My daughters laugh at my tendency to proselytize for less comfort.
“Having blankets on the couch is a sign of weakness.”
“No one needs to travel with a pillow– that is what backpacks are for.”
“Sleeping on the floor means you are exercising just getting out of bed”
“Getting used to sleeping in noisy locations will allow you to live anywhere.”
“La-Z-boy® recliners have done more to spur the decline of the U.S. than any other piece of furniture.”
Last week I found my people.
We stayed with a variety of expats in Uruguay, all of whom came from comfortable middle-class backgrounds in the US.
Uruguay’s winters dip into the 30’s and 40’s. That in itself is not so bad but coupled with high humidity and poor heating systems it makes for some long chilly months.
“You just heat up some water bottles and put them down your shirt when you are working.”
“I got a lot of reading done last winter spending 12 hours a day in bed because it was the warmest place in the house.”
“You simply wear all of your clothes at one time.”
And those are just comments related to heat. Screens are few and mosquitoes many. Hot water heaters are small and water pressure is weak. Summer days can be scorching and with the high cost of electricity air conditioning is limited.
No one bitched. No one moaned. No one complained.
When I asked what people missed most from the U.S. the answers were:
Jalapenos. Curry. Sushi. Thrift stores.
Nothing about comfort.
One American family of five (including two teenage girls) moved to a nice Uruguayan suburb and Mom and Dad immediately made the main house inhabitable by ripping off the roof and tearing up the floors beginning a year-long remodel. The family lived in the small thatched roof shack in the backyard until Mom decided to have it flea-bombed and the family slept outside for a week. Complaints? A few. But all said it was the most memorable year of their lives. Now they have moved into the big house and everyone has their own rooms–they say it is pretty lonely.
A couple hosted us on their 50 acre farm 10 kilometers from the nearest town. Their farmhouse is 100 years old and very simple. Hot water? A dribble. Heat? From a central fireplace. Insulation? Not in Uruguay! Only last week did they switch from cooking on a wood-fired stove to a new gas stove.
This couple spent the last 20 years in Manhattan with every comfort known to man. They told me they have never been happier since moving to the farm and miss nothing about their former NYC lifestyle.
It is astounding to me how many standard creature comforts these expats gave up, and yet they never felt the loss. In fact, it appeared that their lives are fuller since they have less insulation from the wonderful world in which we live.
I feel a little guilty for complaining that it took 3 months to get our internet installed.
