Thursday, March 22, 2012

Friday Loose Bloggers Consortium: Complexity

Today's bloggers consortium topic is complexity. I have to admit, this is a complex topic for me! I cheated and read part of Ramana's post because my mind was totally blank. I've been pondering the topic all day, and just couldn't come up with anything to write. But his post sparked a memory. He wrote about how simplicity is the opposite of complexity. That reminded me of some people I heard about.

Some friends of mine have a brother and sister in law who decided that they wanted to live a "minimalist" life style. I guess they wanted to rid their life of complexity and confusion, so decided to pare down their belongings. They decided they only needed 2 plates, 2 forks, 2 cups etc. All the extra utensils they gave away. They even went so far as to transcribe their journals in to a word document so that they could throw away the physical books. I'm sure you can guess that they did the same with their photos. They got rid of their beds, and have just a sleeping mat like used in Japan, which can be rolled up during the day. In every aspect of their lives they chose minimalism.

As I thought about how simplicity is the opposite of complexity, I wondered if my lifestyle could be considered complex. I like to have extra on hand in case I run out of something. I have a lot of "junk" in my house. I have a good food storage on hand. Does that make my life complex?

I think there is something to be said for complexity in our lives. I think complexity can inspire us. While some may say that simplicity frees our minds of extra thoughts, I think complexity inspires our minds to higher thoughts. Even the visual stimulus of a complex model can stimulate our thinking.

Okay, well, maybe that's my excuse to not get rid of my junk. I don't know, but if simplicity and complexity are my choices, I'll stick with the complex.

If you would like to see what the other consortium members had to say about this complex topic, please visit their links:

Rummuser, Anu, Ashkok, Gaelikka, Grannymar, , Padmum, Magpie11, andAkanksha,Will Knot, Maria the Silver Fox, Anki, Nema Noor Paul Plain Joe, and Rohit
and The Old Fossil

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8 comments:

The Old Fossil said...

Complexity is a more complex topic than I realized, to be honest. There seem to be a number of different approaches to it. I am wondering if simplicity is equating to austerity here and complexity to richness - in which case, who wouldn't go for complexity?

Rummuser said...

I would consider it simple to store up on things that are difficult to procure. I was not always like that, but since my father is fussy, there are things that he likes that have to be procured with quite a bit of difficulty and I tend to keep reserve stocks. I stopped drinking alcoholic drinks 13 years ago and do not serve alcohol at home. But my bar with all the wine and special glasses still occupies space and I simply do not have the heart to give it away as it was one of the first pieces of furniture that Urmeela and I got for a song when we set up our first full fledged home. There are other things like that too and I suppose a dose of going minimal may be in order.

Grannymar said...

Life would be a whole deal less complex, if Blogger stopped asking me to prove that I am not a robot and Wordpress stopped telling me my normal sign-in belonged to someone else! Grrr!

Shackman said...

I guess that means my grandkids (who live with me) have adopted that minimalist approach as they kid 6 or 7 bowls, a few plates and most ofthe silverware in various cubby holes. Sometimes it's tough to scare up enough utensils for a family meal - the little buggers.

Delerious qre you gonna show up on hoarders? :) Nah - thats simply following he tenets of your faith having that food storage - so I'd say that's simple.

Now explaining what makes a curveball curve is complex bit throwing one is (well - as) fairly simple.

It's all so confusing.

Delirious said...

Ha ha Shackman, my kids would agree that I am a hoarder, but I think I'm just "prepared". :)

Inklings said...

I think in order to be THAT minimalist you'd have to have given up a few brain cells, also. :0)

padmum said...

Psssttt Delirious. We have a tradition in the family to always buy important things in twos---what will we do if one breaks down and we can't get replacements...this is true of knives, ladles, rolling pins, scissors, printer recharges, computers etc. In fact the word 'SPARE' is an important part of our lives!

blackwatertown said...

I get that a bit too GM - re the identity annoyance.
As for the throwing out of personal junk - sure, it's good up to a point - but only one plate each!? Sounds inhospitable. What are guests supposed to eat from?