An Ideal Life...

The idea of idling and living a life free of the ratrace is something that I aspire to. So imagine my delight when I stumbled across Tom Hodgkinson's Brave Old World. It's an essential book in my mind if you aspire to a life in the country, creating your own little microcosm wherein you have no one to answer to except the bossy-cow who demands milking at 5am every morning. Although it is based on Tom's British experiences, his enthusiasm for the good life is enough to get anyone who dreams of being self-sufficient excited. Stumbling across this book, led to me discovering the larger world of Tom Hodgkinson, specficially The Idler. It's a bookshop in London, but it's also so much MORE than that! It's a way of life that people are rediscovering - ye olde ways. People are becoming so much more interested in growing their own food, community gardening... actually community ANYTHING! Knitting, weaving, crocheting, sewing, preserving, home cooking, home breweing, street food... FAB! But I want to see more! MORE!! Story telling, literature, garden parties, bonfires (obviously out of fire-ban season!), community dinners, impromptu jamming (of the music kind). How fantastic would it be for people to reconnect? Do I sound like a crazy hippy? Probably, but you have to admit it's a pretty awesome idea. ;) Anyway, I'm such an Idler groupie, that I rushed to become a member when the opportunity arose! And the other day, my certificate (printed on a 19th century printing press, no less!), membership card and wee snail badge (the Idler mascot) arrived in the post. Of course I want to visit The Idler itself one day, but in the meantime I would love to have a fully functional Australian chapter of The Idler one day.... One day....