Ok, so I fell off the map for the last while, but I return with some major news: I made a very large and very old purchase. As of yesterday I am the proud (and terrified) owner of a 1944 bungalow in “Canada’s worst neighbourhood.” I’m not fazed by the bad neighbourhood part (I’ve lived in some most excellent bad neighourhoods in my day, and I actually think I prefer them…call it the Romantic Starving Artist archetype within). What scares me is the responsibility, commitment, and probable substantial cost of the endeavour.
There seem to be two schools of thought on home-owning in this day and age. There’s the standard one, which goes along the lines of, “Why pay rent every month to someone else when you could be paying it into your own investment?” Though I sometimes wonder if that that line of thinking might be nothing more than big bank propaganda, it’s ultimately the one I decided to go with, mostly because Regina has such an affordable and growing real estate market. In that way, I’ve made a very calculated investment (a.k.a. risk). I fully intend to make money from this and put it towards something else (of even greater value, whether financial or spiritual). Of course, in the meantime it’s also going to be my home, which is one of the most important parts of my life.
But there’s a critical argument against investing in real estate too, and that’s the one that is scary. It goes something like, “Maybe, just maybe, buying something huge that requires constant upkeep and maintenance isn’t actually the best way to move towards sustainability (financial independence, smaller ecological footprint, simpler life, etc.). Why would I want to live in (and pay to maintain) a comparatively huge property and structure, when I could certainly spend less money by not owning my own house? A couple of my more righteously hardcore friends have also reminded me gently that a whole house is more space than most of the world’s population has, and that it’s my responsibility as a privileged Northerner to decrease the amount of global space and energy I take up.
Yes, yes, yes and yes. I know these things and am in full agreement. And even though I’m scared and have lots of questions and fears about the whole thing, I still wanted to buy a whole house. Why? What am I hoping to achieve through this purchase that I think might actually serve the common good?
1. Financial Independence. So how exactly does my financial independence serve the common good? A fine question. Please refer to Your Money or Your Life for the best answer, but in the meantime here’s my version: by becoming less dependent on the mainstream socioeconomic structure, my work is freed up to happen on my own terms, without being as compromised to cultural expectations. In other words, I can focus on the work that is most important (and most fulfills my purpose/potential) without having to worry as much about how I will survive.
2. Greater freedom over the choices I make and my lifestyle. For example, I can (hopefully) use my property to grow food, which increases my self-reliance, decreases my reliance on Big Food, and localizes/simplifies/improves my food consumption. I can also choose to make energy efficient choices/upgrades in my home, and design my space based on what I legitimately need and think is of value rather than simply filling it up with a million things. (For the record, I also plan to share the space, so if any of y’all know of any potential roomies who might be keen to share the practice of Subverting Overconsumption, let me know!)
3. Greater sense of home, community, connectedness, happiness. Ok, one cute little house won’t necessarily give me all (or any) of these. But I’m working towards these states in my life, and while a happier, more connected me may not sound like a giant service to humankind, I actually think it is. The more successfully I can resolve the doubts I have about my role in the world, the more successfully I can focus on the business of fulfilling my potential. Though my purpose sometimes feels like it is eluding me, whether it’s ultimately to publish independent media or write or simply be a good and compassionate friend and neighbour, the happier and more at peace I am, the better. Hopefully building a healthy, functional home that reflects my values will support that.
So there you have it. I have high hopes for my little house on the prairie. I don’t expect its red trim and hardwood floors to provide a map to world peace or a solution to climate change, but I do hope that it will be the beginnings of a home base that will help to manifest my vision. With regards to this project, I think it will be a wicked fun challenge to see what I can do with it from here on in.
See you at the housewarming,
xo n
5 comments
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February 19, 2007 at 10:26 pm
Kelvin
While I appreciate your arguments for self and all of that, I fail to see how you fulfilling the liberal dream of property ownership makes the world a better place. It seems to me that there is something to be said for spiritual fulfillment, I agree with that, but if it’s to make yourself happy and at peace, what exactly are you giving back to the world? By producing independent media? By reducing your ecological footprint? How does owning a house subvert consumption? You’ve just bought into the mainstream, you’ve just fulfilled what it is that banks are for, to give us money to buy things so that they can make more money. And if you choose to renovate, even to make the house greener, even if you’re growing your own food, you’re still complicit in what it seems to me you are trying to challenge. It seems to me that western liberal arguments that boil down to the argument that if I make myself happy, I can contribute more to the world are really just hot air and selfish if there is no actual commitment to making the world a better place. What about compassion for your fellow citizens? What about volunteering in the “worst neighbourhood in Regina”? Volunteer at a shelter, volunteer with battered women, give something to inner-city aboriginal children whose families are struggling to survive. Sure, inner peace is a good thing, and I fully support the quest to find it, in what ever way we choose, so long as we don’t cause harm to others. But what about the consequences of you buying in a bad neighbourhood and gentrification? What about the impoverished residents of that neighbourhood? How are they served by having you moving in and participating in the process of gentrification? How does that subvert overconsumption?
Anyway, this all sounds very harsh, and I don’t really mean it to be, and I’m sure that you’ve thought about all of this, you seem to be the sort to do so, but since you’ve put your thoughts out in public like this…and you also seem to be type who can handle a serious, heartfelt critique/questioning. I apologize if I offend.
February 20, 2007 at 7:22 pm
goodgirlculture
No offense taken. The downside of criticism is that it’s hard on the ego. But the upside is that it inspires deeper reflection.
You pose good hard questions. I appreciate you reading and taking the time!
I think I’ll take a little time to consider my response, if you don’t mind…and then I imagine it may warrant its own post.
More to come…n.
February 20, 2007 at 11:10 pm
Kelvin
Please do, I should also add that these are the kinds of things that are, in some ways, on my plate these days. I live in a nasty, but gentrifying, part of Montréal, and so the idea of buying and living here strikes me occasionally as a sin and not a good thing. But I look forward to your responses.
February 21, 2007 at 12:00 am
goodgirlculture
On the subject of gentrification specifically: I understand the consequences of it, but there are also consequences to ghettoizing poor people by isolating them in communities without adequate services. Simply condemning gentrification doesn’t address the underlying, systemic causes of poverty. I think there can be value in people with more resources investing in poorer communities, particularly if their investments go beyond the financial (like to volunteering, community and infrastructure development, etc.).
February 21, 2007 at 12:54 am
Extra! Extra! Little House Utopia Blasted Out of Water « subverting overconsumption
[...] Wednesday, February 21st, 2007 in Food, Culture, Spirituality, Sustainability, Hope, Alternative Media, Positive Action I can’t say that I enjoy criticism, but it does tend to nurture deeper reflection. So let’s see where it leads! What follows is my response to a comment on My Little House on the Prairie. [...]