television
“It’s all crap on there. Sorry kids. No TV. It’s not reality, and if you want to watch TV, you go over to your cousin’s place. But it’s crap. The radio is better. And free.”
Then from not having a TV they avoided buying:
- TV accessories
- A couch to sit in to watch TV
- A VCR or DVR to record things on TV or to watch videos on the TV
- …anything the commercials were selling
No Telephone
“Why do we need a telephone for? If you want to talk to somebody, just go over and see them.”
Then from not having a telephone:
- No phone bills
- No actual phone to purchase
- No long distance calls
So what did they spend their money on?
Food. And utilities to cook food. That’s it.
They bought anything they wanted to eat: duck, shrimp, fancy cakes, special wine… it was a feast.
No extra clothes, toys, or anything I ever took for granted as a kid.
Not even soccer club fees or lessons, because that would mean that you’d have to buy a soccer ball and a uniform.
To me, it’s a rather extreme lifestyle, and that’s not the brand of minimalism I’m into, but it’s interesting to hear the history of how BF developed his aversion to stuff.
Although I should mention that BF has stuff. It just is only what he really wants.
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