Liquid-ating Your Ass-ets

Letting Go...Again...

Letting go of your old life can be an adventure in itself. Even if you're just trying to simplify a little and de-clutter your existence. Modern living is erected on the principle of clutter and a weekly hauling of trash off to the invisible dump that we never see. What does that say about our way of life, that we bury our trash in the folds of mother earth?

There's a lot of cool stuff at the dump. I used to be a trash man during the summers in college. I was in the best shape of my life chasing down that truck and lifting those heavy barrels from 7 AM to 1 PM. We got paid on salary so the faster we finished our routes, the quicker we would be done. It was always fascinating to see my camo pants still standing up from all the grime at the doorway of my apartment. I would strip before entering, and then put them back on in the morning, only washing them on the weekend! I know gross, but why wash pants that are going to be gross anyway all week no matter what you do?

It used to make my heart sick philosophizing about how much we worship stuff in the modern world. So much stuff but so little consciousness or thinking for yourself. We plug into TV and are blasted by ads everywhere, clutter for the mind. Then we go to churches, temples, etc, and we are told what to believe so that we might win an eternal life, clutter for the spirit. We eat junk foods and feel crappy and exhausted, clutter for the body.

Clutter, Clutter, Clutter!

So here I am after a four year marriage and I have simplified my worldly possessions down to a 10' by 10' storage locker, and even that makes me sick inside. I just want to let it all go, even though I'm emotionally attached to all those cool books, all those journals filled with brilliant creative ideas. One of my notebooks could make someone a fortune if they had better business instincts than I do. But money is not why I live. Experience and creative invention is why I live. Long after we're gone, we won't be taking the possessions/wealth. The Egyptians used to bury your crap with you in case you need a vase ont he other side, LOL. We will only be taking the memories and soul experiences, tragic or profound.

Watering Your Rear

Liquidating your Assets sounds a lot like washing your butt, but doesn't it feel good to be clean? The Zen master Suzuki said, "We don't need to learn how to let things go, we just need to recognize when it's already gone." A simple recognition is all we need to set the wave of change in motion. I recognize that I've outgrown an old way of living on this planet.

It's scary to embrace this rarely traveled path, because the intuition is that I won't survive. The fear of death or being confined (even worse for an Aquarian!) looms titanic in consciousness. And I think the intuition is entirely correct. I don't want to survive!

Do I have a Death Wish?

No, not at all. I want to keep this consciousness vibrant on planet Earth as long as spirit needs me here traveling and teaching and inspiring others. Death does not scare me, confinement does. I love what Gandalf said to Pippin in Lord of the Rings: "Death is not the end of the journey..." And I know that deeply. I know I've lived before in other lives because I have vivid memories of being an English Poet, a German Astrologer, an Egyptian Astrologer, a Peruvian Hunter, a Japanese Warrior Mystic, and others... But this moment, this life is the edge of the wave of experience and it's right where I need to be focused. The past can only hurt you if you dwell on it.

To me Death represents freedom. No more obligations, no more bills, no more struggle, just a melting off into another spiritual adventure to another star system! But I do not seek or flee from its great mystery. Death is a doorway to a mergence with Spirit so fascinating that no religion has even touched it with a ten foot sacred staff.

Death of Stuff

Letting go of something you've treasured is a little death. It is precious too you, but it has served your path until now. Honor the emotion and then donate it to charity or give it away or sell it on Ebay...let it flow through your life. Wealth and possessions were once understood as currency, currents flowing through you. A possession possesses you to the same extent as you possess it. There is a relationship there that needs to be acknowledged and honored.

I have 40 days and 40 nights left to rid myself of everything except for what I carry on my back. Facing a lot of little deaths in the process! All day yesterday Arian (my son) and I sorted through thousands of miniature figures we collected together over the last seven years, 19 complete sets worth over $5000. We are selling them one set at a time on Ebay. We'll see what happens. I've never sold anything on Ebay yet. Another guy from Craigslist is buying our HDTV and X-box 360 game system, our Sony surround sound DVD player, and all of our games (over $1000 worth of amazing titles). We are letting go together because we are moving toward being "real life adventurers." I mean, I will always create fantasy worlds and imaginary adventures. I'm designing an astrologically inspired role-playing game right now, and thinking about my next fantasy novel after I revise the first. But the desire to lighten my load for world travel is enticing me more than anything else.

My New Equipment List

So what am I taking with me, a robe and a begging bowl? Not at all. I have no vow of poverty. I plan on making even more money through my work in astrology and creative projects on the web. My goal is to simplify my possessions down to 51 things. If my new adventuring friend Colin can do it, so can anyone.

What does my list of things look like for the road? When you create a role-playing character for a fantasy game one of the best parts of character design that everybody loves is the equipment selection aspect. My kid's favorite part of the book! So now I get to pick my equipment in real life for the adventure ahead. Here's my core list so far. What else should I take?

Osprey 85L Argon Backpack
2 Nalgene Water Bottles (plus pack belt with two carrier sleeves)
Medical Kit
Sleeping Bag
REI Dome Tent
Rainjacket
Camo Poncho
Vibram running shoes
3 shirts (1 nice, one athletic, one in between)
2 Shorts
2 Pants (cargo)
3-pairs Socks
Passport+ID+Debit Cards+Wallet
Laptop
HD Flip Camera
Droid Cell Phone
I-pad bookreader/music player etc
Flash Drive
Mini Tripod
A/C plug in adapter
Pack Towel (quick dry)
1 Bronco football Jersey
Journal + Writing Instruments
Food Bag (a horse has gotta eat!)
Cool Sandals


That's only 30 things so far if you group stuff like the socks and IDs? Wow! I'm doing good at this minimalism stuff!