Help me rediscover the simple life!

June 17, 2007 3:34 PM

Help me rediscover the simple life!

My editor wants me to write about what it's like to live a simpler life, with less clutter, less technology, etc. The first idea was to go live in an igloo for a week -- nice idea but there aren't any this time of year. And no one really lives in igloos anymore anyway. I'm trying to brainstorm other possibilities. The thing is, whatever and wherever the structure, it should be part of a community, so I have more to describe than just my bare walls. Ie, I'm not trying to re-do Walden, here. A Norwegian fishing village might work, but an important caveat is the people living in this theoretical community must live there by choice -- not simply because they can't afford to live elsewhere. Amish country is the ideal option, but that's been done. Anyone have any other suggestions?

posted by It ain't over yet to travel & transportation (33 comments total)

I just got back from a wonderful vacation in the Philippines where we stayed in a beachside "resort" with no running water or electricity. The people there survive by fishing. It's a cheap place to visit too!
posted by Brittanie at 3:40 PM on June 17, 2007

The Rainbow Gathering is a huge, outdoor community experience. No tech, (even watches can be too much), lots of fun, some great people with some great stories. Don't be afraid of feeling like a voyeur; you'll be welcome as-is.
posted by monkeymadness at 3:40 PM on June 17, 2007

A campground, maybe? One of the ones without hookups for RVs or anything like that?

The "community" wouldn't be completely static; would that matter?
posted by Many bubbles at 3:40 PM on June 17, 2007

Sorry, wrong link. Here you go.
posted by monkeymadness at 3:41 PM on June 17, 2007

How about a...

Commune.

Homeless shelter.

Vagabond travel on Greyhound buses from hostel to hostel with only a loaf of bread and jar of peanut butter along the way.

Spend a week at a summer camp as an instructor.

Couch surfer.

Migrant agricultural worker (added points for being topical to immigration policy).
posted by peacecorn at 3:42 PM on June 17, 2007

You might try searching for the term "intentional communities."
posted by washburn at 3:48 PM on June 17, 2007

Many monasteries will let people visit.
posted by xo at 3:48 PM on June 17, 2007 [1 favorite]

Iona may be too transient for you, but my parents have been and described it as being similar to what you're asking for (and they loved it).
Likewise this, but the "living there by choice" angle is sort of a given, since they're monks. Still, they picked that particular monastery, yes?
Or, knock yourself out with this!
posted by Gingersnap at 3:55 PM on June 17, 2007

Maybe a WWOOFing site? The basic idea is you trade work on an organic farm for free room and board (and the experience). I was on one in Spain. It was very simple. The toilet was a bucket with sawdust in it. I took a shower in the stream using a cooking pot. There was (solar) electricity, but no internet or phone. There should be some in the US that are community based as well, though mine was a bit isolated.
posted by zoey08 at 3:55 PM on June 17, 2007

pretty much any type of camping festivals (music? historical reenactment? religious? burning man style?) some people, especially those who have businesses at these types of events, spend half the year or more going from one festival to another. many festivals have a lot of the same community year after year even though they may only last for a week or so at a time, and also many festival-hoppers know each other from more than one festival.
posted by lgyre at 4:16 PM on June 17, 2007

check out Freeganism - the notion of living off of the usable discards of society. extremely viable way to live, especially in cities. looking into anarchist/punk/urban subcultures, you can probably find a lot of information on squatting and living rent-free, as well as traveling via thumb or freight hopping, an dumpsterdiving.

also, yes, look in to intentional communities. a lot are social justice oriented, and some have religious ties (thinking in particular of Catholic Worker Communities).
posted by entropone at 4:16 PM on June 17, 2007

Why not your normal life with zero computer/tv/internet?

In other words, each night, you have to entertain yourself with books (games, friends, etc.). No email for a week. No tv for a week. Type the article on a typewriter. Only listen to Albums (instead of that new fangled ipod - observations on how an album was constructed (as a whole).
posted by filmgeek at 4:30 PM on June 17, 2007

I lived in a Christian missionary house in Germany for a week. It housed Catholic priests who weren't out doing missions elsewhere. They had TV and computers and phones, but they weren't used too much (though they did all sit around to watch the news every night). They get visitors so they'd be welcome to you - but be careful, some of them are really unfriendly.
posted by divabat at 4:54 PM on June 17, 2007

You could write about Shakers. I think you're gonna find Norwegian fishing villages rather disappointingly full of gadgets.
posted by Kattullus at 4:54 PM on June 17, 2007

In Vermont a lot of people live "off the grid." They might be fun to live with.
posted by k8t at 5:02 PM on June 17, 2007

Seconding Rainbow Gathering linked to upthread. Also, there are many temporary communities of folks camping for summers on public lands outside of mountain towns in the western U.S. (These would probably be harder to find and to be accepted within the community).
posted by fieldtrip at 5:11 PM on June 17, 2007

I recently read a very similar article about a writer (Logan Ward) who decided to live life as it would have been 100 years ago. So this guy and his family moved out to a farm. He wrote a book about it called See You in a Hundred Years.

seems like your editor is going after the same idea.

