Reply #130: Thanks for a thoughtful response, Lorien...

[IrateCitizen]

And yes, I've read Affluenza. It's a fantastic book, and a real eye-opener.

My wife and I are dabbling in the living simplicity movement. Or, I guess I should say, I'm dabbling and she's along for the ride. One of the best books I read on this was Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin. It does an excellent job of linking how so many of us are unhappy and lonely because we're consumed with the idea of working long hours at jobs we hate in order to keep up with mindless consumption patterns, and then offers a positive program to break free from that insanity and start living the life you really want to live. It essentially transforms your relationship with money, by getting you to realize that you essentially trade away your life's energy for money, and therefore you should take care of it and use it ways that bring you true fulfillment.

Personally, I am abandoning the field of engineering to become a history teacher (and possibly college professor after I get my PhD). Although it will mean less money (and less things), it will mean more leisure and more time to spend with family and friends. My wife is also changing careers from teaching to counseling because she just wants a job that makes her happy. My in-laws think we're crazy for taking jobs that make less money. Then again, their lives are based mainly on consumption patterns financed by long hours at jobs they don't like....