zen anarchy

i'm not going to try to control you, and you don't try to control me, ok? i find the status quo to be insidious, ridiculous and boring. when did we as a people decide it was best to spend all day working a job we don't like with a mind numbing commute because we can't afford to like close to the center of "business", just to come home to our overgrown inefficient homes and veg in front of the tv until the microwave dings and dinner is served? clearly an extreme example, right? but according to the products i see in stores and advertising everywhere, this is what they're expecting us to do. no one has time to cook, or walk, or do what they're really good at. people don't even know what they're good at, only what makes them the most dollars in the least time. it's scary and alien to me, this culture that tries to make us all automatons. but i don't blame people, it's easy to be lulled into this trap. easier than resisting. but what if you don't have to work 40+ hours a week to be able to survive? what if there were alternatives to acquisition of more and more toys, products, and things that make life "easier". isn't it "easier" not to have to make the money to buy the things that make life convenient? what if you had 20 more hours of free time a week, would that make homecooked meals possible? there are many things i would be happy to do the old fashioned way if i had the time. and luckily, these things generally cost alot less money to accomplish. i'm ready to move that direction. i've not been made happy by all the stuff i've acquired, i've become trapped by it in many ways--initial investment, upkeep, insurance, transport, storage, and on and on.
so i'm breaking the chains. i'm living with less than the average american, which is still more than the average human. my goal is to live within my means now and then deliberately reduce my income and expenditures as i am able.