luxury and the meaning of life

what does luxury have to do with the meaning of life? luxury in something like a restaurant is just a stage. "and all of us are actors". or whatever. i guess i could see it correlating that way.

sure, i appreciate real leather, real ANYTHING, for that matter.
i love a pure bred dog but the border collie and the jack russel will be my favs. i don't care about show dogs. i love mixed races of people. i think they turn out more beautiful. wine? this industry is bullshit, just like the art world. i'm going to demystify it for you right now. if you like it, buy it. there. i said it. what is all this vocabulary for? it's just fucking wine. it's just fucking art. even a caveman can do it. it's hard to tell the difference between what a gorilla painted and what a person painted.
i took a class on decadence in college. i learned what it was to be a dandy. yeah, i read the picture of dorian gray. but i can live without all those accoutrements. i don't need a jeweled tortoise in my living room.

i'm into simple. luxury for me is a little house on the beach or in a small town in italy, or in a far away land, little belongings, just some old photos and a glass of wine or vodka. wind blowing through my windows, flushing the blue curtains open. mismatched dishes and a claw-foot bathtub, the front door of the house weathered, paint-stripped. the floors, tile. a wooden chair in the corner. art everywhere. all sorts. a hammock on the front porch. fresh groceries waiting to be prepared into a big dinner for lots of friends and maybe a cat or a stray dog. quilted beds, mahogany furniture. a small studio with lots of light for painting, drawing, thinking, reading.
an island in the kitchen with really good knives. sand on my floor from walking up barefoot from the beach. running my hands through the hair of my love. MUSIC! music, sweet music. it will always be present, playing from a sweet system that makes it sound as if it were live.
there will be plants, orchids in particular, in and around this little house. my neighbors will live just within eyesight. my doors never need to be locked, and there's a little eco-friendly car in the driveway. i'm not sure about this part.
kids will want to play in my yard. i will have a fresh bouquet of flowers always present. and fresh bread. i will make my own jam. i will speak other languages and know people from all over the world.

my little house will be clean. always. my favorite art books will be on the shelf in my studio, and i will have a view onto a landscape just out the window. my time will be spent taking out the trash, getting rid of things i don't need, walking, cooking, cleaning, catching up with old friends. everyone is welcome. my house is a place people want to visit but are too caught up in their lives to make it a reality.

this is my experience. i do something interesting and everyone says "oh, that's so great that you did that. how did you do that??" (like when i moved to brazil). "well", i say, "i just did it". it's that simple. you know this too well. it 's like people don't know they have the power to pick up their life, carry it on their back to a place they'd rather be. they feel trapped by their employer, by debt, by things they put upon themselves. they don't need a house or a car, yet these things that make them feel successful or adult, hold them back from what they really want in life. they don't even know they can change. they think they have to be this way forever. even people with kids think they can't travel. i mean, yes, kids are expensive, and you don't want to constantly drag them away from their friends, but when i have kids, i'm going to take them everywhere if i can afford to. it's enriching and different. i think its invaluable to learn about other cultures. to see the world is a gift.

when i was in italy, i went to a town just outside of florence called fiesole. i was walking around this little hill town, and i'm on a quiet street. i see an old woman come out of her house to take out the trash. she saw me and smiled the warmest smile i have ever seen in my life. at that moment, i wanted to be her. i was in heaven. i imagined me living her life. i was content to be where i was, which is what made that moment so unforgettable. i want to be there someday. in a little town, in a far away land, doing simple things and being content.

life has no meaning except for the meaning you attach to it.