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I lived out of a backpack for two months on a Pacific Crest Trail hike. I got comfortable with it and told myself that I had overcome my materialism, and could henceforth live happily without a lot of stuff and conveniences.

Not so much. Now a couple of decades later, I've got a house and garage crammed with stuff. Yesterday I had a plumber here working on a leak, and this morning I have no running water, and here I am bravely holding back tears. My inner dialog is "this is unacceptable!" It turns out that climbing on the hedonic treadmill is practically effortless, but sliding down it is full of splinters.

You couldn't survive with just a backpack if other people "overcame their materialism" and didn't own all of the capital that allowed you to survive, like providing you your equipment, food, knowledge, and emergency rescue if it came to it.

Criticizing "hedonism" is its own kind of hedonism, or in common parlance, a first world problem. It is a luxury that cannot be indulged by poor societies.

I travelled the world with a backpack.

The good news is, it took me nearly 20 years before I started taking hot showers for granted again. It really did make me very grateful for a lot of things.

But I’ve also had similar thoughts to you.

I watch a lot of hiking videos of the PCT etc as one day I’d like to walk it.

When I watch those videos, and when I see people on social media telling folks to “drop out of the system, be free.” I can’t help but wonder exactly who is going to prepare their dehydrated meal packs for them.

Absolutely nothing wrong with taking such trips, made me a better and more grateful person, but it’s not an alternative lifestyle.

This perspective reminds me that when people ask, oh you grow your own food and have food animals, it's like living off grid? their perspective is that farms get their input from the ground and sky, but this hasn't been true in centuries. there are many high-tech inputs for all types of modern farming, such as chemicals (even if they are organic chemicals), fuel, machinery, seeds, infrastructure, knowledge, financial instruments, and a market. in order to live off-grid, first you must invent the universe...

> in order to live off-grid, first you must invent the universe...

Nobody is reinventing the universe, they just want a buffer.

A buffer is a well made item that you can repair yourself, so you're not forced to purchase a replacement.

A buffer is a shoebox with a lifetime supply of your favorite shaving razor.

A buffer is a garden, a pantry of canned goods, a few hens to lay eggs for you.

Each of these buffers insulates the bearer from the effects of supply chain disruption or even unemployment. Walmart could be out of eggs and razors -- but you'll be fine for quite some time, even if you didn't incubate your own chicks or make the razors by hand.

> farms get their input from the ground and sky, but this hasn't been true in centuries

Yes, industrial scales require industrial inputs, but a few hens will happily yield you a few eggs a day while living off your garden scraps and the insects they scratch up. And their waste returns nutrients to the soil -- a boone for a garden.

And need to acquire land

There might be some version of a future where robots take care of managing the industry for our benefit in a post-scarcity setting, allowing us humans to live as simple a life as we want, knowing that when a material need arises the robots will be willing and able to quickly fulfill it for us.

I don't think that's where we're headed, but I like imagining.

But… why? What you describe sounds like a dystopic vision, but you seem enthusiastic about it? Why?

I grew up watching Star Trek and its replicators ("Tea, Earl Grey, Hot"). So a core part of me is excited about this ideal future world where we wouldn't need to work to sustain ourselves, but would be free to use our time to explore the universe, or learn, or make art, or manage a vineyard.

To me this vision of us being able to do whatever we want, while machines are available to take care of our necessities, to the extent we chose to rely on them, is almost heaven-like.

And for a prehistoric context, according to researchers such as James Suzman, earlier in human history, we were a lot closer to this ideal than we are now [0].

[0] https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/for-95-percent-of-human...

Chief O'Brien is the underappreciated hero of Star Trek making Picard's lifestyle possible. I'm happy to see his hard work, often crawling on all fours in awkward spaces, got highlighted more in DS9.

Or in other words, there were no automatic maintenance machines in the Star Trek universe at the time, it was all handwork still. Manufacturing and food prep was done by machines which solves some part of it I suppose.

With the direction everything is moving, we will get back slavery faster than we will get robots and AGI.

Slavery never went away, it just changed its name to Prison Labor. For fun here's a pair of stories about people being held past their release dates:

* https://promiseofjustice.org/news/louisianans-illegally-kept...

* https://www.corrections1.com/law-and-legislation/articles/re...

For a lot of countries, it did go away.

I think if you look closely it was just hidden behind various structures, like e.g. hiring seasonal workers from abroad, housing them in your own (substandard) buildings, and cutting their wages by the amount of rent that you charge so their take-home is well below minimum wage. But they tolerate it because it's still better pay than they can get in their home country.

It may have been made illegal, but it hasn’t gone away.

While slavery exists in various forms (wage slavery, prison labor, etc.) it is still important to make the distinction between those and the extreme form of chattel slavery that existed from the 16th to 19th century. People, and all their descendants, being literal property, able to be tortured, raped, and murdered with the same legal status as a couch tossed in a dumpster, is not the same as modern versions of slavery.

My impression from school was that in the well-known slavery societies, slaves or serfs outnumbered free men.

Maybe the number of sailors in deplorable conditions is equal to number of prisoners, worldwide. 0.2% of world population?

My sci-fi filled head makes me most concerned they these will arrive concurrently.

Do you know that in History every increase in productivity is appropriated by the ruler class?

Your future isn't realistic.

Just workers organization and democracy prevents it

> Criticizing "hedonism" is its own kind of hedonism

It's like kink-shaming being someone's actual kink.

Criticizing "hedonism" is its own kind of hedonism because you are overindulging yourself in your own sense of pride and smugness for "being better than everyone else"

Not that the author of TFA is doing this, but claiming that you have overcome materialism while at the same time posting about it on instagram with your latest iphone, recording yourself on insta360 cameras, with your apple watch-recorded heart-rate superimposed on your videos is a bit silly.

"criticizing hedonism is its own kind of hedonism"... ok by this logic it seems youve totally insulated the idea of hedonism from being criticized?

Poor societies are perfectly capable of criticizing hedonism. I don't see what's luxurious about criticizing the many examples of absurd resource waste through luxury good consumption.

Of course you can. This is just crabs in a bucket mentality.

> Criticizing "hedonism" is its own kind of hedonism

false dichotomy. Of course capitalism and our indulgence in material goods has gone too far. That does not mean we have to be totally pious in life.

> It turns out that climbing on the hedonic treadmill is practically effortless, but sliding down it is full of splinters.

Not sure if I'm missing a joke, but the whole point of the analogy being a treadmill is that there's nothing to fall down. Regardless of positive (running forward) or negative (going backward on the treadmill) life changes, your happiness will probably stay relatively consistent because you're on a treadmill and there's nowhere to go.

The live out of a backpack lifestyle is definitely a unique way to experience the modern world and I'm sure it's fulfilling for the author, but you can even tell in their post that life caught up with them somewhat and they needed to start staying in one place a little longer in order to maintain social relationships. Their linked post about walking every block of Manhattan and tracking all of their movement since 2015 feels like the exact opposite of a minimalist lifestyle and it seems to me like they live out of a backpack not out of some anti-materialism lifestyle, but instead just as a practical way to fuel this obsession with traveling and tracking.

I admit, I've seen the author's Instagram story about walking 100k steps in a day in NYC and watched the whole thing because it's interesting, but I also take that and posts like this with a grain of salt. I'll happily take my horde of shit I need to get rid of in the garage over obsessing about how I can optimize tracking my every movement.

>Not sure if I'm missing a joke, but the whole point of the analogy being a treadmill is that there's nothing to fall down. Regardless of positive (running forward) or negative (going backward on the treadmill) life changes, your happiness will probably stay relatively consistent because you're on a treadmill and there's nowhere to go.

That's not the point of the treadmill analogy.

It's rather that you need to keep walking to maintain your stationary position, just like on a treadmill.

Meaning the level of headonism you become accustomed to fades/blunts with time, and you want more, so you need to keep moving forward to stay at the same (hedonic) position (level).

What the parent said, then, is valid: "climbing on the hedonic treadmill is practically effortless", being on a hedonic treadmill is our default psychological state. But to slide off and accept less hedonic level is very difficult.

rockostrich says >"but the whole point of the analogy being a treadmill is that there's nothing to fall down."<

Spoken by one who obviously has not fallen on a treadmill! Allow me to correct your misunderstanding:

Falling on a treadmill is almost precisely the same as being drunk and disorderly and falling while facing the door of a saloon: that is, as if two thugs had grabbed your arms and thrown you unceremoniously and bodily out the door legs first and face down. Meanwhile you are (unsuccessfully) struggling to right yourself for some unknown reason [it's like a reflex response].

Not a nice experience: it taught me to always use a treadmill that had the safety clip that stops the machine if you move too far.

As for the comparative experience (being thrown out of a bar by thugs), the less said, the better.

Perhaps the joke is that the valence of going backward or forward isn't equivalent. IIRC, some studies show that people will generally accept smaller gains to avoid the possibility of loss. Eg, loss has a greater (negative) emotional impact than equivalent (positive) gains.

> I don't think it's reasonable to compare the risk of suffering a large loss with the risk of missing out on a large gain. If your annual income is $N, missing out on a gain of $N is bad, but not nearly as bad a suffering a loss of $N.

- A comment I saw elsewhere on HN today

It's quite rational, in many cases, to consider loss of an object X worse than gain of X. A less rigorous example I like to use: it's far easier, and unequal, to kill a person than revive a person.

Isn't this the accepted advice for investment. Putting money in something that gains X% consistently with years of proven sustained growth vs putting money in something with potential 100X% growth but could give you negative growth if it fails has always been the advice in long term financial planning

> A less rigorous example I like to use: it's far easier, and unequal, to kill a person than revive a person.

People's intuitions aren't going to work right for situations that are impossible. I don't think you should use that example. (Or if you mean medical revival from the edge of death, then it's very difficult to visualize a "kill" that's actually an equal amount of damage.)

And things you own are fungible while people are not, which is itself enough to ruin the analogy.

This, in a nutshell, is why Effective Altruism sucks.

It also relies on all your intellectual and creative persuits being digital in nature, otherwise all you have is the social and the travel.

The lifestyle appealed to me too and I even worked towards it, but I don't think it could be a full time thing for someone who loves making things, "building a life" does in a sense require some permanency past your laptop.

I don't know if you use some sort of safety treadmill but on many, you will fall if you don't/can't run anymore. There's your metaphor for life. Also, running on a treadmill is/can be viewed an image for not moving forward despite all the running you do.

Yeah, I thought the treadmill image was about having to keep running just to stay in the same place (a Red Queen’s race) rather than anything about falling down.

[dead]

> My inner dialog is "this is unacceptable!" It turns out that climbing on the hedonic treadmill is practically effortless, but sliding down it is full of splinters.

For me, in situations like this the frustration comes from having invested so much into something that isn’t delivering what it was supposed to.

For example, when my 20 year old car broke down it was an inconvenience, but I could also shrug it off because I got my money’s worth out of the car long ago.

If an expensive brand new car broke down I would be inconvenienced, but the situation would be much more frustrating because I spent so much on a new car to avoid these issues.

It hurts a lot more if you are unprepared.

When you are at home, you expect to have running water, on a hike, you expect not to and plan around it.

But there are things you expect while on a hike that are unlike your daily life at home. Things like your day job, traffic, pollution, etc... If you had to share your trail with diesel trucks and get regular calls from your boss, you would probably be upset, even if that's what you have every day at home.

Yeah, when we stop moving, it's so easy to start hoarding.

I lived in Mexico for 10 years with just two duffelbags of clothes and essentials. I could carry both on a plane unchecked and be anywhere with nothing left behind, and I loved it.

Now I look around me in my apartment I share with my girlfriend and have things I wouldn't have even conceived of, like a gaming PC with two monitors (for what??) and a closet full of clothes as if I don't wear the same 5 things.

I met a family who had just moved to Wisconson from Italy last week. The four of them (Mom, Dad, ~14yo son, and ~12yo daughter) packed everything they were going to bring with them into a backpack and two checked bags each. Incredible! What would you pick?

I have a garage and a shed (OK, fine, it's a 24x36 barn) and a basement and a home office that barely contain the enormous quantity of my stuff at home. And yet I honestly think the highlight of this summer was waking up to the sunrise on one of the remotest parts of the Appalachian trail through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, with no possessions that wouldn't fit in a 22L ultralight backpack - including several of the same items as this guy's kit.

On the one hand, most of the stuff is replaceable, "fungible" if you like, rather than sentimental. On the other, I keep it because I like to have certain capabilities, like cooking and auto repair and home building - I can't fit a tablesaw or pressure washer or food processor in a backpack; I've got a rack of 24 giant totes in the garage with painting supplies and plumbing supplies and bike parts and specialty auto repair tool cases and on and on that each occupy more volume than the one backpack this guy lives out of. I also recognize that this is a colossally inefficient way to allocate things among a group of people: I'm not going to pay a painter $1500 to do a crappy job to repaint my bathroom when I can do it myself with far greater quality for $100 in paint and a couple hundred bucks worth of tools in a giant tote, and neither are most of my neighbors, but this means that a sizeable fraction of people in the neighborhood live around our own personal totes of painting supplies.

If I was going to pay someone else to build and repair and maintain and clean the house/apartment/condo/hotel that I live in (when I'm not in a tent, that's only about 5% of my time), and to take care of the cars and bikes that I ride in and on, and to cook the variety of food that I eat, and on and on, I would have a lot less stuff. If I bought tools to do these tasks that I would use once and then sell/give/throw them away...that would be unaffordable for me. One of the lessons that my Dad passed down to me is to never buy a thing unless you have the resources in time, price of consumables, tools, and space to clean it, maintain it, fix it, and store it - those are real costs beyond the sticker price of a new toy.

Where does the money come from that allows one to sleep in hotels, ride in rental cars, travel in airports, and eat in restaurants for years on end?

>Where does the money come from that allows one to sleep in hotels, ride in rental cars, travel in airports, and eat in restaurants for years on end?

If you keep your standards modest, the math isn't as bad as it intuitively seems.

A $100 hotel per night is the equivalent of a $3000 mortgage/rent. And if you're living out of one bag you don't necessarily need that and probably have cheaper options like hostels (or tent camping) available.

If you're working a software job or have worked such jobs long enough to have a few million in assets gathering interest, the cost of living isn't prohibitive.

In other words, it's not a problem if you're one of the wealthiest people ever to exist in human history.

At no point was this positioned as a "for everyone" approach. It requires resources and compromises. None of the gear in this article is particularly cheap.

That said, the cost is not significantly different from other forms of living. The average rent in SF/NYC/Seattle/London/etc. is sky high as well.

>None of the gear in this article is particularly cheap.

For western standards they're not particularly expensive either. The most expensive things are the Macbook and the iPhone, and like 30%-40% of the US population has one or the other.

> None of the gear in this article is particularly cheap.

The $4 baseball cap isn't bad :) Darn Tough socks are also arguably also pretty cheap over a lifetime of use since the company mails you a free replacement pair if you wear one out

Well, their example budget is $100/night just in rent.

