Are you Thinking about Austerity Measures?

[sste]

I have been turning this around for the last several months and I ultimately think that the standard of living for the vast majority of us is going to decline a little and then probably somewhat more in the coming years. As I have mentioned in threads past I think it is going to impact our children but I believe it is also going to impact our generation. There is the fiscal cliff issue, the huge deficit and the fact that our economic growth is just not comparable to generations past.

Anyway, I don't mean to sound like a downer, I am not even that personally upset by it as I find alot of my physical possessions stress-inducing (clean, repair, maintain, store, service, etc). I have been thinking about cutting out some of the waste in our lives, buying a smaller house than planned, etc. Not to claim that I am a model of voluntary simplicity - - we have some very pricey vacations planned!

Has this been on anyone else's mind? Anyone doing any austerity planning?

[fedoragirl]

We didn't plan on it but we are living it now. A different language, a strange culture, and limited access to stores (we live in a rural area) will intimidate any shopping diva. ;) Honestly, I strive to live with fewer acquisitions just because of the practical reality of it all. We have moved so often and I hate packing and unpacking things that I haven't seen, used, or needed in the past 3 years.
We buy few toys for the kids and they don't miss them. A lot of our gifts go unopened to charity. We own very few technical gadgets and don't miss them. Like you, we don't skimp on vacations. I don't think we did all this intentionally but now that we live like this, we don't want to go back to accumulating more and more. I find that when I am back home, I am constantly tempted by the sales and the deals when I really don't need any of that. It also helps that we are surrounded by a culture that really believes in second hand everything.