Movies to See: You Can't Take It With You

Here's a great movie that shows Simple Living is far from a new and trendy concept: this is a 1938 film based upon a Pulitzer-Prize winning play written by Kaufman and Hart dealing with materialism, greed, and voluntarily simplicity as a viable lifestyle option.

It's just great. Directed by Frank Capra, it's got an all-star cast including Lionel Barrymore, Jimmy Stewart, and Jean Arthur. The supporting roles are filled with familiar faces, too -- you find Ann Miller, who dances quite a lot (though she's so good that she can't quite fool you into believing that her character is really a bad, bad dancer) and Eddie "Rochester" Anderson is a nice surprise - both he and Jimmy Stewart are lots younger here than how we tend to remember them now.

It's a witty film without being weighty. The whole family can watch this one and get something out of it. And, the play's even got an online study guide (learn such things as this movie being created as one of the origins of today's TV sitcoms).

I couldn't find it available for free on the web -- yet. But that's just a matter of time, right?

Fr. Christopher Jamison's New Book On Simpliciity Gets Media Play By Taking On Disney as Promoting Materialism and Greed - Is He Right?

Over in England, Christopher Jamison is a Benedictine monk known as the Abbot of Worth in West Sussex, and he's a prominent figure in Catholic circles -- touted by many as the next Archbishop of Westminister. (You know, that Westminister.)

Jamison starred in a hit TV series on the BBC (The Monastery) and he's just come out with a new book that encourages people to live simply. The title? Finding Happiness.

In his book, Jamison offers advice in changing your lifestyle to one of simplicity by changing the way you think and upping your self-discipline. In fact, he argues that there are 8 thoughts that must be controlled to find happiness; they are:

anger
pride
gluttony
lust
greed
sloth or spiritual apathy
sadness
vanity.

Father Jamison isn't timid. He's boldly taken on the celebrity news media as helping people to become dissatisfied with their personal circumstances, encouraging envy. And, he's not stopped there.

Jamison is also getting a lot of news coverage for taking on Walt Disney's legacy. He argues that the current Disney conglomerate offers product that does have value (an example: Sleeping Beauty does give a lesson on good vs. evil) but Jamison decries the corporation for tying so many secondary products and services to its films - thereby encouraging the indoctrination of children into materialism and cultural greed.

For more on Jamison's position, check out the Telegraph's article, Disney accused by Catholic cleric of corrupting children's minds, and the quotes from one of his interviews in the Church Times, which includes this statement, where he is discussing Advent:

“We see Advent as a very seriously charged moment, in which we . . . refuse to behave as though the way to salvation is to spend more and to get into debt more, because that is what has got us into this trouble in the first place,” he said at the launch.

“The antidote to greed is waiting. It is not never shop,but shop less; not stand still, but go slower; but that is not what the politicians are going to tell us. The Chancellor is going to say ‘Spend like before.’ But that is what has got us into trouble in the first place.

“The economy is going through a readjustment, whether we like it or not. If we behave like we have in the last ten years, then we will just see another crisis. We have to work for an economy with a more solid foundation in order to skip the boom and bust. But the politicians have not done that.”

Have You Ever Shopped an Estate Sale?

Estate sales have their own section in the classifieds, and usually there are little signs posted on streetcorners in the area on sale days that are fancier and more professional than any garage sale notice.

While they can be sales of the belongings of someone who has passed, estate sales are also moving sales -- either way, there's a lot of personal property and household goods up for sale.

Sometimes it's an auction format; sometimes, it's not. Estate sales are run by professionals, and they're in the business to make a profit off the sale by taking a percentage of the proceeds.

You may think that means less of a bargain -- but these pros know how to mark the merchandise so it will move, and the last day or afternoon may see real markdowns on the pricing. Ask them when they'll be discounting the stuff - they'll tell you.

The best stuff will be gone quick - these estate sale pros will have notified their "regulars" (antique dealers, E-bay sellers, and the like) of their upcoming sale and those folk will be at the door right when it opens ... but you can find a lot of good things, cheap.

Is it better than a garage sale?

For someone who's moving, you betcha. If you're downsizing, let these pros handle your moving sale -- they'll do a much better job than you can on pricing and displaying the stuff, they'll find things you didn't know had such value because they know their markets, and they already have a solid customer base.

For someone who's buying, probably. You might find a rare first edition for two bits at a garage sale (the estate sales pro will know to check the books before they're offered) but prices aren't going to be that different at an estate sale, and you'll have lots more to choose from there.