Paid subscribers, listen the audio version - narrated by me - here When I read Marie Kondo has “kind of given up tidying,” my heart sank through the floor. I knew what was coming. A tirade of: HA! I told you living with less isn’t possible And What an idiot this woman was to tell people to live with intention. Now we can get back to buying everything we want whenever we want without feeling guilty.
Really well said CB! I thought her overarching idea was solid and still very much in evidence with her decision. Her honesty about it is also refreshing. I think one of the collective problems is a lack of introspection, which results in literalism as opposed to a principled nuanced view. It’s intellectually lazy and rampant in the black and white polarization we’re seeing across the spectrum.
I thought we could all breathe a collective sigh of relief with Marie Kondo's revelation. If the "Queen of Clean" has the self-awareness to admit that keeping a house impeccably tidy with three kids takes a superhuman effort to the detriment of joy with her own family, then we must all realise that "impeccably clean" is an unrealistic ideal. I say this as a person who tends to keep his living space in a state of managed chaos -- emphasis very much on the latter word!
You’re spot on with peoples reactions to minimalism. People tell me all the time that my kids should have this and that and this and that -- all plastic toys that are cheaply made and tossed aside within a day or so. And if I say no? I’m depriving my children. OR is it that I’m teaching them to purchase things that mean something to them especially in a time where everything is so expensive?
And once again, you’re spot on with WHY people are reacting the way they are to MK. Even if she covered her house in dog poo, my daily choices and routine do not change. Therefore, I have no opinion on the way she lives her life. Reactions are often rooted in what people dislike about themselves.
Her changing with kids should be reassuring to people. I am sure her home is still tidy by most people’s standards if she practices what she preaches. I don’t see her having too much stuff like most people.
The best statement you made in this article, Charlie, was "Perhaps the things that "spark joy"
for her now are her children. No question on that one. Any kid's needs are more important than a perfectly empty laundry room, a living room without a paper out of place, or a kitchen where you could do surgery on the centre island.
Really well said CB! I thought her overarching idea was solid and still very much in evidence with her decision. Her honesty about it is also refreshing. I think one of the collective problems is a lack of introspection, which results in literalism as opposed to a principled nuanced view. It’s intellectually lazy and rampant in the black and white polarization we’re seeing across the spectrum.
I thought we could all breathe a collective sigh of relief with Marie Kondo's revelation. If the "Queen of Clean" has the self-awareness to admit that keeping a house impeccably tidy with three kids takes a superhuman effort to the detriment of joy with her own family, then we must all realise that "impeccably clean" is an unrealistic ideal. I say this as a person who tends to keep his living space in a state of managed chaos -- emphasis very much on the latter word!
You’re spot on with peoples reactions to minimalism. People tell me all the time that my kids should have this and that and this and that -- all plastic toys that are cheaply made and tossed aside within a day or so. And if I say no? I’m depriving my children. OR is it that I’m teaching them to purchase things that mean something to them especially in a time where everything is so expensive?
And once again, you’re spot on with WHY people are reacting the way they are to MK. Even if she covered her house in dog poo, my daily choices and routine do not change. Therefore, I have no opinion on the way she lives her life. Reactions are often rooted in what people dislike about themselves.
Thanks for another great write up! Happy weekend!
Her changing with kids should be reassuring to people. I am sure her home is still tidy by most people’s standards if she practices what she preaches. I don’t see her having too much stuff like most people.
Americans have 30x more stuff than Europeans?! Did I do my math correctly?!
The best statement you made in this article, Charlie, was "Perhaps the things that "spark joy"
for her now are her children. No question on that one. Any kid's needs are more important than a perfectly empty laundry room, a living room without a paper out of place, or a kitchen where you could do surgery on the centre island.
Who America builds up to heights of popularity, must then be torn down. It's almost as American as apple pie.
And I think you're spot on about why the reaction has been so negatively virulent.