My apartment in Guadalajara was $200/mo.

If your on this site, that level of wealth is almost certainly easily available to you if you want it.

My mortgage is under a thousand :O

If I had a few million in assets I'd be retired

Retirement sucks, tbh. The lack of well-defined purpose is awful.

I feel like the real problem is tying one's purpose to employment. If you can't find value in your life without someone telling you what to do you should take some time off work and reflect deeply on that.

You don't have to sit at home in retirement. You can go out and be involved in any number of communities - volunteer, join local government, go do fundraising for a cause you care about. The biggest difference there is that if you're not enjoying it you can just leave and not worry about how you're paying rent.

I certainly feel a lot better than where I was latterly. Would have preferred some projects that got a bit sidetracked for various reasons. Overall, pretty happy not having a full-time job. As I clean some things up though, definitely looking forward to having a more scheduled (if part-time) plan.

Retirement just means Fuck You money.

Can work for money or not, but if you are and your employer creates unacceptable or undesirable conditions you can immediately say Fuck You and just go do something else without worrying about covering the necessities of life.

Nah. That's not how it works. I could retire, but choose to keep working. The idea that you can simply step out is based on the idea that you don't need work.cbut in my case I need it for its social aspects and to stay motivated to do things. I still have the same issues as other people where in the mornings I just want to stay in bed. But I still go to work. Because I know it's ultimately a better choice.

No that is not how it works.

It means you get to choose what to work on, instead of being forced to do work you don’t want to do to keep a roof over your head and food on the table.

You are saying the same thing.

sorry if this comes across the wrong way, but you don't have to be retired. there's plenty of purposeful things you can find to give your life meaning. Given that you don't need to be paid, there are even more opportunities that could benefit from your expertise that you've built up over your career or careers.

Humans always and only generate their own purpose. The awfulness is entirely on the side of having to work hard to sustain yourself.

....and?

Different people make different choices on how to spend their money. Some spend their money on cigarettes, or sports season tickets, or modifications to cars, or collections of things. Some give most of their spare money to their church or a charity. Some send money off to relatives. Some travel.

Hotels wherever you are probably aren't $100 a night.

If you have a mortgage below $1000 you have something that almost no one in a western nation will ever see again. Congratulations, but your anecdote is irrelevant to basically everyone.

The current 30 year fixed mortgage rate is about 6.3%. It should probably be higher. A $1000 payment would mean a loan for about $160000 - significantly less if property taxes and insurance are included in that mortgage payment. There are very few places in the world with a significant number of available jobs where most people can buy a house for that.

Let's look through the midwest and throw a dart at Akron, OH. You're within commuting distance of Cleveland, you've got a university and an airport, there are probably jobs.

Property taxes are 1.8%. Home insurance is hard to estimate but let's pretend $1500/yr. Average home sale price is around $137K. That puts you closer to $1200/mo, and most places are far worse.

>> worked such jobs long enough to have a few million in assets gathering interest

so essentially no one in the entire world?

Esesentially one born in the last 30 years at least

Yeah, a 28yo on a 'permanent holiday' has a very different life than someone like you who is doing, say, renovation work in the house you own. They are opposite stations in life in many ways.

As for your final question, I was living in a cheap country. Rent was $200/mo with roommates. Taxis/Uber was cheap. Food was cheap. I made a modest wage in software.

> like a gaming PC with two monitors (for what??)

There’s nothing like the pleasure of idling in a pointless MMO on one screen while half-watching youtube autoplay on the other. Alternate Monster with White Claw and you’ve got peak hedonism.

You missed the geekbar and the penjamim. For max effect also put on a twitch streamer in a different game, listen to imported pop music or edm, and idle in a discord. Oh and have a collection of fidget toys on your desk.

My ideal is 3 monitors

One in the middle for a game

One to the right for a video

One to the left with systems stats and an RSS feed

To each his own. This sounds terrible to me.

Now bouncing between multiple Champions League games in the middle of an afternoon with easy access to good espresso…

You can’t even carry one duffel bag unchecked on a budget airline anymore, unless its a very small one. Some of the cheaper airlines even charge extra for overhead luggage.

That might be true for domestic US flights, which I don't have experience with, but every airline between US and Mexico, or inside Mexico, has an option for 1x carry-on and 1x "personal item" where the personal item just needs to somewhat fit under the seat in front of you.

This goes for Mexico's budget airline Viva Aerobus too.

I'm assuming you didn't cook much if at all during that time?

I cooked. Everywhere I've lived had a pot, pan, cutting board, knife, etc. And I'm sure I bought some so-cheap-its-disposable kitchenware from time to time.

Makes sense, I was thinking even a minimal kitchen setup is about a full duffel bag worth.

I have a load of crap I've accumulated over the years, but I try to regularly look at and consider everything, with the aim of simply imagining life without it. I'm reasonably confident that I could get rid of most of it without missing it much if I had to - but for now I'm still holding on to them in case they become useful again. It currently costs me less to keep them than to replace them in the future.

I used to do the one bag thing while travelling until I had more disposable income and could afford taxi rides, baggage fees and all of that.

I used to own only things that I could move on my own and fit in a normal car, until I had more disposable income and hiring movers became a non-issue.

I still try to maintain non-attachment to material things but I now welcome enjoying material things in a functional way. For example, I own a ton of kitchen gadgets and that allows me to make interesting food, but I'm not married sentimentally to any particular gadget.

Things change, I guess.

Sometimes minimalism is a necessity, sometimes a choice and sometimes it's just not the hill you're climbing anymore

Your IKEA Nesting Instinct kicked in. The things you own ended up owning you

Did we just get a visit from Tyler Durden?

Hey! We have the exact same briefcase.

> I got comfortable with it and told myself that I had overcome my materialism, and could henceforth live happily without a lot of stuff and conveniences.

Same. Exactly the same.

I have often reflected that I have never been as happy as when I had the least stuff, either.

I often wonder if it’s a) correlation or causation and b) whether the stuff is caused by dissatisfaction or the dissatisfaction is caused by the stuff, or both.

Either way, I’m currently undergoing an intentional downsizing in my life, toward minimalism. Not the kind where I use it as an excuse to buy (more) expensive minimalist gear either.

I’m shedding hobbies and interests that I have because I believe that they’ve become distractions that I bury myself in. Replacing them is far from my mind, but prising them out of my fingers is a very real challenge. It’s hardly backpack living, but it’s definitely moving in that direction.

As always, moderation is important for any normal person. I think that applies to minimalism as well. Use it to cut unnecessary stuff out of your life, but unless you're some outlier then it's probably not good to try and live the most minimalist life that you can without causing some terrible mental health effects along the way.

> I’m shedding hobbies and interests that I have because I believe that they’ve become distractions that I bury myself in.

Maybe you just haven't found the right hobby? Hobbies should feel rewarding, not like a distraction.

"Moderation in all things, including moderation." -- St. Augustine

“Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler.” —Albert Einstein.

Of course.

And perhaps? For me, the reward comes from the learning. (Who would have thought, being a software engineer by trade).

Luckily my brain has a self-invalidating cache, but my home, not so much. Perhaps I will find the right hobby, but it should not be something that involves the accumulation of things, because the things weigh a hidden cost of possession. It’s this hidden cost that hurts, like a tax, an inefficiency of the mind, or being. It’s insidious because it’s almost impossible to attribute the friction with the possession, because you’re often not actively dealing with it, but it’s there. It’s like, you know you have 32gb of RAM, but for some reason you’re only working with 20gb but you can’t inspect what’s stealing the other 12gb. It’s only after removing things from disk, do you start to see the RAM getting freed up, and then you begin to appreciate the extra mental resources.

Not sure if you have a background outside of software engineering, but as someone who got a degree in mechanical engineering and then shifted over to software engineering I've landed on home/car maintenance as a pretty good base hobby to fall back on. There's always more to learn, you can do most of it with a pretty limited set of tools, and it has the added bonus of improving daily life.

This may be a bit specific to me since I bought an older house and car in the past year and they require a bit more TLC. My partner and I painted all of the rooms (tools are just paint, brushes, and rollers). I've replaced almost all of the outlets and switches, including putting in a few zigbee switches (Sonoff ZBMINIR2s to be specific) since we have no overhead lights in any of our rooms and the switches don't control the right outlets... The only tools for that work are a screwdriver and a wire stripper. We also hung some cabinets in our living room and put up some bookshelves (made easier with power tools, but possible with hand tools). When it got warm, we did a bunch of work outside including some brick edging (bucket, mason line, and a trowel) and a fire pit (shovel, level, rake, and tamper).

Cars require some more tools but you can do pretty much every bit of maintenance work with a standard set of wrenches, a jack, and jack stands.

Everything just sits against the wall or in a toolbox in the garage. It's a big 2 car garage but it fits a home gym set-up, a TV on a cart, a workbench, a bunch of furniture that we need to get rid of on FB Marketplace, and there's still room to pull in a car (mine is in there right now since I'm changing the spark plugs).

Away from home, I quickly find myself lamenting all the time I spend washing all my dishes, cookware, and laundry. Nothing is ever completely dry, and if you are tent camping you spend 30 minutes striking and 30 minutes pitching every day.

I enjoy the outdoors but it’s also a great reminder of how much I love my dishwashing machine. Repairing it might take a few hours every few years, but it saves far more time on net.

It's easy to forget that minimalism isn’t just about stuff, it's about attention too

There's more to it than that.

I've been practicing this from a different perspective. It's not necessarily bad to have stuff or buy stuff, but you have to spend just as much time getting rid of things and evaluating their continued usefulness as you spend shopping and buying new things.

In tech terms, if you have a queue which you only ever add items to, well we all know what happens.

This second part of the process is overlooked, and particularly because our corporate overlords don't make any money from this careful consideration and management of our lives and the items within it. At least with my parents generation -- the boomers -- they went all in on purchasing with never getting rid of anything. Like a dragon and its hoard. Looking at craigslist estate sales is so crazy, because you see someone's lifetime of absolute junk they spent all their time accumulating, but obviously no time getting rid of anything. In fact, they just died and made it someone else's problem to deal with it.

I think in general we fill whatever amount of space we have available. Nature abhors a vacuum.

I believe any free space we have will be taken unless you actively fight for it. And while it is hard to maintain free space, clearing up taken space is even harder -- the discussion is usually what to put instead of something.

> I got comfortable with it and told myself that I had overcome my materialism

Vervaeke's "Meaning Crisis" talks have interesting things to say about this sense of the world between modes of "having" (material) and "being" (existential).

  Fromm's point is we get mixed up. We try to satisfy our being needs within 
  the having mode. We suffer from "Modal Confusion". Think about how much our 
  culture is organized around this because it serves a lot of market interests 
  if I can confuse you, if I can get you to try and pursue your being needs 
  within the having mode. 

It's wild how fast we adapt to comfort, and how quickly the baseline shifts. One minute you're thrilled to drink creek water through a filter and sleep on rocks, and the next, not having running water feels like a personal apocalypse

Maybe one good thing about the torture of living in NYC is you get used to the torture of living in NYC.

My very small, very expensive apartment has had no running water throughout the work day for the past two weeks because of water main construction (which I get woken up to at 7am every day). There's a jerk chicken restaurant next door to my apartment that blasts music all day long outside. Roaches and mice and rats. Long crowded subway commutes. I do hate this life in various ways, but I guess it toughens you up and you get used to it.

Or you could just move? Plenty of very nice cities without any of that.

This resonates deeply with my personal experience, why does everyone like this? Is this becoming magical at some stage?

Earning good money is magical, and having so many services available within strolling distance (or at most a subway ride) is magical. Noisy neighbours, vermin, and unreliable water supplies are problems that should be fixed, but there are good reasons so many people choose to live in cities.

we forget quickly

we grow with our container

we are all goldfish

Did you really do one-bag?

There are things I can't think of my days/weeks without. So for

> In 2015 I got rid of everything I owned that didn’t fit in a laptop backpack

There go my badminton rackets, cricket bat, and cycle. I couldn't care less about everything else :)

(To be fair, the rackets may possibly fit into my Osprey 45L. Never tried.)

On a more serious note: How much does health-care certainty factor into such travels? I am someone who doesn't have a family. So if a sudden death comes, I couldn't care less (I mean as of now - in advance), but I am perennially scared of falling sick and possibly needing care and hospitalisations, and when travelling (or without a base i.e one-bag kind of setup) and then there's at least the allergies, it becomes such a nightmare if you live in a country that doesn't have universal health care and is decidedly third world irrespective of the GDP.

I am asking because when people blog about such plans and minimalism, the gory details of behind-the-curtain things are often left out, maybe not deliberately.

Yes, this was a long distance hike, it isn't practical to carry multiple bags. The backpack also included tarp, sleeping bag, food, fuel, water, stove. Roughly 5 days between resupply stops. The supply stops are often quite remote, far away from healthcare, so you would rely on the kindness of strangers for transport.

Two months isn't really that long.

Maybe, but as someone who's done a 4-month backpacking stint, I was over it after 1 month, so I think even just that amount of time is enough to make an impact psychologically. By month 3, I was acclimated to it, but still eager to be done with it.

(As an aside, the experience actually made me less enthusiastic about nature and gave me a deeper appreciation of civilization. Never in my life did I have such deep gratitude for having a flat paved sidewalk to walk on.)

After several weeks I got to a campsite that had a picnic table. It was such a pleasure to have a place to sit upright and prepare my dinner. I'll never take one for granted again. After getting used to doing everything on the ground a table and a bench are a luxury experience.

We're in a mode where we're 'camping' with a 5th wheel trailer. It has COMPLETELY altered my travelling experience in ways I never expected. Being in Nature, with a clean bathroom and warm shower and cold beer makes the experience amazing.

More in line with this thread: Our house is full of stuff. It's a long story that ends up being: four adults living in the space that holds two comfortably.

Having the trailer lets us spend time in a relatively uncluttered environment. IT's a reset that lets me not get quite so worked up about the time I spend not-camping.

None of this is, in any way, cheap.

I thru-hiked the PCT in 5 months 10 years ago. Same experience. I remember eating on the trail 2 bricks of instant ramen for dinner every day and being utterly content. It was the most raw form of living I've ever experienced.

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Before being a digital nomad was cool I went full nomad. I remember being in a hostel in Thailand and just throwing away everything I had brought, going down to the basics. Ended up with a similar setup.

The thing is, after years of doing it, learning new languages, making friends all over, and then leaving knowing you might not see them again for ever or for long stints, you start to feel the yearning to be able to connect with people on a deeper level.

Now I have an apartment and basically only travel for weddings, I still go super light. But there is a joy in having variety in clothing or sneakers to wear. Friends who you've had multiple conversations with over the year's, even family who comes to visit you.

I'm happy I rid myself of it all, but I'm also happy that now my apartment has the basics, and maybe a bit more. And I'm fine with it. Life doesn't have to be binary, you can mix and match and end up happy either way.

