It’s official, Australians live in the world’s biggest houses. And for the first time ever, they’re even bigger than in the US. According to statistics, newly built Australian homes are 7% bigger than those in the US, double the size of those in Europe, and triple the size of those in the UK. Four bedroom houses are becoming standard. Most houses have at least three.
The house in the above photo belongs to a dear childhood friend of mine — her and her husband, not her parents. It’s a beautiful house, and my friend and her husband have worked very hard for it. It’s got four bedrooms, four living areas, dining room, study, three bathrooms, two balconies, a lovely garden, an indoor spa bath, and an outdoor hot tub! No doubt, if I still lived in Australia, I’d aspire to have a house just like it.
However, the reality is, I live in India. It’s just not possible. The average size of a home in Australia is now around 245 square metres. My old apartment in Mumbai was a tiny 540 square FEET. So, I had to learn to appreciate what I had. After all, the neighbour’s apartment was the same size, but there were four people living in it. Two people slept in the bedroom, and two in the living room.
The amazing thing that I’ve found, is that living with less has made me want less. It wasn’t easy to get used to though. I kept bumping my legs and feet into furniture in small rooms, and losing things because I didn’t have proper storage space. I cooked with the bare minimum of pots and pans, because I had nowhere to store extra ones. (Modular kitchens are only a new concept in India). There was no room for a dining table, so I was never inclined to have guests — apart from my in-laws who happily sat on the floor and ate. I wasn’t unhappy because I realised I was still well off compared to many people in India, but I did feel cramped at times.
Now that I’m moving into a bigger place in Mumbai, with more space, I’ve found that I feel more content. I also feel more enthusiastic about living in India. Having a dining room, a garden, a terrace, and a kitchen with cupboards has made me happier. I can’t deny it. More of my basic needs are being met.
My new home isn’t a lot bigger (it still only has one bedroom), but these small things have brought about a substantial increase in my level of contentment and comfort. Enough so, that I think I’ll be able to very happily live there without desiring a great deal extra. And I believe that if I was to move to an even bigger place, the increase in my level of contentment wouldn’t be as much as what it has been now.
So I wonder, do people really need such big houses? Do they really bring that much contentment and happiness? At what point do we stop wanting more?
I’d be very interested to hear the views of Indians who have moved abroad to the US and other counties. How has being able to have more space and a bigger house made you feel? How much has it increased your happiness from when you lived in a smaller home in India? And are you content, or do you want more?
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Big bang. And really, I don’t delve that much into the origins of the Universe. Leave that to astro-physicists and clerics to sort it out between themselves. For me, the human world is captivating enough.
Laws of nature are precisely defined laws, with accurate scientific observations. The laws of god are often hapzard, twisted and emotionally charged, like the minds of the clerics who make them up.
I’ll try to rephrase it another way. Atheism is not a belief in the absence of god. It is an absence of belief in god.
“Laws of nature are precisely defined laws, with accurate scientific observations. The laws of god are often hapzard, twisted and emotionally charged, like the minds of the clerics who make them up”.
Precisely defined or not, still leave enough room for interpretation. Not everything in the world can be completely explained by the scientists – the human brain is one eloquent example. Some things are just beyond the “laws” which people can comprehend.
“Atheism is not a belief in the absence of god. It is an absence of belief in god”.
It takes me to the more or less the same conclusion. Atheism refuses to believe this world was generated by a superior force which most humans refer to as “God”. Correct? From what I’ve heard, it because they haven’t actually “seen” or “experience” God in one way or another. Correct, also?
Abdullah, Ramit and Indian American:
Regarding the looks of American citizens, we come in all shapes and sizes and we are of a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds. That 56 year old who’s youtube video I posted wouldn’t need Botox even at her age because she is of African descent and as we say here, “black don’t crack”.
Yes, there are obese people in the USA, I see some of them at the gyms -where they belong! At least they are doing something about it.
Regarding MEDITATING in gyms, while there be some sort of short meditation at the end of every yoga class, the yoga classes in gyms are asana focused and geared towards fitness, not dhyan, dharan or samadhi. For that we have MEDITATION CENTERS or people do that in their own homes or out in nature.
Regarding only the rich being health and fitness conscious, if that were they case there would not be so many gyms in every town and suburb across the country. Working class people work out after work or on weekends. Stay at home parents work out during the day when their kids are at school and senior citizens work out too. We are an active people. And the gyms are cheap. Some of them really cheap (meaning inexpensive, not low quality).
Abdullah, salsa, while a great cardio workout, has never done much for muscle tone even in my legs or butt, what to speak of arms and abs. For muscle tone I do light weights, and for cardio/aerobic workout I do dance like salsa.
Speaking of dance, I’ve mentioned before that “pole dancing” classes are currently sweeping the nations gyms and are an excellent form of fitness work-out as can be gleaned in this video made yet again by Shaunak Goswami’s devoted Russian bibi, Malinki Koshka;
http://www.youtube.com/user/MalinkiKoshka#p/u/4/GS90rCeo9qI
You gotta admit, she’s gotta be pretty fit and strong to do all that! I just hope Shaunak can keep up with her!
