60 Square Feet of Wisdom

Jeff,

The author of the piece has a regular house, I think she uses the small trailer for camping. If that's the case then you _can_ go camping in a small trailer without hooks for a week or more. I've done. Lots. My parents bought a very small camper about the same size as the authors when I was 4 and my sib was 3. We had to take the sunscren, sippy cups, sometimes bikes (they easily rode inside the camper), swimsuits, clothes, etc. and had a great time! It was a great way to teach us at a very early age about not letting water run, using lights only when necessary, etc.

That is a nice story of being able to live quite frugally - for some time. My inlaws do very much the same in an RV for most of the year. But they do need to be at home where they keep their tools, sewing machines, family memorabilia etc. You just can't take all that stuff on the road. As a single person, or even a married couple, this would be sufficient for some time. But with young children - it simply is not possible. The water usage itself would be prohibitive (think 3x diapers, soiled clothes/sheets, and standard dirty clothes - for my family). We live as frugally as possible here at home (garden, grey-water system, all clothes dried on the line, very little electricity used daily) and I would love the simplicity and frugality of living even simpler. The law is even against us: car seats until 8, bike helmets, life jackets. Not even mentioning our daily "go-bag" of sunscreen, hats, BPA free sippy cups... it just gets a bit much. So, I commend the author - but for many of us in different stages of life, "some" clutter and encumberment is simply required :)

That is a nice story of being able to live quite frugally - for some time. My inlaws do very much the same in an RV for most of the year. But they do need to be at home where they keep their tools, sewing machines, family memorabilia etc. You just can't take all that stuff on the road. As a single person, or even a married couple, this would be sufficient for some time. But with young children - it simply is not possible. The water usage itself would be prohibitive (think 3x diapers, soiled clothes/sheets, and standard dirty clothes - for my family). We live as frugally as possible here at home (garden, grey-water system, all clothes dried on the line, very little electricity used daily) and I would love the simplicity and frugality of living even simpler. The law is even against us: car seats until 8, bike helmets, life jackets. Not even mentioning our daily "go-bag" of sunscreen, hats, BPA free sippy cups... it just gets a bit much. So, I commend the author - but for many of us in different stages of life, "some" clutter and encumberment is simply required :)

Ah! How refreshing to hear someone else that enjoys a small yet efficient space. In a world where keeping up with the Jones means 4000 sq ft home for two adults. My husband & I often marvel - or rather scratch our heads -WHAT do they do with all of that SPACE? We promise each other, that even when we hit the big lottery - we won't move to a "big" house. We're rather cozy in our "cavernous" 980 sq ft. with a garden three times the size of our home.