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People take different lessons from a financial reversal. The one Jan took sounds like a healthy one but I wonder if she would have been able to hold such a view if she were still in the U.S.?
I keep reading about so many people who, after suffering a job loss or other financial reversal due to the current economic crisis, are destroyed by the culture and the health care system. In Europe, we see Italians, Spaniards, Greeks and Brits who are committing suicide after being left destitute by the banking system.
It seems to be a problem of culture, especially for Americans. Being taught to have high economic expectations and to be competitive rather than cooperative brings a high level of pain and ultimate destruction to the population when these goals are not achieved. No wonder so many expats in Costa Rica express gratitude to the culture,almost a sigh of relief, at being released from the stresses of life as wage slaves in the high pressure economies.
i have two very good gringo friends who have had the epiphany that less is more and that simple is better and they can’t wait to jettison all the trappings of that consumer-oriented life that the States forces on you in favor of the simple life in Costa Rica. Every time you turn on the TV you are being manipulated to want this or that, need this or that, eat this or that, take this or that pill, buy more crap than you will ever need or use, and adhere to a false value system that does nothing but make the bankers and the retailers rich while you struggle to pay for all the crap you were told you should have. eventually, smart people wake up to this delusion and the mouse-wheel they are on and either give it up, pare down, or die.
[quote=”maravilla”]i have two very good gringo friends who have had the epiphany that less is more and that simple is better and they can’t wait to jettison all the trappings of that consumer-oriented life that the States forces on you in favor of the simple life in Costa Rica. Every time you turn on the TV you are being manipulated to want this or that, need this or that, eat this or that, take this or that pill, buy more crap than you will ever need or use, and adhere to a false value system that does nothing but make the bankers and the retailers rich while you struggle to pay for all the crap you were told you should have. eventually, smart people wake up to this delusion and the mouse-wheel they are on and either give it up, pare down, or die.[/quote]
I have yet to jettison the useless accumulated crap I will need to be rid of. I can’t speak to this matter until I confront it and find out what my actions will be. Intention is not the same as action. In the meantime, I can only wonder if I have the logic to overcome a lifetime of brainwashing.
just bring it all with you and wait until the ladrones pay you a visit and liberate you of all those gadgets. that’s the easiest way to find out how to live with less.
[quote=”sprite”]People take different lessons from a financial reversal. The one Jan took sounds like a healthy one but I wonder if she would have been able to hold such a view if she were still in the U.S.?
I keep reading about so many people who, after suffering a job loss or other financial reversal due to the current economic crisis, are destroyed by the culture and the health care system. In Europe, we see Italians, Spaniards, Greeks and Brits who are committing suicide after being left destitute by the banking system.
It seems to be a problem of culture, especially for Americans. Being taught to have high economic expectations and to be competitive rather than cooperative brings a high level of pain and ultimate destruction to the population when these goals are not achieved. No wonder so many expats in Costa Rica express gratitude to the culture, almost a sigh of relief, at being released from the stresses of life as wage slaves in the high pressure economies.[/quote]
Jan would not be able to maintain the outlook she has if she were in the States. The cost of living is becoming outrageous both there and here.
Living in Costa Rica for those of us who are on Social Security only, and able to fit into the society, have given up the high expectations, if we ever had them, and learned to live as the Ticos do.
My pickup has been down and in need of repairs for three months but it will be repaired as I find the funds to do so.
As long as the taxes and utilities are paid and there is food on the table we will manage.
Those who have a somewhat greater income will find that they can no longer afford their “high economic expectations”, if they have them, due to inflation but there is not an option for them to return to the States where the costs are even greater.
They will learn, as we have, to live more like the Ticos. 😀
it’s not just the Ticos who live with less and are happy. there are cultures all over the world who will never ever have what the average american has, but they place greater value on health, family, and the simple everyday things that weave the fabric of life. consumerism is like shooting smack — you always want more, you think you can’t live without it, and you will do anything to get it. in the 8+ years i’ve been here, i’ve seen so many people come and go and what always entertains me is the stuff they bring with them that they think they can’t live without: a collection of snow globes, stuffed animals (that would’ve been better if they’d been given to a homeless shelter or underprivileged kids), and other do-dads and chingadera that really wasn’t worth the cost to ship it here. but the consumerism model tells us that you ARE your stuff, your identity is tied to your stuff, and your stuff tells the rest of the world who you really are. when you strip away all the extraneous stuff you are left with you and it is up to you to figure out who you really are without all the things you previously used to define yourself. i find the happiest people in costa rica are the people who did just that — who found peace with themselves, who see the world from a different viewpoint besides the haves and have-nots, and that is when you truly become part of the human race. and what i really find amusing is that many of the people who schlepped their “stuff” here can’t afford to ship it back when they bail out so they wind up selling it anyway, which is what they probably should’ve done in the first place.
Having traveled and lived all around the world, one of the greatest life lessons I have learned; “The Difference Between Need And Want!”
Maravilla wrote:
“…you ARE your stuff, your identity is tied to your stuff, and your stuff tells the rest of the world who you really are. when you strip away all the extraneous stuff you are left with you and it is up to you to figure out who you really are without all the things you previously used to define yourself.”This desirable sort of introspection is hard to achieve when has all one’s “stuff” in the absence of externally forced necessity.
PEH“Suppose you were an idiot. Then suppose you were a member of Congress…but I repeat myself” [Mark Twain]
[quote=”maravilla”] consumerism is like shooting smack — you always want more, you think you can’t live without it, and you will do anything to get it.[/quote]
That is exactly the point. Gringo consumerism is the problem, not living as the Ticos do.
Moving from the most prosperous country in the world to a place like Costa Rica, and there are many even poorer. is a shock than many find hard to deal with.
The difference in culture is another mental block that Gringos carry.
No one should get me wrong. I came down here with all of my power tools that I used in construction many years ago and we still use them.
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