NOTE TO ADMIN: this post was supposed to go in the section where we are discussing fitness and Americans, etc. The one about your parents reaction to you in India, but I could not post it there. Perhaps you can move it.
Hypocrites, I apologize I don’t have time to check this blog every day, I have school and a job. And it barely interests me anymore since Sharell has been writing a lot of negative stuff and for some reason has your ‘back’.
But please stop playing games. I know what type of place you live in because I lived in the same type of place for several years. You don’t seem to want to be politically correct with Indians so why be politically correct when it comes to the facts about America? I guess it works out for you because most of the people don’t live in America and have likely never been to it before. But the simple fact is places with heavy black and latino populations have horrible crime rates, one just has to open up some United States demographic reports to find this out. New Orleans, a predominantly black city, is more dangerous than Baghdad, a war zone.
Anyways this has nothing to do with anything here. So I’m not going to post anymore about it. But feel free to post some more talking points from BadIndianGirl.com.
I have seen how some overweight Americans work out in the gym and to be honest, it looks more like an excuse to say, “I worked my ass off in the gym and still can’t lose weight. Its our genes/hormones that make us like that.” In any case, your attempt to portray a fit America comes to thin ground when you look at CDC.gov stats, which says that 66-74% Americans over the age of 25 are overweight OR obese.
Obesity is so pervasive with Americans that if we see a fat tourist anywhere and put a bet on him/her being an American, there is a 90:10 chance we’d win the bet.
Active people? You might be, but the majority of Americans aren’t. Americans are among the laziest people on earth, especially when it comes to physical activity. Most American men over the age of 25 are rather weak and unhealthy for their sizes. Not to mention, they have *huge* appetites.
Salsa and lambada DOES give you good legs and butt, if you do it well and often. But of course, if you are looking for more muscle tone than usual, you’d have to hit the gym like guys do.
“you’d have to hit the gym like guys do.”……………
Not true. Most guys, at least here, go in for heavy weights. Women who are looking to tone and define go in for light weights combined with cardio like in step aerobics/pump combo classes. The weights used are between 3 and 20 pounds only.
I’m not denying the obesity epidemic in USA. It happens to a prosperous people. Ironically, even the “poor” people are fat here – often fatter than the wealthy. That is due to the type of food they buy with their food stamps (Macaroni and Cheese is always a favorite), owing to a lack of knowledge about proper nutrition, and of course, they are often the ones chowing down at Mickey D’s or Kentucky Fried Chicken.
People of African descent have the best physiques, owing to their natural muscle tone, of any people in the world. However, they are the most obese group in the USA owing to their lifestyle choices and eating habits.
White people are quickly catching up.
What needs to be done is all the fast food drive throughs need to be shut down en masse.
What are food stamps Hypocrite ji?
The equivalent of a ration card.
Macaroni is a type of pasta made of eggs and durum wheat (a whole wheat). Cheese is a very nutritious and a good source of protein. I can’t figure out why these foods would make someone fat, unless they are too lazy to burn off what they eat.
You might as well ask Americans to get rid of their ‘culture’. By the way, I wasn’t aware that the food stamps program covered McDonalds ‘Happy Meals’ and KFG chickens.
@ Hypocrite – “What needs to be done is all the fast food drive throughs need to be shut down en masse.”
You might as well ask Americans to get rid of their ‘culture’. By the way, I wasn’t aware that the food stamps program covered McDonalds ‘Happy Meals’ and KFG
ROFL!
Food stamps don’t cover restaurants, but people with food stamps have some cash on them as well, sometimes plenty of it. Especially the single baby mammas know how to work the system quite well.
Mac and cheese in a box is full of chemicals. KRAFT cheese is probably more chemical than cheese. It tastes like plastic. Eating stuff like that on a regular (and i do mean REGULAR) basis, combined with the type of low activity lifestyle these people lead, is what causes them to be obese.
“Mac and cheese in a box is full of chemicals. KRAFT cheese is probably more chemical than cheese. It tastes like plastic. Eating stuff like that on a regular (and i do mean REGULAR) basis, combined with the type of low activity lifestyle these people lead, is what causes them to be obese.”
Finally I get to agree with Hypocrites.
And don’t even get me started on the heavily processed “duram wheat”. Can we say “simple carbohydrates” people? Sugar. Sugar. Sugar. And that demographic often gets diabetes.
Now what is Duram Wheat?
Durum wheat isn’t processed flour (maida). Durum wheat is a variety of whole wheat and is higher in protein content than most other wheat varieties (~8-10% w/w). Mediterranean people consume durum wheat on a daily basis in their diet and they are among the healthiest people around.
However, the durum wheat processed in US might be iffy. The quality foodstuffs in US isn’t really something to talk about.
