So I actually wrote this up on my white board because I was thinking about it after I saw a video from the vlogbrother talking about it. Specifically, John was talking about how Hank lives commensurate to his values. That sounded pretty good to me, so I was wondering if I did the same. Here’s what I came up with
So, overall I think Christine and I have been doing this more over the last couple years, especially within the last year or so. Having a midlife crisis without the crisis seems to help. I recommend it actually because it causes you to turn an inward eye critically on the things in your life and determine what really means something to you.
Simplicity – We have been trying to purge more and buy less overall. We have been trying to reduce our clutter in our lives. We have been giving away a variety of things that we simply don’t use anymore so that others might benefit from them. We have also been selling a few things, and overall are trying to reduce the amount of crap we have that gets in the way or needs to be picked up. This also allows us to spend less time cleaning and more time doing other more productive things (at least that’s what we are telling ourselves about the ‘productive’ time)
Arts and Entertainment – We have been trying to get out and see more and do more. I have been to more concerts in the last year and half than I had in the previous six. Example, we are going to see Mutemath tonight, and going to see The Black Keys in two weeks. We went to go see Tool in January, which was awesome (but not as awesome as A Perfect Circle in Arizona when we were there in 2010 for the AYE conference)
Eco-friendly – We have been eco-friendly for a long time actually, but we are seeking to try to reinforce that even more. I have been recycling since they first started offering it, and continue to do so. This year we are joining a community supported agriculture group or CSA so that we have fresher vegetables, that supports local growers and doesn’t incur the travel costs of pollution that other ways of getting that produce would. We are also going to start our own garden this year, as well as start to compost.
Helping others – We like helping others when we can and we are seeking other ways to continue to do this. I turned all my money that doesn’t really act like money (AKA pennies) into tangible cash by rolling it up and depositing it with the bank. I then took that money and invest 50 dollars through KIVA.org as part of a donation team. Christine also donates money directly out of every paycheck to help homeless families.
What about you – do you live commensurate to your values? Do you put a relative amount of time and effort into the things you care about at the level you say you care about them?