I love food but I’m not much into cooking. Over the years, food writer and cook Nigel Slater has not just deepened my interest in fresh, simple and declious food, but also in their selection, preparation and appreciation. Initially, I thought it was simply due to how Nigel writes about food; like writing in a journal, or chatting to an old friend, and how he presents them so honestly and beautifully.
I have been officially outed…as a Minimalist. Courtesy of Completely London magazine.
You can read about it here.
Since I embraced simple living and minimalism and started this blog two years ago, a post on ‘I am debt-free’ has been at the top of my list. I still can’t believe that I am finally in a position to write such a post: I am debt-free and I have money in the bank. It feels rather surreal and after two months, it has yet to fully sink in.
Finally, I did it…a month ago today. This poem is a gift to my beloved home in south London; thank you and goodbye.
ODE TO OVAL
Located in the Oval is my beloved 2 bedroom flat, near Kennington, Brixton, Clapham and Vauxhall is where it is at
It was the year 2005 when I moved in in the month of May, to my lovely home near Kennington Bookshop,
This goldfish picture has always resonated with me since I first came across it many years ago. The simple yet powerful imagery embraces themes like ‘being free’; ‘breaking away to find one’s own path’; ‘pursuing one’s dreams’; ‘seeking a new world’; ‘in pursuit of solitude’; ‘being brave…or being stupid?’…and the list goes on . You get the drift.
It has been a year since I flew out of the corporate cage and left cubicle nation behind.
Books have been a key motivator and resource in my journey towards simplicity and minimalism. I did not have any mentors or friends who were on a similar journey and these books and their authors provided inspiration and connections to ideas and like-minded people. Below are ten of my favourite books on simplicity and minimalism- the list is certainly not exhaustive as I’ve read many more good books on the subject.
I think this song by Peter Doran is great for those moments when we think and ask ourselves: ‘do I need this?’, ‘do I want this?’, ‘should I buy this?’….
Every Little Thing’ Lyrics
Every little thing, you think that you need
Every little thing, you think that you need
Every little thing that’s just feeding your greed
Oh, I bet that you’d be fine without it
Every little thing that you’ve gotta have
Every little thing that you’ve gotta have
That you’ve got to reach for and you’ve got to grab
Oh,
These two questions are simple and commonly asked but behind their harmless facade lies an expansive area of identity and status definition, comparison and anchoring.
When you first meet someone, one of the questions is likely to be, ‘What do you do?.’ Behind this simple question lies a minefield of complexity and many of us (myself included) would tend to fall back on using our day job/profession/vocation as an answer,
What would one do if money was no object? I think this is a very powerful question. It strips away our fears, doubts, uncertainty, inhibitions…it frees us in many ways and most importantly, it frees us up to dream…to pursue our life’s passion…to live.
There were many times I wished I had known the things I know now when I was younger; my life would have been different,
Being a bookseller and book lover, I get quite a lot of apologetic looks and ‘ I’m sorry I’m going to talk about e-books and kindles’ or ‘I’m sorry but I love the Kindle!’ type of comments from family and friends. I want to tell them: ‘Don’t be sorry, you have nothing to apologise for. Bring on the e-books and Kindles!.’
You see, even as I love physical books and brick and mortar bookshops,
