The Age of Stuff

Sorry I’ve been gone so long. My wife, two daughters and I just successfully moved out of Taiwan after nine years and now we live in Indiana, which, of course, is in Pennsylvania. This whole move - packing and unpakcking - has made me ponder the deep questions of life. Mostly: where does all this stuff come from? Which has made me realize something very profane. We live in “The Age of Stuff.”

To explain this intriguing concept, we should probably start with a timeline. First there was the Age of the Dinosaurs – cool!, then along came The Age of Computers, followed a few minutes later by The Age of Internet Porn, which was spurred on when Lindsay Lohan got drunk with Paris Hilton. But somewhere back in the 80’s stuff was invented by Sharper Image, who is extinct, but you can still find remnants of  them at Ross. The Age of Stuff enabled the rise of countries like China and India and Walmart, who made a enormous amounts of stuff that we buy every time we go camping and/or to the beach. Today the Age of Stuff even has its own holiday.It’s called Xmas.

Back in the pioneer days, at Xmas kids would get a straw doll their mother had made out of tree bark because straw was too expensive. At dinner pioneer families would all gather to feast on their only chicken, all quietly realizing they would not have eggs the rest of the winter.  

Today at Christmas, kids open so many presents their hands get sore and they get bored and have to take a break to play video games. “Ooos” and “Ahhs” are reserved for items starting at 100 dollars, and only then if gifts are electronic.

But stuff is more than just buying to give to people who don’t want it. Stuff is about buying things to sell at garage sales. Golf clubs, exercise equipment, and DVD’s were never meant to actually be used. They are purchased for the sole purpose of being passed from one garage sale to the next - sort of a spring tradition.

In the Age of Stuff you don’t have to do anything to get stuff. It just sort of accumulates around you. You go out for a walk, and you come back with stuff stuck to you like a bad case of static clean. If you go for a drive with your windows open, people will hurl stuff into your car. People have so much stuff they are paying to fill garbage dumps and mini-storages. Stuff is everywhere. Stuff is everyone. (Whatever that means. It sounded profound.)

Which brings me back to my present state. My family just spent months getting rid of stuff. Then we move into our new home in Indiana (Pennsylvania, not Indiana), it’s been a month, and already we’re thinking storage shed. In the age of stuff, you can’t stop it. Stuff is. (also profound sounding).

nathan lindberg