Stereo Typing

josephusminimus · Sep 27, 2012

Simran said:
josephusminimus said, " Angeli: The blessing is that a person doesn't need brain cells if he can just hone himself down to live precisely inside a stereotype.  All he's gotta do is buy the stereotype instruction manual and hammer himself down inside it until there's a perfect fit." I don't fit in either world very well. I live in a van about 90% of the time but I have a mortgage too. The bad new is my kids think what I do is normal; all-the-while my wife assures them it isn't! She keeps trying to get me to stay home and get a local job; I keep telling her, "This is the way it is; come join me!" She shudders at the very thought of being without a house; sticks & bricks that is. She loves me for who I am and loves the stories of adventure. My kids are learning to think outside the box; which scares hell out of their mother who would have me jump in the box with her if she could. At least that is what she claims. Sometimes I wonder if she doesn't cling to the glancing acquaintance of "recklessness", as she calls it, I bring to the table. She tries to get me to church; I decline. I just tell her if there is a place in heaven for gents like me; I'll find it hanging onto her skirt! She is a wonderful soul to put up with me. I am neither here nor there; I think it's called purgatory or something !!! <img src="/images/boards/smilies/wave.gif" alt="" align="absMiddle" border="0" />

Simran:  Purgatory's as good a name for it as any.  I often marvel at the boxes I find myself thinking inside trying to keep from thinking inside other boxes.  I suspect human beings are going to stereotype one way or another, and will be stereotyped as long as any of us are left.  Neither condition is an easy steamroller to dodge.  But on the receiving end of it disguise might work. Which I've never been much good at.

WanderingRain · Nov 19, 2012

Security is all in the mind. Once one breaks apart the mental prison society creates for him, he will be free. You are secure when you think you are secure. "Many men live lives of quiet desperation"

Simran · Nov 19, 2012

You are quite right; it's all mechanics of the mind. Awareness is key. Awareness of ones own thought process; a conscious decision to live ones life from a different perspective. It is a step by step process. By trial and error, consciously weeding out that which doesn't serve one well, one can realize freedom. gus

WanderingRain said:
Security is all in the mind. Once one breaks apart the mental prison society creates for him, he will be free. You are secure when you think you are secure. "Many men live lives of quiet desperation"

Seraphim · Nov 24, 2012

WanderingRain It's been my experience people create their own mental prisons. One can live in society without falling prey to its pitfalls.  I've done the nine to five, and used the  income to enjoy my life, one day at a time. I do my best to enjoy my labor, but don't take it home with me. Spend a minimum of a month a year in travel, and don't need to keep up with the Joneses. As a result, after 35+ years of saving, we're better off than the Joneses in our neighborhood. In five months we'll be travelling much more. I don't regret a single day of my life. It's all a matter of perception; but each must do that which makes them happy, else they imprison themselves. Each day unfolds and we must find ways to enjoy it. Your way may not be theirs. Don't blame society. They have no power over you that you don't give them.

karl · Nov 24, 2012

"Don't blame society. They have no power over you that you don't give them. " I like that- may just plagiarize that sentiment.

accrete · Jan 31, 2013

"Purgatory" : ) I think i can relate to that! My wife and i chose to leave the 3 bedroom farmhouse on an acre of land after both kids left for the US Airforce. Since we are still both working we chose to downsize and move into a comfy and cozy 5th wheel. We have a 10 minute commute on a country road, have our adventure rig (a conversion van) stocked and ready to head out into the wilds of the Pacific Northwest. We don't consider ourselves "Homeless", just living in a tiny home on wheels. Our co-workers are jealous as they watched us downsize over the course of a couple years to lighten the load and trim things down to essentials. It brought a sense of freedom we only read about in blogs and forums. somewhere on the Oregon Coast... ready for the next adventure : ) <img rel="lightbox" src="http://www.accrete.com/miscpix/TCLawdVanSM.jpg" class="bbc_img">

WanderingRain · Feb 11, 2013

I suppose my reasons for doing this are similar to most: it's just to have a bit of real freedom and not be attached or chained to any institution. It's not even a dislike for a stick and brick house, really. It's what it has come to represent in our current society. If cities would allow me to buy something like 100 square feet and nothing more, I'd actually do it and build a small home.  What I don't like is the institution telling me this is the size you have to buy, what materials to use and so forth... and you have no choice. So most of us, I suspect just say F.Y. to them and their rules who would bind us to their whims. Hate to say this, but having children is one of the surest ways the matrix can make us obey its will. There's tons of rules you can run afoul of when you are raising kids and the "man" is always looking to make sure you buy all his "BS child products" and your kids watch all his commercials so that your kid can grow into another mindless consumer. Unless you're a badass parent (and I have seen a few), you're really ****** until your kids grow up and you can be free again. This is why I am still out there looking for a cheap little home or a small plot of land I can build a homestead on. But it's gotta be the right price. I don't buy inflated overhyped land. Land is land. I'll eventually find my piece of land somewhere at the price I want... not the price they want me to buy at. And it will be independent of the power grid and all that... and no HOA's.  Some people have already made it and they are my guiding light. Cheers, Rod