Sharell you are spot on with this post….You cant imagine the number of times i have felt the exact same way about this topic. We live in a fairly big 5 bedroom house here in aus….4 of us in a 5 brm house….and to be honest, it feels as though it is getting a bit small! I would love an extra couple of rooms…an extra room just as a prayer room, a guest room, maybe a home theatre….!!! Who am i kidding….Whenever i think like this, i remember my trips to india. Take my last one for example….we were staying with my aunty in her 1 brm apartment…there was her, her husband, her son, her neice, my other aunt and the 4 of us….so 9 of us in a 1 brm apartment…!! And not once did it feel cramped!!! Living in india with relatives in amazing….the physical closeness you have brings you emotionally closer as opposed to here where we all have our own rooms and where it can be quite difficult to even see the faces of our family members..! Here, the bigger house you have the bigger you want….I dont know why I cant be satisfied with what i have….I see bigger and i want bigger! I am SO sick of this superficial-ness =(
Sharell i love your posts…they put so clearly in words all the emotions i feel…Indian born, i shifted here when i was 4 years of age…I’ve always considered myself an indian just because its an identity which is so beautiful….Sometimes i find myself wishing that we had never shifted here…yes the luxury of living in australia is incredible but the cost which comes with living away from india is enormous. I’d have never thought an australian would understand my feelings…your journey is incredible…i have no words for it!
Wow Gauri, you’ve made me a bit emotional! I’m so touched that you feel that way.
It really is a trade off between India and Australia. We have a wonderful quality of life in Australia, but often there’s no depth to it. Like you said, we commonly have more bedrooms than people in our houses, and we readily go into them and shut the doors on each other. In India, relationships compensate for the lesser quality of life. It often feels like there’s a party happening in people’s houses because everyone is in there, often crammed in together, but talking, laughing and having fun! I have no doubt that I couldn’t live closely with so many people (not being used to it) but I appreciate it in small doses.
Thanks for all your replies sharell! I was just trying to remember how i came across your blog…i image googled ‘mangalsutra’ and landed on ur blog…and now im addicted hehe!
I think its so cool that in some odd way we actually have so much in common! Coincidence much that you’re also from australia and here this very minute! And in response to your other reply, my rellies also lived in kandivali west (charkop)….so yeh the similarities are getting a bit amusing hehe!!
When are you in Aus until? I’m sure you’re enjoying being back
It’s very odd, yet comforting. The world can be so large and yet so small. We lived near Charkop, it was on that side of Link Road. My sister in law lives on the other side of Link Road in Mahavir Nagar.
I’m in Oz until 28 December. It’s nice being back but this cold summer is too cold for me!!
Does googling “mangal sutra” mean you’re getting married?
Hahahaha nope no where near getting married….but im quite fascinated by indian jewellery these days and cant get enough of finding nice pics of all the diff types of jewellery they have there!
I just finished my bachelors in uni….so marriage is still way off haha! =)
Ah, damn, never mind!!
Home is where the heart is. Simple can be more contentment. Its the mindset. The fact remains that real close relationships cannot replace materialistic things.
i think having a bigger house does nothing. as long as there is one big space so there is enough room to host a party or practice dance or have kids romp around in at least one room, the multiple levels, etc.. are unnecessary. i live in the USA in a three story townhome, and we don’t even use the basement level, so it has turned into a storage area of the sorts where we dump stuff. i think an apartment with a big hall is good enough. the extra space doesn’t bring happiness–it just draws attention to how empty that space is. if it’s a big house full of guests that you are close to, then i guess things would be different, but here the lifestyle isn’t much like that. people. then money. then things.
Hi Jaya, thanks for your view.
What you’ve said is quite true. As for me and my “bigger house” (all of which is utilised, because houses are never that big in India!) initially my happiness level was a lot higher — but it was a pleasure kind of happiness. Now that the initial thrill of moving into a bigger place has worn off, I definitely feel more comfortable and content — but all the same emotional problems are still there. Sometimes feeling upset about things etc. Not even the biggest house in the world will make someone completely happy. The initial rush of pleasure WILL wear off, then you’ll always be wanting more!
For me, living in a smaller one-room apartment with my husband and three cats, it can feel very cramped. We don’t have space for much furniture, so it’s hard to have friends over in a space that can feel claustrophobic, especially when many come over at once due to scheduling issues (many Floridians, if we can get work at all, work two jobs and still make less than the poverty line!), or due to lack of transportation (again, because of work- insurance alone is expensive and mandatory here.). I have taken to vertical storage that does not come too far off of the walls, and getting a couch that folds down into a futon/bed, with a little storage inside the cushions for guests.
I would like just a little more space, if nothing else, so I can move my crafting supplies into their own small area. If I had a large closet to store them in, out of sight, out of mind- for a short while I could forget about my side-work to try to pay for groceries. For some people, I guess having to worry about where food is coming from or how to keep a place to live is somehow… alien? But for me, growing up in America without clean water or sometimes without food for days, this is still much more luxurious than I am used to. It is not the largest space, but we make it work well enough!
It’s true! I have found when when I lived in a space half the size i adapted and actually found it cosier.
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