I was a nomad for about a year. Towards the end I was tired of the constant leaving.

I asked for advice from an NGO who moves countries often. She said what happens is the NGO members become part of the extended connection, which helps with that situation.

Even when I was a nomad, I wouldn't have been without a suitcase. My big hobby then was dancing - mostly salsa and tango - and I needed several changes of clothes and dance shoes. And, umm, not all black clothes.

To make it worse, indoor smoking was legal, so I would come home with stinky clothes that I wouldn't want to wear again until washing.

I also did some upper undergrad/grad level visiting teaching, and would stay at a staff members home, or in one case the home of the parents of one of the grad students. I brought a dozen or so greeting-style cards with nice pictures of the city I used to live in, so I could leave them as a thank you, with an image of what for them would be an exotic place.

I went backpacking last year for only a little over a month. Absolute pain in my chest when someone who I'd gotten to known over the past few days said it was their last day lol.

The wisdom here is in realizing it's not about choosing one lifestyle forever, it's about adapting as your values shift. Love the balance you've found

Yup, we all go through difference phases of life.

We have a nice airbed (oxymoron?) in our apartment that gets used maybe 3-4 times a year. It takes up more space than the author's backpack, but it's also great whenever a friend or family member would like to visit on short notice (along with a set of sheets, towels, collection of hotel toothbrushes...).

>The thing is, after years of doing it, learning new languages, making friends all over, and then leaving knowing you might not see them again for ever or for long stints, you start to feel the yearning to be able to connect with people on a deeper level.

A rolling stone gathers no moss, as they say.

"If you're everywhere, you're nowhere."

I think this is key. I travel nearly zero these days due to a long list of reasons, but the mental exercise of thinking about whether I could travel with my stuff helps me be more conscious about accumulating things that I don’t really need.

I was a nomad for almost a decade! Can confirm all of this.

I am trying to build a normal life in one place for the foreseeable future, with a place full of stuff again. :)

I did this for a bit. The approach is very useful to learn. Traveling light is so, so much better. I never check bags unless there's a very good reason. It does have some downsides.

You're constantly making and throwing away relationships. I found this the hardest part.

Your lifestyle is subsidized by society. You depend on other people and services to make it work. You either have to eat out all the time or make many small trips to grocery stores and rent places with furnished kitchens. There is no self reliance, no preparation for things to go wrong besides saving money and hoping you can buy your way out.

There are opportunity costs. If OP had bought real estate in 2015 they would be better off financially. It's one of the reasons I stopped living in a bus and bought a house. Had I bought the last two times I "moved" in 2011 or 2016 I'd have almost enough money to retire and live OP's lifestyle permanently.

> You're constantly making and throwing away relationships.

Yeah, this lifestyle basically only works as a single young adult. Once you have a significant other, it's very, very hard. Once you have a kid, it's impossible.

> Yeah, this lifestyle basically only works as a single young adult. Once you have a significant other, it's very, very hard.

I've been doing it with my significant other for 5ish years now. I would say it's _much_ harder to do it solo and I would've settled down long ago if it wasn't for her.

> I would've settled down long ago if it wasn't for her.

Maybe it's much harder for her then, since you're the one who wants to settle down but she has to drag you around with only a backpack!

No, we're both happy. I just mean if I was solo, the throwing away relationships part would get exhausting. When you travel with a partner, you at least have one person that's constant through out the whole thing.

She feels the same way.

Get back to us when you have a kid.

Paul Erdős basically lived most of the second half of his (extremely productive) adult life like this (although he lived out of a suitcase rather than a backpack so he had slightly more room). Although granted he never married and had no children.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Erd%C5%91s

Relatively few people's economic output can compare with them producing new people. If your last name is not Feynman or Curie your most valuable contribution to the society is a couple of kids.

I'm not sure about this math. What percent of my kids' economic output am I supposed to take credit for?

And even if it's "all of it", if you can make some big company or semi-common job 0.00001x more efficient then that's a bigger impact than having kids.

Your kids have about the same chance of making the efficiency improvement. If you end your line, this chance is zero.

Anything you can do, your kids can also do, so leverage.

1. I exist at a particular point in time with particular skills. My kids cannot do the same things.

2. Even if they did do the same thing, getting it done 30 years earlier has a bigger effect.

3. I still don't think it's right for me to take 100% credit for everything my kids do.

Not sure if that’s good faith, but of course your kids’ contribution doesn’t have to be the same one you make. That would be absurd.

If you don’t have kids, their contributions won’t exist.

It's good faith, I wasn't sure how literal you were being so I threw it in.

But importantly my kids might be more capable than me or less capable than me to effect change. Who knows!

> If you don’t have kids, their contributions won’t exist.

My choices alter a million things about the future. If we look at everything I was a critical step in causing then we're going to massively overvalue my contributions.

Also, shouldn't all my contributions be chocked up to my ancestors if that's how we're doing it? Leaving me with no points of my own?

On average, kids make about average a contribution.

pot/kettle/black

Counterpoint - the best single thing you can do for the planet, in terms of minimising your consumption / ecological footprint, is to not spawn.

No need to blame it on one’s spawn, one can start now…

Also why is ecological footprint even important itself? Our eco system has no more reason to exist than any of its components, including humans.

This will only result in others reproducing more to replace those who are predispositioned to think like you.

Also, have fun not having anyone to take care about you when you grow old. And your retirement won't be worth shit either without a new generation to keep the economy going.

Yeah no thanks, fuck your anti-natalism. You might as well remove your own ecological footprint if you would deny your children's their existence for that reason.

I think perhaps you have misunderstood what a counterpoint is.

While true, it's functionally irrelevant. Humans are animals, animals procreate. Telling people not to do it because reasons is going to be about as effective as telling them not to eat or sleep.

What I would like to see is a norm on numbers of children. Personally, I think that having more than the replacement number - i.e. more than 2 - is straightforwardly unethical given the stress our planet is under. But by the same token, 2 or fewer is fine. And it would be nice if those who choose to have none got a little more respect for it.

But humans can actually make conscious choices beyond their base animal pressures. We use prophylactics even though those go against our animal pressure to procreate. We help strangers even if it won't improve our own situation and without any expectation of future reciprocation. We have to eat and sleep to live, we don't have to have children.

We also have cultural pressures, which can shape individual behavior. We could have a culture where the default is not to have kids, but that you should not have kids unless you are stable and secure enough to have then and are prepared to invest sufficiently in raising them.

Worse, than that, if you preach antinatalism it has any chance of catching up with people of some knowledge and reflection, leaving the Earth to the children of those of less knowledge and reflection.

1) This is simply not true. 2) Why tf should I car about the planet over human happiness?

It is true. And google sociopathy.

the planet is a rock

Probably the single best thing you can do for the planet is become a green energy lobbyist.

You mean by getting nuclear plants shut down, which are then replaced by increased gas and coal energy production because those are the only realistic alternatives?

Only if the deal includes a private jet.

Erdos is awesome but he's so singular that I think his exception makes the rule.

I agree with the kid point, but YouTube is littered with travel influencer couples that are living this lifestyle.

I would imagine if you had significant other to join you on this lifestyle, it would be significantly easier since your companionship is covered.

These people’s lives are not what they’re showing in the YouTube channel.

youtube isn't real life, it's what the algorithm shows

Of course, my main point was my second sentence and was using YouTube as an example.

I know I'd be much happier travelling with my partner than solo.

One way or another, I think most of us have lifestyles subsidized by society.

OP could also have bought stocks in 2015, and perhaps done even better than buying a house. Since the beginning of that year, the S&P500 has more than tripled, while housing has gone up about 50% (though of course leverage helps). For all we know, OP does hold stocks, which wouldn't cramp his lifestyle at all.

Plus he claims to spend less with this lifestyle, which also helps.

https://www.in2013dollars.com/Housing/price-inflation

Interest, leverage, and volatility are far better for a primary dwelling than equities which is why they would have been such a good investment.

And diversification is better with an index fund. Both routes have their benefits and drawbacks. I wouldn't say you're paying an "opportunity cost" either way.

> Your lifestyle is subsidized by society. You depend on other people and services to make it work. You either have to eat out all the time or make many small trips to grocery stores and rent places with furnished kitchens. There is no self reliance, no preparation for things to go wrong besides saving money and hoping you can buy your way out.

Everyone lives in and depends on society. I don't think that means you're being "subsidized"; if anything the footprint of living like this is much smaller than someone who owns a house full of stuff and drives a car every day. (At least if you skip the routine flying part. Trains and boats are great)

You’re subsidised if you’re not contributing back what you take, if you’re not participating positively in a system but are reliant on it.

I don't see how that applies here though. You are paying for all the services you consume. Someone that eats out all the time contributes significantly more economically to the restaurants in the area compared to someone that lives in the area permanently but always cooks at home.

But those services can't exist without other people owning all the equipment and land needed to provide them. Once your quest for minimalism turns into externalizing the things you need to survive (instead of getting rid of things you don't need) then maybe you have lost the plot.

I don't get this line of reasoning. The average person doesn't grow their own food, everyone has already externalized the things they need to survive.

The difference between going to the supermarket and then cooking your food vs going to eat at a restaurant is just relying on the restaurant existing.

The restaurant existing relies on people visiting it, so by visiting it, you are helping the restaurant and they are helping you. I just cannot agree that this lifestyle is "subsidized" by society. Enabled, sure, but modern lifestyle is enabled by society and that's generally a good thing.

> no preparation for things to go wrong besides saving money and hoping you can buy your way out

I always wondered about the cost effectiveness of these alternate living arrangements. Like the probability of having to rely on huge amounts of savings seems high versus having a stable setup. And having a stable setup is already so expensive. I can't imagine eating out for every meal. I can cook food for a week for the price of 1 or 2 premade meals. And then you can't carry much so what are you constantly rebuying things? Idk seems like a lifestyle for the rich / lucky / people who have a great life safety net.

I regularly pack for my wife and two toddlers (1 and 3yo) in a 40L + additional 10L bags. It is very hard, means adults also have to surrender even more items to make room for books, toys and nappies, but it is not impossible. The reasons that made us do this is we wanted to only travel by train (europe based).

It’s a highly freeing exercise that is hard but doable. Only works for vacations (a day to a month) though.

I'm currently doing this right now. Living out of a 38L backpack while coding an app living out of hostels in SEA. I have 3 pairs of shorts, 4 t shirts, 1 pair of vans, 1 pair of nike trail runners, laptop, bose headphones, toiletries, 2 hats, and thats pretty much it.

> You're constantly making and throwing away relationships. I found this the hardest part.

very true. it's harder to keep in contact with freinds who you make deeper connections with. But whats the alternative, to not make them in the first place?

> Your lifestyle is subsidized by society. You depend on other people and services to make it work. You either have to eat out all the time or make many small trips to grocery stores and rent places with furnished kitchens. There is no self reliance, no preparation for things to go wrong besides saving money and hoping you can buy your way out.

True, I eat out every meal, have a membership at a coworking space, and either go for runs or use public outdoor gyms for exercise.

I've been following up on and off for a bit, seen his posts on reddit, etc.. I'm not sure how he funds his lifestyle; he seams to just walk all day...

Say you own your own house and you fill it with, uhm, all kind of stuff. You still rely on society for electricy, water, sewage, internet, roads, the same stuff you are storing, etc..

So no, his life style is much subsidized by society as someone with his own home. The subsidy is probably relative to your footprint. So maybe less?

> You're constantly making and throwing away relationships. I found this the hardest part.

I've been thinking about it too. I've made a few relationships but as soon as they break (or I break) off the trail, the relationship goes with it.

I don't think this is avoidable. You are seeing way more people than a sedentary life allows. You are probably not going to make these relationships in a small 300K city.

> There are opportunity costs. If OP had bought real estate in 2015 they would be better off financially. It's one of the reasons I stopped living in a bus and bought a house. Had I bought the last two times I "moved" in 2011 or 2016 I'd have almost enough money to retire and live OP's lifestyle permanently.

I bought crypto, so it paid off way better than any real estate market in the world and all that money is liquid and ready to buy you a rental anywhere in the world.

I've done this before (not indefinitely, but for many trips around the world.)

I agree with the author on a lot: 1) it's not a good way to live long term, 2) traveling with as little as possible completely transforms the traveling experience, 3) zero-bag travel is great, 4) a good quality small bag with well designed compartments is critical, 5) M-series Macs are the only way to go, 6) two thumb drives is very convenient if you're not worried about searches, 7) darn tough socks, 8) first aid with bandaids/antiseptic/mylar blanket, I also include benadryl, ibuprofen and other common OTC meds.

I disagree on: 1) I prefer a 2M USB-C cord over 1M, 2) I have mostly cotton or merino clothes and try not to use any synthetic fabrics, especially no synthetic underwear, 3) I prefer jeans, especially in colder climates and 4) carrying "stuff" on you long term (like a jacket with things in the pockets) can get sort of annoying after a while.

And finally, extra stuff I carry that the author doesn't: separate camera, snacks (mostly nuts), Garmin inReach, handkerchiefs, wired earbuds, flashlight, knife, an eye mask, sometimes a Travelrest pillow, and two sizes of paper notebooks and pens.

Some of my diverging opinions are:

- I can't do zero-bag travel, bags are just too convenient. I have at least a little foldable backpack. For example, if I have a jacket, I like the ability to put the jacket inside the bag if the weather calls for it. Or maybe I want to carry a water bottle. Zero-bag means stuffing your pockets, carrying stuff by hand, etc... not very convenient if you ask me.

- I don't really like bags with compartments, I find they get in the way more than they help. Instead, I use a regular bag and put stuff in ziploc bags if I need some organization. It also protects from rain.

- For the USB-C cord, I use 3m, even as an everyday carry. It may seem over the top but sometimes, the power outlet not where you want to plug your phone. For example you may want your phone charging on your nightstand while the socket is on the other side of the bed. 3m lets you cross the bed, 2m doesn't.

- I love synthetic fabrics, dries faster than natural fibers, it is important to me as dry time can be a problem when doing laundry while travelling. Merino wool is great too, but I keep cotton for home.

- Not a fan of jeans during travel, take forever to dry, and they are not that hot for how heavy they are. They make great work clothes (their original purpose), and are relatively fashionable, but during travel when I am not going for style, I use convertible hiking pants.

- I don't travel with a knife, too much of a problem with security. Though I sometimes carry a "swisstech utili-key". It has a blade but it really looks like a key, so it is stealthy. It is unusable as a weapon, but if some overzealous security guy takes it away from you, it is super cheap so it won't be a big loss.

Why no synthetic underwear? I feel like I would be miserable with only cotton boxer-briefs... I sweat entirely too much even in moderate weather to be comfortable in cotton. I am partial to Pair of Thieves extra long boxer-briefs, they don't ride up at all since I have big thighs. When travelling I can wash them in a sink, and they dry way more quickly than cotton.

