Summer Break! Yeah!

Time for our voluntary simplicity to take a SUMMER break (just for July and August!) and we'll be back September 11 (second Thursday of the month). But we'll be keeping an eye on the blog between times.

I never want to look up from my desk in September and wonder where the summer went! It just takes a little planning. When discussing what to do with your time and energy this summer, voluntary simplicity often turns to a discussion of needs vs. wants and knowing the difference for one’s own personal situation. But I collected some notes for musing:

Summertime is a good time to ...

Picking vacations spots: walk more and wear good shoes, stay where the natives stay (like staying in Brooklyn to visit Manhattan).

“Staycations,” cited in a CNN article, featured “at home” vacations, where one person turned his backyard (do you have one of those?) into a personal sanctuary, another becoming a tourist in her own neighborhood (checking out museums and small theatres), and then the discussion about whether to unplug (no email) or not (yes, it encouraged everyone to unplug).

Previous articles from other places talked about Volunteers Vacations, where you can work for a charity, maybe get discounts on housing and travel.

Summertime is also a good time ...

To plan rest of year (budget, taxes, projects, etc.)
To make doctors appointments
To take field trips (Ocean City, Wave Hill, Prospect Park, Chesapeake Bay)
Take bike rides
Explore raw foods and salads
Repot house plants, fertilize, take cuttings (to take root)

Reinforce good habits

Take a break, do opposite of what you usually do
Instead of job hunting: build your network, prepare your tools
(revisit your resume or career plan), do research in a field, take a course


For me, in NYC, I may check out:
Icecream at La Maison du Chocolate: 1018 Madison (78-79)...
(never been but I heard it's good)
Heron watch by boat from South St Seaport (Sat evenings)

Lots of free days at local museums but two smaller museums for me:
Frick Collection, 1 E 70 St (Fifth), $15?
Merchant House, 29 E 4 St, $8?

Free music and films? YES! See schedules:
Make Music NY, June 21, 850 free concerts all over
Bryant Park Summer Film Festival, Mondays (5PM) June 16-Aug 18
Central Park Summer Stage (Rumsey Playfield, enter at E72) June 13-Aug 17
NY Philharmonic in the Park (Great Lawn, 79—85th Sts, midpark) June 24-July 15
Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Aug 7-24

There’s more ... Let's start a summer reading entry... or just stay in touch.

Next Thursday, 12 June, VS Circle Meets

Summer Times, what’s on the radar?

Just before we take our break for the summer, our 12 June (next Thursday) circle for voluntary simplicity meets (at 28 E 35th, open to all, 7 pm). The idea of time moving slower during summer ... being with nature, leisure visits with friends, catching up with projects, etc. Or does it mean the opposite to you ... on the go from dawn to dark plus some? What do you want do with your summer? Do your activities change that much? How do you deal with a hot city? Simple isn't always easy, but summer offers some advantages.

Ideas: There’s a volunteer vacations, free performances in the city, and then again, some of us have been looking at how our concept of real work has changed (what is the summer good for in resolving that?), or anything else you want to discuss before our two month break. ... like keeping cool.

See you next Thursday.

Diane

Interesting Reading

I have been running across some interesting articles I thought I would share. I had mentioned in a previous post that I had started receiving a new magazine, Miller-McCune, that focuses on "turning research into solution." And they have been managing to turn research into interesting articles. I was happy to find one of my favorite social scientists, Tim Kasser, profiled in the cover article of their latest issue. The article "Should the government make us happy?" looks at how we go about measuring the "health" of our country - do we look at the Gross National Product or do we look at "happiness" or the actual physical health United States citizens - these are just some examples. Tim Kasser is a psychologist who has done work on materialism, people's values and goals, and quality of life. He has written two books: The high price of materialism and Psychology and Consumer Culture. So he serves a big role model for me for where I want to go with my research.

Tim had a really interesting link on his website to Redefining Progress, which is:

a public policy think tank dedicated to smart economics. We find solutions that ensure a sustainable and equitable world for future generations. While conventional models for economic growth discount such assets as clean air, safe streets, and cohesive communities, Redefining Progress integrates these assets into a more sustainable economic model. Working with government and advocacy groups, Redefining Progress develops innovative policies that balance economic well-being, environmental preservation, and social justice. Our policy initiatives address pressing environmental issues such as global climate change and natural resource depletion, while ensuring that both the burdens and the benefits of these policies are shared equally among affected communities. We inject ground-breaking ideas into public dialogue, policy discourse, and decision-making in compelling and nonpartisan ways.

The other thing I ran across was a column on MSNBC on "extreme consumerism" - even though it has articles on being frugal, freecylcing, and freegans - so I think it should change it's name to something like "extreme non-consumerism".

I hope you are all enjoying the warmer weather!
~Kirsten