Featured on page 42 of the current National Geographic Adventure June/July 2007 Issue
posted by special-k at 5:14 PM on June 17, 2007

Amazon review of the book.

From Publishers Weekly
Manhattan freelance writer Ward and his wife, Heather, faced a steep learning curve when they abandoned harried, technology-driven lives for a year not just in the country but in the country as it was a century ago. Their mantra was, If it didn't exist in 1900, we will do without, and they did—no electricity, no telephone, no computer. This breezy account of their stubbornly quixotic odyssey begins in June 2000, with Logan exhausted pumping water from a well, ineptly milking cantankerous goats and confronting his fear of a 2,000-pound Percheron, while Heather coped with the cooking stove's suffocating heat, her fear of snakes and hand-scrubbing two-year-old Luther's cloth diapers. Their garden, planted late, was soon parched by drought and plagued by pests, the most severe of several crises, since it was their winter food. Ward writes candidly about how tempers flared and sexual intimacy vanished in the early months of their adventure, but the stress of a daunting new experience soon settled into the comfort of routine, as the couple canned dozens of quarts of produce once the rains returned and forged friendships with curious, ultimately supportive country neighbors. This lyrical account of keeping the 21st century at bay is more real, and more rewarding, than any survival TV show. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
posted by special-k at 5:17 PM on June 17, 2007

You will definitely want to also post your question here, a very active simple-living forum. Been reading it for years - lots of great people with tons of opinions and advice.
posted by jbickers at 6:14 PM on June 17, 2007

punta mona may be the sort of thing you're looking for. it's sort of a commune/eco-retreat in costa rica. there's a permanent community, some long-term volunteers, and short-term visitors. english is spoken, so you won't have to wrangle a translator.
posted by thinkingwoman at 6:21 PM on June 17, 2007

Lots of people drop out by going to an ashram, where you can do service in exchange for room & board. You are in NY so Kripalu and Ananda Asharam are your closest options, but they have moved from the ashram to the hotel side of the communal living spectrum in the last 10 or so years. Dai Bosatsu Zendo is a Buddhist option.
posted by shothotbot at 6:27 PM on June 17, 2007

long-term hostel stayers

sex, booze, sex, booze, work awhile in the hostel kitchen or as a night manager, sex, booze, sex, booze

repeat

etc etc

some interesting folk do this!
posted by Salvatorparadise at 7:26 PM on June 17, 2007

Rainbow Gathering, from above link, might be limited if you don't want a Christian perspective specifically.

2nding googling "intentional communities", eg. The Farm, etc. Many have visitors' days/weeks or work/live options for short term.
posted by kch at 7:46 PM on June 17, 2007

2nding monasteries.
posted by robcorr at 8:05 PM on June 17, 2007

Auroville in India has many interesting communities that would fit the bill, there would be a huge amount to write about.
posted by BobsterLobster at 10:10 PM on June 17, 2007

Couldn't you try to lead a simpler life where you are now? You know, put all your gadgets in storage and participate in the community you live in already? Personally, I'd be a lot more interested in someone's experiences trying to do that than going off to live in some random, obscure commune.
posted by Jess the Mess at 10:35 PM on June 17, 2007

I second peacorn's idea of couchsurfing - via this site. Just as with a face to face community you would have to initially establish yourself as a member. The experience would naturally make for an interesting article and you could choose a route - such as a traditional pilgrimage route - to follow.

Failing that why not try going somewhere by sea. You could travel on a frieghter where you would be able to talk with the crew -or you could join part of a crew on a yacht voyage.
posted by rongorongo at 2:13 AM on June 18, 2007

Twin Oaks Intentional Living Community
posted by phrontist at 2:40 AM on June 18, 2007

kch, the Gathering isn't Christian by any means; the first link I accidentally included is just one group that attends. There are many different people from many different ideologies. Check my 2nd link.
posted by monkeymadness at 4:13 AM on June 18, 2007

You might search Global Eco-Village Network for a place near you. Lots of intentional communities and gatherings of people looking to live a more sustainable life.
posted by JohnYaYa at 7:11 AM on June 18, 2007

I agree with Jess the Mess. Going to a commune or a monestary, or even just 'roughing it' in the wilderness all have novelty value, but for most people aren't sustainable ways of living more simply.

Live more simply where you are now. Turn off the TV and the computer and everything else (including the AC!). Make coffee on the stove top instead of going to sbux. Write out your story longhand. Get up when it's light and go to bed when it's dark. Etc. etc.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 7:34 AM on June 18, 2007

If you decide to go the route of limiting your own technology, don't forget to stop using your car! If you want to find other people who're combining 'simple' with modern urban life, try checking out a car co-op or bike club, or something like freecycle.

The radical angle of 'simplicity' has been done to death, in my opinion. What would be interesting to me, as a reader, would be an article on people who find ways to make use of modern tech without feeling the overwhelming burden of it. In other words, those who live simply but with a sense of plenty and convenience in a recognizable setting.
posted by carmen at 8:29 AM on June 18, 2007

What about renting a studio in your area? You could live simply among people living.... complexly? Might make for some interesting contrasts.
posted by callmejay at 11:04 AM on June 18, 2007