The replacement for synthetic underwear is wool, not cotton. For weeklong wilderness backpacking trips, I used to vacillate between a fresh pair of synthetic boxer briefs every every day, which took a lot of space, and one for every other day, which was gross. Now I wear a single pair of wool boxer briefs all week, and it feels and smells better at the end of the week than synthetic underwear does after two days. Same for sleeping: I used to bring a couple of pairs of synthetic boxers, and now I'm down to one pair of wool underwear. Two pairs for the entire week, one for days and one for nights.

Granted, wilderness backpacking has completely different standards for smells and grossness, but the comparison carries over to the higher standards of the "front country." In hot, sweaty weather, synthetic underwear gets noticeably grosser and smellier than wool over the course of a day.

I love my merino wool socks and non-base layers, but my skin is generally too sensitive for most brands.

I should try the smartwool underwear because there stuff is better than the competition, especially the small players.

Is there anyone making full wool underwear? Everything is a blend, which is good for durability.

Mine are SmartWool brand. According to their web site, they use an 88% wool, 12% nylon blend, but I haven't experienced any odor issues.

I have an older pair that is 100% wool (I don't recall the brand; they might be a very very old SmartWool product) but the lack of stretch makes them less comfortable.

Editing here since my original comment is too old: in a pinch, I've also had much better results washing wool underwear in a hotel bathroom than synthetic underwear. Contrary to their reputation, neither wool nor synthetic underwear dry quickly, even with a hair dryer, but wool dries faster, feels cleaner after washing, and in the worst case scenario is much more comfortable wet than synthetic underwear.

https://www.woolly.clothing/

I also feel the same way. I travel with the absolute minimum of synthetic fabric clothing, I have found that by far the best material is wool, especially merino wool, and if that's not an option something that is natural fiber derived modal like bamboo or wood cellulose modal is good. Polyester and other synthetic fabrics repel moisture better, but don't wash by hand or withstand hard wearing as well as natural fibers, and also don't work as well across climates and ecologies.

A layered clothing approach helps a lot. I wear an undershirt (Icebreaker Merino T) every single day, which helps me to regulate my body temperature between hot and cold climates, without requiring a major increase in the amount of clothing I have to bring. The only outerwear I had to bring on my trips was a single wool peacoat and a packable windbreaker/rainjacket. By using layers, I was able to use the same set of clothing between 45C and -25C, across 4 continents with no real trouble.

I also try and avoid synthetic fabrics especially for everyday use. What's your rationale behind it? Asking because I'm not exactly sure why I hold this view, and need some inspiration.

As far as concrete facts go, 1) we know that plastic fabrics (polyester, nylon, etc) generate airborne plastic particles which we then breathe in, 2) they exacerbate certain skin conditions, 3) they start to stink much faster than natural fibers, 4) they burn incredibly fast and fuse to your skin and 5) they’re funding the oil industry. Those factors alone are enough for me to essentially ban them from my body.

Beyond facts, there is also a certain ugly vibe to plastic clothes. They’re cheap and impersonal and disposable and typically generic. I have never really fallen in love with a polyester product. When it came time to throw away my polyester clothes, I wasn’t surprised to find that everything I really loved was wool/cotton/silk.

This would be my reason, although I'm not an advocate against synthetic fabrics, just a personal preference. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8279095/

Haha I loved this. This is a distillation of being human. Holding a view, not knowing why, and accepting any new input for justification :D

P.s. fellow synthetic avoidant. mostly for microplastics ? dunno.

I’m all for minimalist travel but I feel like I picked up a number of cues that the author is buying and disposing of (somehow) items seasonally or even on an as-no-longer-needed basis. Hopefully that means donating the item and maybe even buying used to begin with but it’s not mentioned here. I don’t want to make assumptions but in the worst case this could be a very wasteful kind of minimalism.

Funny thing is the list is not at all far from “latest Apple and arc’teryx” which I’d consider the consumerist side he’s complaining about but - some of those items are objectively really high quality and durable

I found this a bit odd, especially when the author mentioned they lose their apple watch a lot so buy an older one. It feels peculiar to buy such an objectively expensive high end item when you know you constantly lose it, and barely use any of it's features. To me that is continual overconsumption.

I can't pretend I don't have my own contradictions going on, so I'm not having a go at the author. But I did find it a little funny when reading it.

'One baggers', at least those who post online about it, are very consumerist in general despite the practice being about minimalism.

You'll find people posting about upgrading their bag from the $300 Aer Travel Pack, to the $400 Goruck GR2 because of style preference. I've seen someone talking about repurchasing items they already own in a particular color to match their packs color scheme.

I think the motivation for many has nothing to do with being anti-consumerist and more about just freedom to travel without paying-for/carrying-around checked-in luggage and all the other benefits of travelling light, which is fine.

Yeah, I've come to realise that this is much more of a hobby for people than a genuine lifestyle.

I think YouTube has caused a big increase in this. One bag, EDC, Ultralight - the videos are all completely the same. "Here's a bunch of things I just bought, and here's a bunch of things I've used for a month and am throwing away". With YouTube they can get paid to do it though, and get to add a new dimension to their hobby which lets them connect with others.

As you say, all of this is fine. I certainly can't cast judgement either, I for sure have my own issues with over-consumption.

Surely this keychain flashlight will be the one to change my life?

I do wonder if the sort of person who can lose a watch "frequently" is also the sort of person who would immensely benefit from only owning 20 things and having absolutely zero choices to make about clothes.

Even if the author is literally throwing away seasonal items, the environmental trade-off is that they probably purchase far fewer items than the average person.

This. The disincentive to buy anything is constantly present when you live out of a bag. It's an odd way to defeat the rampant consumerism of modern society, but it works.

Yet the author of TFA owns a Macbook, iPad, iPhone and Apple Watch. Sounds more like peak consumerism to me.

Sure. But for the fridge, TV, washing machine and car - which together contain orders of magnitude more embodied carbon and rare minerals than his pocket-sized gadgets - he's condemned by his lifestyle to sharing them with others.

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How do you figure? I've had one swimsuit for 5 years & I store it in my dresser. He presumably buys one or more per year.

Similarly (and this isn't a judgment), the ultralight outdoor gear – you trade off weight for durability.

When it comes to ultralight hiking gear, don't think durability is a major issue if it just sees occasional use in urban environments and you take good care of it.

I've travelled w/ a Montbell Versalite and Arcteryx Cerium LT for the past few years and both are like new, each probably getting around 200-300 wears in primarily city use while traveling to over 40 cities. Just picked up a Montbell Travel Umbrella (3 ounces!) a couple months back as I'll be in Mexico City for awhile and it rains like half the year.

I was wearing some Uniqlo puff jacket the ul community recommended on a trip to Italy. I brushed up against a pillar at some ruins and it snagged on the rough material and exploded into a cloud of down that the heavy wind blew all over a crowd of tourists.

Now I wear sturdy cotton, linen, leather, denim, and the extra weight is just a couple more calories burned.

I have hundreds, possibly over a thousand hours on mine and it is significantly more delicate and expensive than the Uniqlo one, which I had owned previously.

To me packability and efficiency reign supreme, and I just reflexively know I’m wearing a delicate item and react accordingly to my environment when I wear it.

It’s similar to the sunglass paradox. For many years, I owned fairly cheap pairs and lost them often. Then suddenly I spent $300 on a pair of Oliver Peoples… had them for 10 years, finally gave them to an ex-gf who loved them more than I did.

You can in fact change semi-reckless behavior when the quality of the item dictates it. Perhaps the extra anxiety isn’t worth it, but this is an article about one bag travel - which I do - so it fits.

I've definitely had durability issues with some of the newer lightweight gear even with fairly casual use. But mostly not just urban use to be fair.

if you travel a lot... maybe the co2 saved from not lugging around a cheap thing offsets the production waste.

If you are flying with any regularity, you are completely exhausting your carbon budget. The remaining carbon budget is the CO2 if emitted will lead to 2C warming. IPCC estimates it to be 1150 GtCO2 in 2020 [1]. Which is ~140 tCO2/person over however many years we use to spend this. So if we want to limit warming to 2C by 2050, that leaves a budget of 4.7tCO2/person/year.

A transatlantic round-trip alone can be 2.3tCO2 [2].

[1] Page 48 https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/syr/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6...

[2] https://co2.myclimate.org/en/portfolios?calculation_id=82395...

The elephant in the room. Even one flight per year per person is basically too much. Flying, above all else, is how middle-class folks (like those in this thread) explode their carbon footprints. For obvious reasons very few of them want to hear this.

In the limited amount of experience I’ve had with researching these things, embodied carbon can be a much higher number than you might think, even with something as simple as a cotton t-shirt. Odds are that shirt had already sailed around the world once or twice by the time you buy it, and it might make its way to another continent once you’re done with it as well.

> Odds are that shirt had already sailed around the world once or twice by the time you buy it,

That's like... 40 grams of CO2 for those 2 trips for a t-shirt. Aka, a 2 min uber ride.

Shipping containers are incredibly efficient.

Modern large container ships consume about 200-300 tonnes of fuel per day, and could carry 742 millions t-shirts [1]. It takes 16 days to do something like Shanghai - LA, so that ends up being like 20 grams per shirt per trip.

[1]: https://www.howandwhy.com/15-mins/huge-ship-shirts

I did make it sound like transport was contributing to the lion’s share of the embodied carbon and I shouldn’t have - it’s more in the production process. Would have been well served by an ‘in addition’ in between those statements.

Fair, didn’t mean to strawman.

When traveling, I met many who lived by the mantra of self-sufficiency. It seemed both to liberate and consume them.

Daily now I see people living on the street with a lot more, but still with needs of all sorts.

In some schools of Buddhism, the tradition was to live with only one bowl and one spoon. The practice was to beg daily - yes, for food, but mainly to submit to the judgment of society as to whether one's practice is worth it to others. The premise was that people would give if they see you as worthy, not because they pity you.

I would ask the OP to reflect publicly on what he discovered about his own attachments, sense of place, and relations with others and himself. That could be helpful even to people in more tangled circumstance.

Ironic that the OP's carefully packed bag is lacking a spoon or bowl.

I guess it's easier to dispose of eating utensils at every meal. Or have the money to eat restaurant meals for every serving.

> "In some schools of Buddhism, the tradition was to live with only one bowl and one spoon. The practice was to beg daily... "

Interesting. So the practice of (these schools) of Buddhism requires that there be non-Buddists?

It requires that there be people who aren’t monks, as monks are the ones out begging. Lay people can own lots of stuff, such as houses, hence the term “householders” to mean lay people in Buddhist literature.

> In some schools of Buddhism, the tradition was to live with only one bowl and one spoon. The practice was to beg daily

It still exists today. A friend of mine was a monk for many years and would make daily alms rounds.

It also happens in other lineages of Hinduism too. A Baul teacher of mine was supposed to do a short teaching tour here in the US a few months ago and actually got turned away at SFO by immigration because the immigration officer just couldn't understand that she doesn't make money and eats all her meals from alms. He told her no one exists like that anymore, detained her, and sent her back to Bengal.

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I am surprised one bag crowd seem to pack so many computing devices with them. Some have phone, laptop, ipad and kindle and pride themselves on being minimalists.

It's interesting he has an iPad in the picture of his gear, but doesn't mention it in the article. I, too, waffle on which is best for minimalism, but if I had to choose I'd still go with my MacBook Air. An iPad is nice, but it's not a substitute for a laptop.

I'd want an ereader as well, but when push comes to shove, I can read on my phone just fine. My Kobo Clara BW is small and light enough to be almost unnoticeable.

E reader batteries last a lot longer than a phone. If I read on my phone I’d have to charge it constantly.

You're not wrong. Fortunately it's not a choice I have to make.

i noticed this too and it didnt make much sense to me. my guess is that their work involves using a stylus to draw, or that the ipad works as a second monitor, or that it's simply something they really, really like and its a luxury item

This type of minimalism is not to be confused with 'frugalism'. It has nothing to do with treading lightly on the planet and more to do with blasting the upper atmosphere with jet engine exhaust as often as possible.

For me a bicycle is crucial for getting out and about, and I have done some long distance trips across continents with big mountain ranges to get over, with stove, tent and sleeping bag. This opens up a whole new level of 'minimalism'. Where possible, every item has to be 'dual use' to some extent, so that fleece hoodie doubles up as a pillow. Furthermore, every stupid travel gadget has to go, so no water purifier, no first aid kit, no 'stuff sacks', no special toiletries bags and no evening-only leisure clothes/shoes.

But this is luxury! The real pros are refugees. Imagine walking from Iraq to France, having to avoid every border guard, with no food in your stomach and just the clothes you wear as belongings.

In all fairness to the author of the article, the abundance of tech can be fully justified if he is a web developer and needs to make sure everything works on all of the devices that matter. That doesn't explain the Kindle, however, books (reading matter) has to be a priority item. From past experience, I would get rid of pretty much everything before getting rid of the reading matter.

As far as traveling being a "minimalist" is about making choices and removing things you don't care as much about. Some people care about having a pair of running shoes at hand more than a laptop, so they don't bring the later. Photographers like to take their camera and lens, even though to most people a phone would be more "minimalist". This person enjoys electronics...

I'm one of those.

I'd go iPad only, it's a versatile device after-all, but the truth of it is: it can't beat a laptop for "real work" (unless, real work is replying to emails and running an extremely cut down version of excel).

Yet, a laptop is significantly more awkward to read with or watch media. When flying I have (nearly) lost a screen to someone reclining in front of me while I was using my laptop; this is not an issue with iPads.

As it stands, the iPad is practically an essential, it's just so versatile and useful that it's omission would cut comfort more than it's weight. But I need an additional device, likely a laptop. One can't live without headphones either, and at least a smart-phone for payments, SMS and phone-calls.

So, it looks outsized, but a laptop can't substitute an iPad, and an iPad can't substitute a laptop (yet; it's a software failing mostly)

It is not cool or sexy, but a surface tablet makes a great travel device because it is a full computer that is also a tablet. You can also use it during takeoff and landing when laptops are not allowed.

Surface battery life is something like 1/2 of a Macbook or iPad in real world scenarios.

Certainly not a bad amount (5hrs) but enough that it becomes a conscious "I will have to charge this thing if I use it all day" thought.

I'm not trying to nitpick, this is genuinely what makes my brain hesitate.

It's not that awkward at all. Heck, if you're in bed the laptop even comes with its own stand!

Really the right answer here is a folding phone.

I'm living as a nomad currently, laptop and phone feels mandatory, but I also pack a tablet. I find it useful for hand-written notes, so I carry no pen and paper, and as a second screen for my laptop.

Most who do this aren't concerned with minimalism in terms of anti-consumerism, just minimalism in terms of not over-packing and having to deal with the headaches of paying for, potentially losing, and having to cart around checked-in luggage.

You could make a decent case for an iPad with cellular being the "correct" device for this for an Apple user, since you should be able to just treat it as "your phone" with some kind of VoIP workaround, but also as "your computer."

