But wait... there's less!

As we wrap up 2019, here are the most-read posts here on But Wait There's Less . 5. Books. Do we need them anymore? Why do we keep books? To read them again? How many do we ever read a second time? I worked it out .For me not many. This lead to a second post on my technique for streamlining my book collection . 4. Living in a converted barn. This was something my wife and I tried on a trip away this year. Check out the pictures . I still reckon it could be possible long-term. We really don't need as much space as we have. 3. What's your retirement age? It's not 67. At least it doesn't have to be. If we spend less, compulsory work can become optional at a very early age . It could even be in your 30s. 2. The automatic guest room On the same trip as number 4, we stayed with a friend who (with some clever furniture ) converts her living room into another bedroom. It's a clever way to be able to have guests, but without paying a heap of money for a bigge...

To me a "win" is giving a great present to someone who'll enjoy it, and not being wasteful. That can be tricky with these games. What is Stealing Santa? It's a version of secret santa played at workplaces or in extended families. Each person contributes a gift, and draws a number to determine the order of play. Player one selects a gift and opens it. Each following player opens a gift and can keep it or (forcibly) swap it with any already-opened gift. The last player has the choice of all the gifts. Why I hate this game Clearly it runs totally against the idea of buying a present for a specific person who you have thought about and brought something that would suit that person. Also, giving gifts for an unknown recipient often results in unwanted and wasteful purchases, sometimes thrown away. Why I love this game If played well, the worst outcome is neutral and the best outcome can be someone getting a gift they love. What? Let me explain. My wife didn't...

Today was the sad passing of Marie Fredriksson of Swedish pop-duo Roxette. She is best known for the song It Must Have Been Love , from the Pretty Woman movie. She died of a brain tumour at the age of 61. Why it matters to me? I'm not normally affected by celebrities passing. But this is different for two reasons. As a youngster I was a big Roxette fan. Most of their best stuff was before my time, but I scanned records stores (when music was sold in shops) to find their older stuff. Those CDs got very heavy listening in my younger years - and again tonight as I write this. Also Marie was 61, the same age my mother passed away - almost to the day. So it's an extra stark reminder that the phrase "life is short" is often truer than we expect. On average we live longer lives than generations before us, but it's obviously not the case for everyone. What does it mean? For me it's a reminder of that we only have a finite number of hours on the planet. ...