IMO that's the worst of both worlds - too big to comfortably make calls on but also doesn't have a keyboard to write on. You can carry an external keyboard but that actually ends up being fiddlier to pack than a conventional laptop.

You're not wrong. I can't imagine not having a real computer personally, and the iPad + keyboard solutions are basically a construction kit for a terrible laptop which costs 1.2x what a good laptop costs.

I don't think I'd be annoyed making calls with a tablet though. I'd just use bluetooth. For me the challenge would be that having no phone would mean I'd have to carry something bulkier everywhere. So, in conclusion, I have no great ideas and I'd be forced to do phone + light laptop.

Yes, it all looks very performative - a hobby for those with the funds to support it.

> Onebag travel is unquestionably the best way to travel. Traveling without luggage removes just about every pain point associated with flying, such as checking bags, overhead compartments, bag fees, waiting in line, and needing to drop off luggage before an adventure. Just stroll into the airport an hour before your flight, and walk off your plane directly to your destination.

This is absolutely true, especially when traveling solo.

People freak out about this, but all it boils down to is bringing enough socks, underwear, and shirts for ~5-6 days, 2 pairs of bottoms, and (depending on weather) or a combination of 2 and/either sweaters and an outer shell. Wear the biggest stuff (pants/sweaters) on the plane. After that be willing to do laundry, which will often put you in a position that's outside the tourist mainstream and force you to slow down and take stalk for a few hours (single use detergent packs are a thing, but you can also just bring a few tide pods in a zip-lock bag). Freak weather events can be used as an excuse to shop for clothing, too (the best rain jacket that I ever bought was in this situation in the Netherlands - it was expensive, but I'm still using it a decade later - a fantastic souvenir that people always complement me on when wearing it).

Of course, if you need to lug more (for special occasions or business), that's another matter, but it still makes my jaw drop when I see people travelling on vacations with massive roller luggage that often sucks on cobblestone streets or lugging up stairs.

> single use detergent packs are a thing, but you can also just bring a few tide pods in a zip-lock bag

Even better these days there are laundry sheets that are light / compact.

> Freak weather events can be used as an excuse to shop for clothing, too (the best rain jacket that I ever bought was in this situation in the Netherlands - it was expensive, but I'm still using it a decade later - a fantastic souvenir that people always complement me on when wearing it).

This doesn't make any sense. Going going to a random shop to buy a rain jacket is inevitably going to be worse than doing careful research and ordering from the cheapest retailer. Moreover after you bought your first rain jacket, then what? Buy another next time it rains? If not, why not just buy it ahead of your trip and pack it?

> This doesn't make any sense. Going going to a random shop to buy a rain jacket is inevitably going to be worse than doing careful research and ordering from the cheapest retailer. Moreover after you bought your first rain jacket, then what? Buy another next time it rains? If not, why not just buy it ahead of your trip and pack it?

That means constantly planning for every eventuality, which means always carrying an over-sized/over-stuffed piece of luggage. If you travel enough, you want to minimize that. Weight adds up, especially jeans and pants.

No, I don't always go and buy a rain jacket. Most of the time the forecasts are decent enough for most trips that I'll buy a cheap umbrella, wait it out, or something if things go sideways. But it did cause me to browse through some stores I'd never have bothered go into. For me, unexpected things can sometimes result in delights like that.

I saw a jacket that felt very nicely made, had nice materials, had a lot of high-quality seams (my wife's friend was a seamstress and taught us what to look for in quality clothing), and was a perfect fit and colour.

I'm far more willing to buy sweaters or other things that keep you warm, though.

I don't think they have the same definition of "best" that you do.

A rainy day in Utrecht and a spontaneous visit to Bever introduced me to the Arc'teryx Beta SL. Incredible jacket.

The difference is that the stuff you buy “on the spot” is tested by locals in that environment. In my experience, I got my favourite rain gear from a local store in a place where it rains a lot, and the best mountain gear in a town that’s actually in the mountains. Online shopping, even with lots of research, can only take you so far.

Also, these things make great souvenirs. Every time I wear my merino wind buff, I think of that little Irish town on the Atlantic coast where I bought it, and how wet and windy it was.

I think it depends on how you're travelling. If you're staying in hostels and moving locations frequently (v common for solo travel), walking/busing instead of uber/taxi, using just one bag is peak. But if you're staying longer or you have your own room, getting rides places etc, then it might be worth having more clothes and dealing with lugging your suitcase around occasionally.

Doesn't even need to be a suitcase, a big duffel bag can hold just as much clothing and be more convenient for carrying around, although you still need to check it at the airport.

Depends where you go, if planning some 3 week remote hiking in ie Nepal it may not be the best approach.

Ie I've recently spent 2 weeks in remote islands in Sulawesi, Indonesia and didn't bring enough mosquito spray. Well, on whole island chain I was in, nobody in tiny local shops ever had one. When asked, they told me they suck up malaria if caught and move on, sort of how we deal with flu. Luckily dengue wasn't there. So suck it up I did, luckily it seems I avoided it (knock on the wood).

With spray comes sunscreen. Some basic diving equipment. Non-tiny first aid kid. Some photography stuff. But yeah for that one I could still put it all into 1 medium backpack, just liquids travelled separately. For that Nepal, backpack was bigger. For Aconcagua, there was an extra big duffel bag. If doing full camping and cooking, one backpack but much bigger.

If only it could solve the pain points from other people, especially overhead compartments and TSA/customs.

It’s uncomfortably close to bribery, but Precheck/Global Entry is worth every penny.

Not really true since you can't even bring a little pocketknife or other cutting tool with you.

Yes, that's one thing that I really dislike. I'm very used to carrying my Leatherman supertool around with me, and it irks me that I can't do that.

But I do have a Wallet Ninja that's useful that's only ever been questioned once, and never taken away. And I used to carry a small knife that folds into a key, and nobody ever noticed until one particularly bored TSA agent decided I couldn't take it with me. I should really order another one, or dozen, and treat them as "disposable" for traveling with.

I have heard that people often forget that this is on their keys, and it is very rare that it is noticed:

https://www.swisstechtools.com/product/detail.html?id=111

You could bring the Swiss Army Jetsetter, but the problem with that is that you are almost certain to get stopped by US security every time, and deal with a 1-15 minute delay depending on how well the particular agent you get knows their rules around scissors and how many times they mistakenly call your item a Swiss Army "knife". To save yourself some trouble, just put it on an s-biner on the outside of your backpack, and ideally extend the tools so it is obvious there's no knife.

https://www.victorinox.com/en/Products/Swiss-Army-Knife%E2%8...

why do you need one? I see a lot of "edc" stuff online where people seem to carry knives and tools with them everywhere they go. I've never found a need to do so and never been caught out in a situation where I would have benefitted from a knife.

When I was a kid, my dad told me that all gentlemen should carry a pocket knife. (And presumably gentlewomen, too, but he was addressing me at the time.) I carry a nice Spyderco Para 3 with me at all times when I'm not flying somewhere and use it multiple times a day for random stuff like: trimming a loose thread on my shirt, digging out a splinter, trimming a hangnail before it can snag on something, cutting a length of rope, popping a piece of glass out of my shoe, opening an envelope, cutting tape on a box, slicing an apple or a piece of cheese, and so on ad infinitum. On the very few occasions where I didn't have it, I've reached for my phantom knife and been bummed to realize I didn't have the tool I was counting on. Without exaggeration, I use it every single day.

Note that crazy stuff like self defense absolutely, positively does not enter the equation. I mention that only because some people get weird about it in both directions, both "eek, you carry a weapon around?!", and "ooh, ever get to stab anyone?!" No. My primary self defense mechanism is good running shoes and decent stamina.

"My good reason to carry a knife is that God gave me rather weak teeth and rudimentary claws in an evolutionary trade-off. The hairy-armed person who figured out how to put an edge on a suitable rock made it possible for us to be recognizably human in the first place. I wear a wristwatch whether or not I have an appointment to keep, and I carry a pen and/or pencil because I am a literate person whether or not I have a specific writing task ahead of me, and I carry a knife because I am a human and not an ape."

- James Mattis

Having some kind of a sharpish edge is pretty useful in my experience. I just use a keychain multi tool that’s more like a screwdriver than a knife but you can open things you can’t with just your hands. A real pocket knife I only bring when camping or renovating or something like that

And different countries having different rules.

Always fun to lose your contact lens solution at a transit airport that doesn’t embrace “one stop security” and find yourself tracking some down on a Sunday. Fuck you Heathrow.

I have every time I've traveled. Lighters as well. TSA is fucking useless.

Most airports allow for 1 < 5cm knife and 1 lighter.

Nope, not in the USA.

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/...

Lighters are allowed though:

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/...

If you can’t go without, just buy one at the destination. Leave it at the hotel with a note that it’s free for the taking when you leave.

Swiss army knives are cheap and easy to find in every city.

Back in the the before times of the '90's, when it still existed, I flew on SwissAir in a premium cabin for work; they gave all the passengers Swiss Army knives as a gift while we were in the air...

You can fly with a swiss army knife in europe, or at least nobody ever questioned me. If you buy local everywhere you fly look for opinels, for $10 you get the perfect camping/food knife

And throw it away every time? Or at least give it away or so?

Leave it at the hotel/hostel. I leave a small note so the cleaning staff knows it’s abandoned, not lost and in need of return.

I’ve done this with various things I forgot, like a phone charger for the local outlet type.

I'm all for light travel, but this being everything you own is unrealistic and not something that most people should aspire to.

OP treats clothing as disposable, buying swim shorts for swimming and ditching them before moving on, buying more t-shirts when in one place and ditching them before leaving. I hope they are donating them for re-use.

Between medication, toiletries, and general hygiene products I could fill nearly half a bag, and that's just for me to stay healthy, I don't have any cosmetics. Travel sized toiletries are fine temporarily, but significant plastic waste if used long term.

And beyond OP's lack of human connections, they are also lacking sentimentality. My house is filled with pictures, art, sculptures, drawings, cards, books, plants, all given by friends and family, and which remind me on a daily basis about those human connections.

Like top level athletes who sacrifice their bodies in ways that we should not generally aspire to (we admire and respect), OP is doing things that for most people would sacrifice health and wellbeing.

> My house is filled with pictures

My friends know I take no material things and all I need is a picture on my phone. The occasional tiny gift is only saved until I visit my parents' home and dump it there.

Again, that's not something for others to aspire to, even if it works for you personally.

The fact that you're "dumping" gifts at your parents' home suggests a few things. It hints at a callousness regarding relationships, particularly with that choice of words, although that may be reading too far into it.

It also suggests that you do intend to return to the gifts eventually. That you see the nomadism as temporary, that you'll always have your parents' home to return to, or that you eventually intend to settle down. That's fine, maybe that's a natural change at some time in your life, but it would also suggest that this nomadism is not sustainable. It also demonstrates the privilege you have, in being able to return to somewhere, being able to have the best of both worlds. That's also not a bad thing, but it's worth recognising the privileged position you're in.

Your comment touched on a lot of notes and I'm having trouble writing my thoughts down.

Everything expires, the stuff/mementos I saved in my teens is now gone. My situation only speeds this process up due to practical reasons. If gifts reach my dumping ground I do care about them, I'm just very liberal with words.

I have no intention of returning even just to my home country, nor of collecting my stuff from there. Nomadism taught me to be minimal and even if "I settle" it doesn't mean I will start hoarding stuff.

Given how long I've been at it, I disagree that it's not sustainable. The only "end" I see to my situation is that I find someone who convinces my heart to do it. But I'm too picky to settle, both with places and with people. Now that's the issue.

> it's worth recognising the privileged position you're in

Absolutely, but my point was only that people do not need a lot of stuff, and that applies to unprivileged people even more so than it does to me.

Oh by the way I suggest watching George Carlin's "stuff" bit. I think about his "smaller version of your stuff" every time I go on a side trip.

I did this for a few years and would recommend 1 (smallish) suitcase + 1 backpack.

As mentioned in the article, it’s better (financially and socially) to stay in locations for a medium length of time. If you do this, then the overhead of a single suitcase is very minimal, and you get far more flexibility with clothing - particularly if you’re staying in colder areas. E.g. NYC in winter.

I usually prefer two carry-ons, a backpack and a laptop bag. I find it easier to minimize what I have under the seat in front of me and be able to carry a few extra things that wouldn't fit otherwise.

A few years ago, at age 30, I expected by age 40 to either be married, or of no fixed abode. (There is, of course, a lot more to the story.)

I had been planning the construction of a velomobile and trailer, with solar panels, batteries, digital piano, small fridge, more than 20L of water capacity, integrated sleeping quarters… essentially a miniature, human-powered RV (in fact very close to New Zealand’s freedom camping vehicle rules; with a few realistic changes it could be certified). Suitable for roaming Australia, only needing restocking/dumping every three or four days. Obviously much heavier than backpack travel (laden, 120–140kg, excluding rider; but at least this wasn’t my grand-piano-cycle design¹), but significantly more independent in other ways. I planned to build it, then cycle around Australia for a year (average 50km/day), then unless my situation changed, sell my house and continue indefinitely.

Well, I moved to India and got married last year instead. So my velomobile will never happen. :-)

—⁂—

¹ It calls for some pretty crazy gear ratios if you want to be able to climb any sort of slope, but I worked things out enough to be confident the concept is sound, with careful component choice (e.g. the tyres I’d otherwise prefer to use are only rated to 150kg, so either different ones will be needed, or doubling the wheels in some way). Less thoroughly imagined is the pipe-organ-cycle. Horizontal mounting honestly makes it surprisingly practical… though you might want to stop at 16′ pipes, five metres long is already getting unwieldy. Sadly I don’t think wind harvesting would be viable to drive an organ of any real size; you’d need a separate blower.

I biked around the US for 1.5 years, and loved every minute of it. Initially I had a hammock (Hennessey) and then a 1 person tent. Lived at a whitewater rafting company, was invited into a music festival, and was invited into people's homes and fed 2-3 days a week. I stopped to do the family thing, but gearing up to take them on bike trips soon.

Shoes are always what get me. Wearing the same pair 2 days in a row isn't great for bacteria etc. Plus wanting sandals/flip-flops for the beach. Proper boots for any kind of hiking. Then I feel awkward particularly in Europe in the evening going to restaurants in trainers, so a pair of smart shoes is useful.

Not saying I always take that entire combo, but almost always more than 1 pair.

> Wearing the same pair 2 days in a row isn't great for bacteria etc.

Do you have foot health problems? For much of my life I've had a single pair of shoes I wear almost daily and have never had problems with bacteria. The only issue I've found is going sockless. Even then you can put a little foot powder into the shoes once a week and it kills everything in them.

Yeah, excessively sweaty feet.

I used to be all boots all the time, but I realized somewhat recently that unless I'm carrying a heavy load, boots are significantly less comfortable than good e.g. trail running shoes. If I'm carrying the load that the OP is, hiking boots are not really useful for me. If you look at what e.g. extreme long-distance hikers are wearing on the Appalachian trail or the Pacific Crest trail, its usually trail running shoes, because it makes more sense for carrying a light load an extremely long distance.

Certainly, if you've a history of ankle injuries or some other podiatric necessity, go for it. But for me, a pair of good walking shoes and a pair of good sandals is all I realistically need.

Two pairs is enough. Religiously alternate days and take them off wherever possible and open them up to air them. Make sure they’re breathable.

I can manage Europe with a pair of white Air Force's and flip flops. But I do agree. An extra pair of shoes is really nice to have.

Few modifications. I would highly recommend:

- Icebreaker Merino T-Shirts https://na.icebreaker.com/en-us/collections/mens-tshirts?cou...

- Paka Alpaca Wool Hoodie: https://www.pakaapparel.com/products/alpaca-hoodie?variant=3...

I wear those t-shirts in hot climates because of how breathable they are and the Alpaca Wool Hoodie is literally the best sweater I've ever owned. Super breathable, lightweight and I've washed it a total of 4 times in 3 years.

Merino shirts are literally the only shirts I've worn through to have holes on various places. Its not that great and vastly overpriced material for many active uses, but marketing is strong with this one.

To quote some mountain guides I talked about this - its a great second layer in snowy sports, ie ski touring. Wicking of sweat ain't great compared to synthetics (and thus drying takes also much longer), but when wet it keeps warmth, unlike synthetics or cotton. As top layer it sucks since as mentioned it has little resistance to abrasion comparatively, and everybody wears some sort of backpack out there. I have synthetic shirts that lasted 10 years either frequent gym going or intense mountain sports, not a single hole or tear. None of merinos survived that long.

I talk about cheaper brands like Decathlon but also Ice Breaker, the heavier/thicker ones.

Not talking about hoodies here, those seem much thicker material and never worn those, synthetics served me for such role very well so far.

Just in case you weren’t aware, you can’t use enzymatic laundry powder with merino because it will dissolve it and cause those holes. For years I thought I was going too hard on them or the holes were coming from moths, but then I read about it online. My merino gear now lasts a lot longer now that I wash it separately and with non-enzymatic powder.

From what I've seen merino tends to be more delicate than synthetics, but much more odor resistant.

Merino is the only fabric I've found that can handle multiple sweaty days or even workouts without a hint of smell.

>> merino tends to be more delicate than synthetics, but much more odor resistant

100% this. Merino is great if your use case is any warm / hot / humid climate where you want to wear your shirt for multiple days...

Yes that is true, forgot that part. Doesn't help much in colder situations with more layers but for a single layer case, with nothing carried on the back/waist its fine even long term. I just don't do such things much.

The one Icebreaker shirt I owned got holes and sweat stains while my tri-blend American Apparel shirts continued for years longer without issues.

I will add another data point to this: Unbound Merino tshirts※¹.

As other replies have mentioned, merino is definitely fragile (both of mine had holes within a few months). But the caveat being that I literally wear them every 2nd day (I own two day-use tshirts (2 more for night/spare) and rotate them daily, so they probably got 5 years of use in the year that I've owned them.

They are even more amazing for anti-smelling than synthetics with silver woven into them (like Lululemon Silverescent). They can go for weeks without washing (I've tested with other people's noses). Caveat being if you spill something on them or absorb a ton of barbecue smoke, they will need a wash (or at least spot cleaning).

I think merino tshirts (2 pair), lightweight synthetic everything else, powerful phones or ultralight laptops + USB-C has enabled folks like me to travel indefinitely (except in winter) with a 20-25L bag or less ※².

※¹ - https://unboundmerino.com

※² - That is if I didn't have a family incl. toddler, in my case I'll still LARP onebagging for our 1-4 week trips.

I agree with you about the breathability of those merino t-shirts, but I think the author is right about their fragility. I feel like mine constantly get runs or shrink even though I’m careful (I’m a frequent business traveler and they do get heavy use). I’m considering switching back to traditional undershirts.

That's weird, because I am still wearing the same Icebreaker t-shirts I bought in 2015, a decade later, through many many washes. They have thinned out some, and I've added more new shirts over time to my rotation, but the very first one I bought is still perfectly wearable as a daily undershirt. I've never had one shrink, I do have some small holes in the oldest shirts, but nothing that impedes its basic function.

I think it's like Apple cables: for some they're frayed in a month, others still have perfectly serviceable 30-pin cables that they've used daily. Personally, I wear Unbound merino t-shirts and underwear, and they last for years.

(I'm also convinced that front-loading washers make clothes last longer because they don't literally beat your clothes to death.)

For what it’s worth, I am washing them in a top loader. I wonder if that does make a difference.

We haven’t utilized double-blind tests at our house or anything, but definitely makes a difference in clothing longevity for us. Popular consensus seems to agree, FWIW.

are we allowed to have any colours, though?

but really, every person i've seen who "activates" a lifestyle like this one only ever seems to wear black. i suppose it's the choice of any committed rationalist, but i think it's dull

also, fine so long as you don't need to go any where that requires a different type of shoe

"capsule wardrobe" is the relevant term here, you pick 2-3 colors that work together. It's the femme-coded equivalent. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=capsule+wardrobe&t=osx&ia=images&i...

It's the most versatile. It's more smart, hides sweat/stains, less noticeable if still damp etc. So if you're min-maxing it seems like an obvious choice.

Though I agree a colourful linen shirt for example (pink, yellow) or a merino pullover wouldn't break your back

I wear very little black, but I have tended towards darker colors. I've found that using earth tones blends well, similar to a capsule wardrobe, and you can incorporate greens, blues, and khakis along with darker colors like navy and black. Darker shirt, lighter pants, or lighter shirt, darker pants, and rotate through. You don't need to have very many different colors to effectively dress differently every day of a week or even across two weeks.

Because of the need for minimalism in travel, my wardrobe does tend to be relatively conservative and muted, but it's not all-black all of the time. You can certainly have some color.

I'm wrapping a trip through Europe and I only packed black tshirts and a flannel button-up "for color".

Black is timeless, hides stains and sweat, easily layers of you want to buy something to add to it, matches multiple colors of trouser/jean/shoe.

I vow on my next trip to pack fewer jeans (2 pair vs. 4), more socks (4-6 thin pair vs 3), fewer overshirts (1 vs 3, maybe a second that is "classy").

I value having boots along with running shoes.

I'm a 2 bag traveller. Even with my bloated clothing budget, shoes and toiletries volume, I was able to fit it all in a 46L carry-on backpack + a normal backpack, with a satchel rolled up for use on daily walks.

You can have multiple colors, but doing laundry is easiest if everything is either dark or light. A backpack doesn't carry enough clothing for two loads to be super practical.

This is incredibly close to what I pack for long distance motorcycle, bicycle and hiking trips. This kit rocks, and all my notes are mostly personal preference.

I have an iPad Mini for reading and sketching, although I like paper more and more. I also sometimes sacrifice lightness for fashion, because I feel self-conscious travelling solo dressed like a bin bag.

I also have a lot of cheaper gear that so far never needed to be replaced. Most of it is from Decathlon. I only buy The Good Stuff once the test version falls apart. It's rarely necessary.

I could never bring myself to replace my electric shaver.

The biggest weight saver is USB-C. Retractable USB C cables are also great. Everything becomes a power bank for everything else.

I find myself wondering how this person pays for their nomadic lifestyle. Presumably they have some sort of remote job; it would be interesting to know how much they have to earn to offset their expenses.

I am not the OP, but traveling in a nomadic way is often significantly cheaper than you would expect. When I was doing this, I had roughly $4000/mo in expenses, and more than half of that is because I kept a house in the US while I was on the move, so I had to still pay mortgage, insurance, utilities, property taxes, etc. All-in, it's fairly easy to get by on less than $2k/mo as a single person in /most/ of the world, that's only about $37k/yr before taxes. Myself and most of the other digital nomads I met in my travel mostly worked location-independent remote tech jobs, often as one-person consultancies or as subcontractors to a prime contract agency, most of us made more than $100k/yr.

My observation when I'm talked to people about my experiences is that they imagine travel is a lot more expensive than it actually is. The most expensive thing I ever had to pay for was my plane ticket to get out of the US. Once I was abroad, even flights were significantly cheaper.

Legit question, how do you work stably enough to have a good income to support this? Personally I find living a "regular" life and maintaining a 9-5 job is hard enough in terms of time management and logistics. And that's with the ease of not having to think about where my next accommodation, next meal, next shower will be.

Do you find yourself more time pressured? More stressed? Spending more on conveniences to make life easier?

In my case I simply refuse jobs that don't let me work when I want to. Daily standup? Absolutely no way. Weekly standup? Only as long as I can skip it on the regular.

I'm extremely productive and I'll work weekends, but if on a Tuesday at 11am I feel like going on a trip, I absolutely will and you can't stop me.

Honestly, when I was doing it, I didn't really find any of that difficult. The biggest pressure was from other people who I met while traveling to go out and party or do fun activities while I preferred working. I used time zones to my advantage when I was in Europe and Africa, so I'd have a nice relaxing morning, have a good breakfast, and then work in the mid-day through the evening, go to bed and do it again, and my weekends were still my weekends to do whatever I chose. When I was in South America I just worked normal east coast hours because most of the continent is on EST time zone or similar. It really wasn't as big a deal as you might imagine.

It's not like I was homeless, I would know I wanted to spend a month or thereabouts in a city and I'd get an AirBnB or otherwise arrange accommodations, I'd pay for a coworking space to have a good place to work with stable internet connectivity (this actually was one of the most difficult things in some parts of the world, back then), and I'd eat like the locals either cooking at the AirBnB or going to local restaurants/cafes.

I don't think being nomadic has to mean living like a hobo, those are not necessarily the same things. I never stayed anywhere that didn't have basic indoor plumbing at least, although a few times I'd have to hand wash clothes in a sink and hang them to dry outside the window, which was kind of a bummer but not a world-ender.

Overall, my productivity didn't suffer at all, and I didn't find it stressful from the things you mentioned with even a modicum of planning ahead. In fact, being able to explore different parts of the world and head out when I felt satisfied or got bored, meant that I always had some sort of moment for inspiration that helped to fuel both my curiosity and my work.

People often also overlook that you need a visa to do remote work in most countries, but that really kills the vibe digital nomads are going for.

In 2016 I was travelling on 1000 AUD a month in Asia.

Granted this was no life of luxury, but I wasn’t exactly holding back on much either.

It can be much cheaper depending on your lifestyle. When I did it I mostly stayed in hostels which cost much less than renting. Subtract out all the other costs like electricity bills, car payments, etc and it can be inexpensive.

I am always confounded when I get off a flight at a vacation destination and see people dragging these 80L roller bags around. What are you putting in there?

Pack the absolute minimum. If you really need something, you can almost always buy it wherever you are going. Even trekking in the deep Himalayas, there was always a spot to buy an extra t-shirt or socks every day or so.

If I'm going scuba diving at a vacation destination then I need a large roller bag just for dive gear, plus another carry-on bag for my camera rig. There's no way I'm going to dive with shitty rental gear (except for simple, heavy stuff like tanks and weight belt).

Back when you could bring the more fun stuff back from Europe (meat, cheese etc) my big suitcase would be well over half empty on the way out. Quite a bit heavier on the way back ;)

On the return from my first trip to South Africa I carried 12 bottles of wine in my luggage.

That was back when flights included two free checked items.

On my second trip to Europe one of my suitcases was full of T-shirt swag to give out at a conference. Lugging both up the stairs, across the train tracks, and back down was a hassle.

Both of these were over 20 years ago.

And then there's the story at https://notalwaysright.com/a-steam-powered-cruise/392530/ of a couple trying to bring a full-size espresso machine on their cruise, so they can have their special coffee.

> On the return from my first trip to South Africa I carried 12 bottles of wine in my luggage.

Totally understandable! Amazing wine - I didn't want to leave Constantia. But I picked myself up and dragged myself to Stellenbosch !

And at the end of the trip, I didn't want to return home. Such an incredible country that still holds a very special place in my heart

You didn't have to pay duty on them?

I ... probably did?

I didn't.

Things were a lot looser then. I brought a 6-pack of Negra Modelo as carry-on for a trip to Europe. The airport x-ray staff in Albuquerque recognized it on the screen, which impressed me. They had no problem with it.

We travel out of a single roller bag for a family of 5. Plus we each have a backpack with miscellaneous stuff. We generally leave a little space in the luggage fo whatever we might pick up during our stay. Our kids are 6, 6, and 4 and we're currently on day 8 of 11 in Hawaii. It's been fine, we just do laundry every 2-3 nights.

And throw it all away before you fly home? That's like saying "Why wash dishes when you can just throw them away and buy new ones"?

As an aside, you should absolutely wash your clothes after buying them before wearing them. They're covered in chemicals that aren't great for your skin. I usually pack a week's worth of clothes and do laundry once a week while traveling. Doing laundry more often is a drag.

Why waste time and energy on chores such as laundry and shopping, if you can avoid it by taking a bit more stuff with you? A big roller bag is almost as effortless as a small one, as long as you are going to a semi-civilized place.

My favorite way of traveling involves a 20l backpack and a small checked bag. There is usually enough space for whatever I need, I don't have to worry about overhead space, and I don't need special travel versions of the things I use. But sometimes I take a larger (~100l) suitcase, or even both for longer trips with multiple activities.

As for trekking in the Himalayas, you should always carry clothes you don't expect to need and gear you hope you won't need. Mountains are objectively dangerous, and bad things do happen occasionally. Such as the unexpected blizzard on the eastern side of Everest last weekend.

> What are you putting in there?

Bulky gifts.

Bulky sports equipment.

Lots of kids' clothes. Kids' toys. Kids' books. Kids' medical kit.

Clothes that span multiple seasons or climatic zones: warm, cold, heavy rain, snow. Extra shoes. Especially when you know that your things will get wet and that you will have only occasional opportunities to dry them.

Suit/dress/fancy shoes if going to a wedding or other formal event.

Add that, and 80L is not much volume...

Often mine is relatively empty on arrival and I fill it with wines and other souvenirs to take home

Did a motorbike trip in Vietnam with my parents and they rolled up to the airport with 4 large (soft) bags. I was with a backpack. Guess who was the porter throughout the trip.

If you like this kinda thing, highly recommend checking out Dominic Tarr's youtube. He used to be a prolific nodejs guy back in the day, now he...sails. His videos are great and he's a lovely guy: https://www.youtube.com/@dominictarrsailing/videos

Brings Hundred Rabbits to mind: https://100r.ca/site/sailing.html

He's building js apps with https://sailsjs.com ?

I'm reminded of the tiny-home movement from the 00's, and how it evolved in our cultural zeitgeist. Early on, practitioners tried to cram as much as possible into the smallest amount of space; you'd see kitchen/dining/living/TV/office combo rooms. Over time it grew obvious that minimalism is less about the amount of space consumed and more about the human interface. For instance, a space that is easy to clean with limited visual noise would score higher on minimalism than those early little multi-use rooms even if 5-10x the size. Now, a minimalist home is all about how the person inhabits it, even if the structure itself is rather large and feature-rich.

The author seems to partially grasp this notion with a clear intent (focus, spontaneity). However, the emphasis on stuff seems notably anti-minimalist. I suspect the objects in the author's life could have an even smaller role than they do. Some 3/4 of that post was dedicated to the objects; what about walking, or attention, or connecting with locals... aren't these the real challenges/opportunities?

Take for example a mentor of mine who would travel to a new continent and craft a new material life: buying a van (old and used) in the tourism off-season, finding a cheap stove, gathering some padding and bedding, etc etc, continuously replacing and evolving his kit, never attached to any object, willing to forget about the whole thing, spending maximum time in nature and connecting with friends. You almost forgot about this guy's material life because his non-material life was so rich: gregarious, generous, present in nature, skilled in his pursuits. The kit was just a tool so that he could be in the places he wanted to be in, and not the other way around. If he were to blog about his lifestyle, he would probably highlight less the object he found and more the fact that he found it because he had his eyes wide open.

That's a lot of words to say that I believe this author could focus on the spirit of minimalism and drop some of its decorations. Minimalism is not black clothing and small backpacks, but rather a clarity of mind and simplicity in approach. I don't mean to be a total drag – I support and encourage this author.

How does he fit all his camping stuff in his one bag? This was not explained. He "tosses it in his bag" for outdoor trips but tossed from where? I thought everything he owned was already in his bag.

How does he "not buy stuff frequently" if he discards & buys new swim suits (and presumably other stuff) as needed?

Sounds like this guy has a pretty cool & minimal lifestyle but I suspect there's some exaggeration and elision going on in this post.

my guess is he has a separate bag at wherever his "home base" along with his camping stuff

I do like a mix of this and just being more flexible about where I can live. Like, I'm leaving where I am in a few days, but that's after staying here for most of 6 months, also flying to various locations for conferences, to meet up with old friends. I use a suitcase these days with fashionable clothes and I will stay in airbnb rentals instead of hostels, especially if I'm already meeting up with friends or if I need to make sure I have a quiet place to work. I also, perhaps, am fortunate that my family still owns their own home, so I have a place for long term storage in case I need it, since I have accrued a pretty large collection of physical books, for instance, some of them more rare than others.

I think if I were ever to get married I would probably buy a house or something, but ideally my partner would also be as mobile and flexible as me.

A rather depressive color pallet, pick your black, silver or white :)

I'm going to steal their approach at rolling up clothes, though.

I'll do you one better- take ~6ft of paracord, tie a simple loop in one end and a stopper-knot in the other. You can then use the noose-end to start a loop and wrap the remainder (zig-zag) around the rolled clothes and tuck the stopper knot underneath the criss-cross sections.

You go from "loose rolls of clothes" to "solid bundles of fabric". Makes it so you can take in/out individual items rather than having everything randomly unrolling every time you try and pull something out.

I tried the rolling clothes thing. And it does work. But as I got older, I found using packing cubes to be better.

This way things have their place and you know where to find something specific.

This page contains some interesting advice I didn't know, useful for traveling in general. Traveling without a luggage is a staple of mine, but I am not at this pro level yet.

For other commenters, overcoming materialism means not being attached to objects. Not necessarily living on a backpack. The idea is to have objects if you can, but don't suffer for their loss, or their gain. Seneca, the stoic thinker, might be a great read to start.

> “What the development of true renunciation implies is that we no longer rely on sensory pleasures for our ultimate happiness; we see the futility of expecting deep satisfaction from such limited, transitory phenomena. It is important to understand this point clearly. Renunciation is not the same as giving up pleasure or denying ourselves happiness. It means giving up our unreal expectations about ordinary pleasures. These expectations themselves are what turn pleasure into pain. It cannot be said too often that there is nothing wrong with pleasure. It is our grasping, exaggerating, distorting, and polluting attitude toward pleasure that must be abandoned.”

- Lama Thubten Yeshe

Not to sound like an asshole, but I bet losing that backpack would be as bad as someone else losing their car.

Overcoming materialism by carrying as much Apple hardware as possible in a backpack. I hate these kind of "minimalism" stories.

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Matthew 6:19. He was talking about backing up to the cloud ;)

Great thought. Hereafter-based hosting. Why shouldn't you be in control of your data after the Rapture? That's going to be a big dollar...

It's not materialism if i'm carrying a low absolute volume of material.

I tried long term backpack travel and it wasn’t for me but trying (many times) basically perfected my packing for all trips.

Between a backpacking trip to northern Europe to 3 day quick trip to Chicago, I can be ready to in like an hour and still, according to friends, be the most prepared.

It also bled into my daily life and I picked up some really good habits. I am not a minimalist but I would say I have very little clutter.

So worth it to try it a few times even if you never actually do it.

Ever think about writing some of those habits down?

Might be able to impart wisdom without the mess of backpacking days on end; or maybe the lessons have to be hard-earned?

I have written it down but it is a checklist and there are thousands of those. Checklists are very personal so that’s why I suggested that you “do it for yourself.”

That said, these are the 3 main lessons I got:

- Everything needs a place. I need to picture that place before I even buy the thing, while at the store. When you are trying to fit everything into one backpack, you practice this a lot.

- Occasional I go look through all my belongings and toss. I did this a lot when I felt my backpack got too heavy or big. Do this enough times and getting rid of a belonging becomes emotionally normalized and easy.

- This may all seem like a lot of work but only at first. Why? Because it creates a mental feedback loop that discourages hoarding. You remember what kind of items you throw away so you stop even collecting them. For example, I use to keep all USB cables but I would always throw them out during these “spring cleanings” so now I throw them when I first get them.

So I encourage trying it yourself because things like having a feedback loop or being okay with discarding junk doesn’t come from just reading about it. Similar to being okay with being rejected when dating, you have to do it enough times so it becomes comfortable.

> USB cables but I would always throw them out during these “spring cleanings” so now I throw them when I first get them.

Funny. One bagging travel turned me into USB cable hoarder. This stuff always breaks, gets lost on the road, and it is quite handy to have stash of spares at home.

I hate shopping for random stuff, ordering cables from Amazon is a lottery and fire hazard these days.

So I buy good stuff in bulk and discounts. If I find good shoes, I buy ten pairs, before they are discontinued.

My living room wall is now covered with stacks of boxes with supplies. Look does not matter, I do not live there most of the time anyway.

Unless he found some secret magic trick, I believe they have in general been written down already a millions times by now. And yes, they have to be hard earned, meaning when you do carry your big backpack around way longer than you planned for (because a bus was not there or whatever) - you do learn to not appreciate all the useless things you carried for no reason and leave them at home next time.

Best advice:

Travel light

But still, mind where you are going. If it is the mountains, you still want to bring warm clothes and they just are heavy.

I am right now preparing for the mountains and think of whether to take a tent or not (the huts for sleeping are mostly closed already)

The heavier the backpack, the less fun is walking with it.

And that works also as a metaphor for everyday life. The less shit you take with you, pulling you down, the easier it is to make progress.

Mixed feelings. I like how there is a lot of intention about purchases and lifestyle. But then the purchases are from Amazon, and the lifestyle is airplanes. But OTOH, he doesn't own a car.

It's hard to be perfect.

I don't think this is the author's intent, but to whomever it may help.

There will always be someone more "out there" than you. Traveling longer, with less, doing more, going farther. It's tempting to follow these people or to compare yourself to them.

I've also met people who are equally adventurous, equally worldly who travel in smaller chunks (2 weeks to 1 month then back home to recharge).

Go out there and see the world. Try to slow down as much as you can and don't focus on seeing "everything" but instead on doing things that are meaningful to you.

Most importantantly don't feel like you need "more time" to make it worthwhile. Just go!

amen !

I like that this guy's ethos is something along the lines of "better dressed homeless person." It won't last, though. Anyone of any means falls into the materialism trap. If you ever want to build anything, create art, open a business, all of that requires "stuff." If you're just some yob blogger dude then I guess you can make it work. I doubt very many women find it appealing.

I see people living out of their cars when I go to the library. It looks messy. My son gave up on Boy Scouts partially because camping and "urban outdoorsman" have become synonymous. The kids don't think camping is cool--at all.

> The kids don't think camping is cool--at all.

That's a sad indictment of the state of our culture. Canping is cool. Being an outdoorsman (or outdoorswoman, etc) is one of the greatest things a human can do.

This is all clearly true. Human society is rooted. Communities are static, more or less by definition. So a nomadic lifestyle will never appeal to most people: it's just not compatible with a normal life. But most of us relish the bite-sized version of it (vacations) so I think there's value in pushing the envelope if ever we get the chance.

I love this post but ain’t no way I’m going minimalist and carrying a MacBook AND an iPad.

For what it's worth, he did in fact abandon the ipad

I've been doing one bag for 8 years and I still am not understanding pack lists. They seem to get more absurd every year. 10L bag with 6 shirts, 6 underwear, 6 socks, extra pants and shorts, a jacket, and all the electronic and chargers? It beggars belief.

I can do with like 2 shirts, gym clothes, 2 pairs of underwear, 2 undershirts, and I wear my jacket, in a tom binh synapse, about 25L. With electronics it starts getting tricky to get stuff in and out.

He is a small guy. He did say that same list would take up to 20L of space if you are larger.

Does anyone have experience with ad hoc baggery - bags as ongoing DIY?

Years ago, going for carry-on only, with a heavy tech load (VR) and thus light everything else, commercial bags embodied non-viable design-space tradeoffs. Flying two bags, with varying size and mass constraints, plus wearing layers with pockets, needed to transform on arrival into something like one comfortable heavy backpack with an excellent waist belt.

"The pack frame can be my 'portable workstation'" is... not a well-served commercial niche. Maybe someday we'll upload bag designs for rapid prototyping, but not just yet. And just a good COTS waist belt could blow the volume budget.

So, build-a-bag. Sort of the "backpack = dry-bag + straps" concept, but dialed up. As in "dry-bag = nylon-sack + plastic-bag + shaping-strappage + backups", and "straps = vecro strips + strapping + TSA-compatible adhesive + ...". Etc. Core of weight belt became a form-fit layup of velcro. Which hooked into the laptop, with velcro pads on it's back to support a frame shelf. And so on. Life deflected me from travel before it was used much, but for a heavy pack, it trialed comfortable. And became two nylon packable shoulder bags for carry-on. I was pondering combining TSA-acceptable selfie sticks with wheels.

Again, not used. And bouncing around with luggage would have been bad. And very not "It Just Works" - travel/life as DIY engineering exercise. And it could look odd. But even with now relaxed tech constraints, I'm tempted to try something similar someday. So, has anyone attempted/survived/considered/seen something similar?

This has been my bag, more or less, for the past 3 years, moving around to different cities a few months at a time:

https://bpev.me/notes/how-i-travel-packing

It changes your relationship to objects for sure. I see something cool in a store and my first thought is "ooof but that looks heavy".

I thru hiked the PCT. The one thing I learned as an engineer / technical person:

bring one of everything. No redundancy. The gains from being ultra light, single-item-multi-purpose, are immeasurable

I think that minimum redundancy is a wiser ethos. There are a couple of places where the weight penalty versus cost of failure makes the decision a no-brainer.

In my case, that means bringing aquatabs to back up my primary water treatment system and a second way to strike my stove. An extra 2 grams for aquatabs versus 4 weeks of greasy diarrhea? Check. Ten grams for a second mini bic or small fire steel versus cold soaking meals that I designed for cooking? Check.

But I do agree with you that bringing less in general frees you to move faster, go farther, and enjoy the journey even more.

Sure yes! Good shout.

At the end of the day my trail family had 4 levels of redundancy between us.

So, this article is great and has some great items in it if you fit them. The pants look great but max out at 34" waist in the pair I checked. The towel is barely 4.5 feet and is far too short for a beach towel for someone who is 6' (though I still want it because I love these types of towels). I could not do this lifestyle though, not now in my life. I was in the military and traveled a lot for extended periods of time (year long deployments to the ass end of nowhere) and we traveled HEAVY. HEAVY heavy. Not my favorite way, and I got to the point where I would ship everything home and when we traveled I had a day bag with 3 days worth of clothes and such. So there is a crossover of this and that lifestyle. I still wouldn't want to go to it, I like having a home too much, even if I am renting.

That's cool and all but I want kids and a family and a house with a garden XD

I did this in 2011 for 4 years and went all over the world. It was life changing to say the least. Only needed a 20L backpack.

Now I am settled down with a family and I no longer have the travel bug, but I enjoy it still if the opportunity comes up.

I did this for a year and half as I travelled around South America.

Hard to describe how liberating it is to have so few possessions. So many choices you don’t have to make. You become so fleet of foot that serendipity is everywhere.

Glad I got the chance to do it

I experience the same liberation when I go to an all-inclusive resort! No choice to make but what to eat (which matters to me since I do all the cooking).

This is really impressive to me as a natural hoarder of stuff (I call it "resourcefulness" when I can use some scrap to fix things, but it can get excessive).

I feel like if I dropped my desire to wear a variety of clothes (collared shirts, jackets ...) I could almost imagine this one bag life, especially when each item is designed to be modular and multipurpose (S-biners!)

I would have a few issues with this particular list though, mainly all the polyester clothes (my only poly clothes are "technical"/sports oriented, otherwise cotton/wool/linen etc...) Not sure exactly where I gained this dislike, I guess I just prefer natural fibers for comfort reasons.

Also, as a hardware-oriented engineer, I would have a hard time packing all the lab equipment/projects up. Perhaps could be solved by finding a good hackerspace, but fundamentally being interested in real-world physical technology means more "stuff" to carry around.

It would definitely be interesting to see a yearly stats breakdown of how many times I used each object. There are definitely many zeroes in that list.

E: Also, I'm too used to Linux and too attached to freedom (in principle) to switch to a Mac, even though the M-series power efficiency is unmatched.

You can change.

I was the save everything, archive everything guy. I had a box of receipts for daily purchases at one point. I downloaded and burned all the movies I could.

Then I started nomading and now my life fits entirely in one 50lbs bag, which I still find way too much and I wish I could backpack like this guy. I can do monthly trips on a tiny backpack, but at some point some stuff is missing (for example I'd have to throw away nail clippers every time I take a plane during this time)

I did this for awhile, and my conclusion was that everything doesn’t need to be either-or: now I have an apartment with all the typical apartment things + I travel extremely lightly, when I do. If anything, having a “home base” allows you to travel more lightly, because you can tailor your bag to the trip.

One thing I definitely pack every time is lightweight nylon shopping bags. They are super-light and useful in many ways. Off the top of my head: keeping dirty clothes separate from clean clothes; overflow if you get carried away on the trip; a makeshift daypack if you need it; just shopping in general.

There's 0% chance the stuff fits in 9L when the winter things are included. Where do they go during summer?

Lots of the time they're counted as being worn, from what I've seen. When I pack, I don't preplan how everything fits with a jacket as well. It works most of the time, but the times I take off a jacket become awkward holding or tying around my bag.

"Indefinite backpack travel." We used to call this being a hobo.

The only difference here is that this person is well-funded, so uses the latest high-end gear to do it, instead of a bindle.

Yes, hobos do still exist. My recently deceased cousin-in-law was one, and proudly called himself a "hobo."

Yes, they have smartphones.

Hobo to me suggests lack of access to transit and housing on demand.

I also recommend the 3F UL Gear tents. I bought the Taiji 2 for motorcycle trips. Very roomy for one person.

https://3fulgear.com/product/freestanding-tent/taiji-2/

For what it's worth, at least in cold weather, roominess isn't really desirable. You should have a pack that can handle inclement weather and a really tiny tent in a perfect world.

On one hand, you're right and I do have a smaller tent. On the other hand, on a motorcycle you have a lot of bulky clothes and you need to put them somewhere. So it's always a bit of a balance.

Very fair; I forgot about that weird dichotomy!

this is like if patrick bateman read the 4 hour work week

I spent 18 months doing this as a digital nomad. When I started out I had a rollaboard suitcase, a checked 60 inch bag, a pelican full of camera gear, and a 28L backpack. By the end I had a 28L backpack only. All that said, there were things I gave up in my travels that I missed and make it a point of taking now when I go on shorter vacation-like trips. Simple example was having good coffee. When I started out I had a jet boil, an aeropress, a hario hand mill, and a vacuum container of good beans, by the end I had given that up to save space, but there's really no reason not to have good coffee if you have the space to do so. I also had given up my much better camera gear for a single point and shoot camera to cut down on space requirements, since then I've taken to traveling with the pelican again most of the time, and when I don't I have a micro 4/3rds camera that is better than the point and shoot, but almost as compact.

I do think there's value to learning how to live with less, and it also helps unencumber you more than just in physical weight, but spiritually, to allow yourself to explore and go forth without concern. I could just hop on a train, bus, plane, and go somewhere else even as a side trip without needing to be concerned with any of my belongings because it was all with me all of the time.

Darn Tough socks.

My wife dropped a small mint for darn tough socks like three years ago as a father's day gift. It's been delightful.

I find them too small, they're hard to get on my feet. Good quality tho.

check out Wide Open, new line of wider socks from DT

Still not wide enough. If anybody has wider reccos in big sizes other than "oddball" brand, I'm all ears.

I have wide feet and Smartwool socks work for me.

(I hate all the weird color combinations and designs that a lot of companies use, but thankfully Smartwool has a good deaign with their Hike Classic Edition Ankle Socks)

I had a small hole in them and contacted support and they told me to send another photo of the socks after I destroyed them. Then I got reimbursed.

I was under the impression I have to send them in and they are repaired. Nope. Probably my mistake to assume.

Despite the brand name, I can't imagine that darning socks would be more economical than just shipping a new pair.

I still have mine from ~7 years ago. I only wear them during winter but still.

I'm always suspicious of a long list of affiliate links in one article.

As the author says: The post is 10 years old and updated and read millions of times. Why would you _not_ put referral links there? It's just a more direct form of advertisment.

I may be sceptic but showing that 50% of everything you own (99% of the price?) was made by Apple and as he said providing a long list of affiliate links doesn't make the author very believable

> DJI Mini 4 Pro. I love flying DJI drones. Never traveled with one due to size. This solves that.

And here is that. As someone on an indefinite backpack + small luggage travel for 4 years, I am suspicious of anyone claiming to only own the small backpack of the OP. It's not impossible but either 1. you go for a large backpack. the ones backpackers carry. or 2. the OP has somewhere where they can store stuff.

The reality I've come to as I kept downsizing is: 1. either

This is cool, but do you throw away stuff when done with it or do you keep things at another permanent location? Like the tent that isn’t brought on every trip?

I'm a little surprised the author is able to fit all this stuff in a 9L pack. My 30L pack is just about full with my typical carry-on loadout of a laptop, Nintendo Switch, lightweight windbreaker, pajamas, shorts, and two shirt/socks/underwear rolls (plus small misc essentials filling out pockets).

Nothing on his budget or income.

When I moved to Thailand, I went in a backpack. Granted it was a 40L, but I was moving there indefinitely. I ended up staying two years, and when I returned, I came back in the same backpack.

I like having stuff. I have too much stuff, but I do like having stuff. I have projects and things that make me happy to contemplate or have on the shelf.

The "zero-bag" trips are next-level. That level of trust in your systems and setup only comes with serious experience

I did something along these lines 12 years ago. For me it was a backpack and a suitcase but still. I traveled hotels and airbnb's for several years. I'm not unhappy I did it but I'm not sure I'd recommend it.

Things you can't do traveling long term.

● for many it means no hangout friends. Because you're not there. You move on in 1 to 8 weeks

● no shopping. Yea, I know, some people are doing it precisely because they want to avoid consumerism. But, most people are used to traveling for a few days to 1-2 weeks max, then coming home. For most of those people, shopping for trickets, clothing, in this far away place is a joy. But, that joy is much harder to come by when you can't go back and stash your loot. All you can do is replace something you have. Buy new shoes and throw away the old ones, etc..

● no crafting / diy / maker stuff - If you're into making things you need tools and storage for materials. Not going to have those living out of a backpack/suitcase. Even little things. In my apartment I have a shelf full of stationary stuff, paper clips, push pins, rubber bands, cellophane tape, masking tap, markers, glues of various kidns. All that is not something you can travel with so if that's your hobby or if inspiration strikes while living that way you're kind of out of luck. If all you make is digital and so all you need is a notebook/tablet/phone then this is less of a problem.

● no stability - it was strange knowing I'd be homeless if I didn't start planning something before the current rentle period was up. I'd arrive somewhere and immediately have to start looking for new hotels/airbnbs for the next stop or two.

It also got somewhat tiring to arrive, look up the sights, and find that to some degree they start to get too similar. Going to an art museum 2-3 times a year is fun. Going to one every week and, at least for me, it started to get repetative. Same with visiting yet another old building. They are all great. But, they're great twice a year, not twice a week.

It's definitely gotten easier though. 12 years ago I had to buy a sim in each location. They sucked and didn't have much data. That's much better today. Free-ish wifi is more ubiquitous than it was then too.

Personally I'd just recommend traveling more often but keeping a home base. I also found that throwing away all my stuff I think was a mistake. Those things I got rid of because they were on my shelves but I never picked them up, I only realized after I got rid of them was that their point was not to be used, their point was to remind me of times, places, and people at the point in my life when I acquired each one. With them gone there is nothing to trigger those memories.

I agree with you on all of this. The no friends and no DIY is brutal for me to be honest.

I think one thing that helps with some of this is staying in Hostels often even if they are sometimes a bit uncomfortable.I feel like people in hostels kind of speed-run friendship because they are low in time and need connection so people are very candid and open. Then instead of having to do research usually there's someone going the opposite direction to you and can recommend stuff to see.

I also 100% agree about museums and tourist attractions. This is why I often will only spend 1-2 days in a big city to get my bearings and hopefully catch some tips from a fellow traveler and go find the unique stuff in smaller towns or out in nature as soon as possible.

Its SO ANNOYING to have to carry an Apple Silicon macbook AND an ipad. I'd love to see a touchscreen option for macbook and the option to run in ipad mode. But that would probably cannibalize sales.

As it is, you can theoretically run ios apps on Apple Silicon, but most app vendors disable that..

My main use case for an ipad while traveling is to watch downloaded movies on a plane. "AR" (not really) glasses like nreal air are way smaller and lighter than an ipad and makes watching movies on my phone pretty amazing..

I believe product design votes against it because it would make all macbooks always be smudged and scratched, looking shit.

I don't think this is the reason. Since Apple stopped making new interesting product lines they are very attentive about not having one line cannibalize the sales of the other(s) as it happened with the iPod and iPhone. This is also the reason why iPads will never run macOS and vice-versa.

Which is simply not true. Decades of touchscreen PCs show this isn't the case. My Surface Laptop 3 is 6 years old with thousands of hours of use (including constant touch and a fair amount of pen) and the screen isn't scratched and doesn't look bad at all.

Out of curiosity, what is it about touchscreens that's such a big selling point for you?

Great question..

Me personally? Nothing. I hate them. I never want anybody to touch my screen.

However, I've talked to at least one team that has disabled their app on MacOS who thinks having a UI designed for touch-screen run via a trackpad is too janky and would lead to a bad UX for their customers.

I've run their app via playcover, and it IS janky, but its a lot better than the weight of an iPad in my backpack.

They're inherently convenient and fast to use. As I'm typing, it's far more ergonomic to take my middle finger and swipe on the screen to scroll than to reposition my hand to have two fingers on the trackpad. For extended reading I can keep one hand at the edge of the screen to scroll with a thumb instead of cramping my wrist. Zooming is quickly and intuitively obvious rather than having to figure out where my mouse cursor is, reposition it, do a pinch gesture or Ctrl plus (where IS the plus key? It seems to vary on every laptop I own), etc.

The hand repositioning was the rationale for the ThinkPad TrackPoint (which I still use daily). Right on the home row, and with 3 buttons for left/right/scroll+zoom purposes. Sadly it never caught on, possibly because the precision is not as good as a touchpad. It's even been removed from some of the latest ThinkPads.

not the person you're responding too, but I'm writing this on an older ThinkPad L390 Yoga with touchscreen, and I gotta say, being able to scroll on the screen when reading large documents (like PDF textbooks), or to just touch the part of the screen you'd like you're cursor to be if you've got multiple windows open is really nice.

apple pencil

Wacom tablet?

As someone who uses a Wacom tablet daily, it is not convenient for traveling because you don't always find the right table to use it. I can imagine OP wants to use his tablet while sitting on his bed in his hotel room.

I have one but I stopped using it after I got an iPad. Its somuch better to see the drawing where i actually drag my pen.

If only the macbook opened more than the 120 degrees (or so) angle with the screen I'd be sooo happy already (no touch required).

or Bumming it with expensive stuff to lose.

This was great to read with some very good gear tips (the Montbell jacket, for example, looks amazing).

OTOH - I mostly travel with a 30L backpack just for my camera gear ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I've done the nomad thing from months to years. Not always intentionally! Had moved cross country anticipating a company move weeks later, then the pandemic happened and it became years. Trying to do it inexpensively will be painful, compromising on ability or quality will lead to frustraiting failures and limitations.

My loadout was very similar, though I had more clothes and music gear because I was strictly living inside. "Golfing" backpacks that are insulated are very underrated, think the capacity was closer to 15.5L. They don't really make them to accomodate 17" laptops anymore, and you shouldn't have one that big, but the extra space in the sleeve is great. Strong endorsement for American Giant! Especially the heavy zip up hoodies, running pants, and shirts, some of which I've had for almost 20 years at this point, and Oddball socks (if you have big feet).

They aren't for everyone, but the rather thin/rough gym-style towels are great as you can get 3 into the space of a normal one once you've mastered rolling your shit up and they dry quick. When your boxer briefs inevitably wear out, cutting the band off and using them to constrain other things while the leftover cloth makes for great snot/cleaning rags. Save your plastic grocery bags, they're useful for so much and compact well.

Cannot understate how much better this makes air travel. Can still be shoved under the seat in front of you. No checked bags or secondary carryons removes so much potential for bullshit. As the bag is still soft, you have to be deliberate with where you pack things or you will crush them. You'll want to consider the placement of electronics TSA is going to make you pull out, and expect secondary screening. The density of shit in the bag tends to cause this if they're still using old xray machines instead of that new 360 degree shit.

I ended up also lugging around a workstation and monitor. It was worth the logistical pain and my new limit became "fits into the trunk of a rental sports coupe", avoiding planes was worth while everything was still ongoing. I would not attempt doing this with modern Apple Silicon. Can't stand what mac os has become and there are too many caveats. Any high end ryzen laptop with an nvidia gpu is preferable. If you do anything in/with multimedia or streaming, you'll be thankful the first time you can lean on it as an encoder (and the USB 3.2 port will actually be able to handle the throughput of a Magewell USB capture card).

Hard to undersell the 'freeing' aspect. If wherever you are sucks, for whatever reason, it doesn't take much time to be packed and gone. It's not for everyone. Have met some fantastic lifelong friends from couch surfing and renting rooms listed on craigslist, which is vastly superior to AirBNB, where I encountered scams so frequently that I swore them off entirely.

It changes you, too. Once you settle again you'll realize what you really care about.

I hope this doesn't mean I start looking to buy another bag or edc stuff.

I bought a GR1 bag earlier this year. I am done with that for life.

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Your younger self sounds a lot nicer.

Probably, but to clarify, I'm pointing out that this lifestyle is maximally opposite to having kids, and so still being obsessed about it after 10 years means he's committed to being a genetic dead end.

yeah- "genetic dead end?" what did he do to you lol

Just pointing out someone who's committed to living like this isn't going to reproduce. Even Marie Kondo had to give up the minimalism stuff after having a kid.

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Can you please stop commenting like this on HN? Snarky swipes like this are clearly against the guidelines, as is using HN for ideological battle.

Looking at your comment history, almost half your comments contain the word "capitalism" or variants of it. HN exists for having curious conversations about interesting topics. It's not the place for repetitively and predictably venting about the economic system or ideology we abhor, whichever one that is for each of us.

Interesting new ideas about economics and the social order are always welcome here. Same-old ones are not.

If you wouldn't mind reviewing https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and taking the intended spirit of the site more to heart, we'd be grateful.

In real life one needs at least 5 pairs of shoes.

Hmm... <counts> One pair of dress (business causual) shoes, one pair of sneakers, one pair of slippers. A pair of hiking boots I haven't worn for five years. Even at the extremes I'm getting by with fewer than five pairs.

No you don't. I went years wearing a single pair of shoes just fine. Including hiking, hot summers, and snowy winters.

Over the course of the year, perhaps. Stylish running shoes can get you just about anywhere. Flipflops if you're going through hostels or beaches. Ankle-high boots can be stylish and functional for short hikes.

You'd be surprised how far white sneakers and some $5 flip flops can take you. Unless you're in a situation where you need a suit, but then you aren't one bagging it anyways...

I wear flip flops every single day, and only switch to hiking boots for better arch support when I go on long hikes that matters. Sometimes I forget to bring my boots and end up climbing a mountain or wading a muddy stream with flip flops. The boots are marginally better, but not enough for me to notice; I only started them on hikes after my aunt pointed out that I didn't have great walking posture.

Sounds like no true Scotsman

I own exactly one pair of shoes at the moment. Occasionally I also have slippers.

Exactly.

This is not living.

The last time I needed dress shoes was my own wedding.

Guess I've not had a "real life" for my entire life then.