Innovation Nation

JOIN THE REVOLUTION!

A new day is dawning

RECYCLING (Re-use, Reduce waste, support 

Recycling programs.)

     RECLAMATION of still-viable materials,

unused goods & buildings.

REDUCTION of spending, consumerism, 

clutter, possessions.

RETHINKING living space, dwellings, 

politics, lifestyle, beliefs,

communities, societal resources.

RE-PURPOSING, REFURBISHING, 

RENOVATION: Make use of what we 

already have on hand; Find new uses.

REPLENISHING ourselves and others, 

our environment, and the animals we

share the planet with. Protect, preserve,

repair.

RESOURCEFULNESS: Efficient, self-

sustaining, networking, shared resources.

REDUCTION in spending, eating, 

consumption, escapism, stress,

time spent on electronic devices.

RETURN to active lifestyles, connected 

communities, looking out for one 

another, simplicity.

RENEWABLE energy and smarter usage 

of resources; wind and solar power, 

saving rain water, better landscaping, 

conserving energy, better energy sources.

RELEASE from all the division we have 

been fed, release from fear and worry 

and prejudice.

REALIZING that we are all in this

together, and ALL our citizens

deserve respect, care, and protection.

(Ending homelessness, police violence,

sexual assault, poverty, child abuse,

vet and elder neglect, & much more.)

The Time is Now.

Join the REVOLUTION as all these

movements converge as One:

REBUILDING the System.

***

Wide Open Spaces

Older(ish) folks are becoming more interested in exploring 
and experiencing life than living comfortably situated in the
same space year after year. They're tired of lawn maintenance
and paying property taxes. Tired of neighbors they can't stand
and being tied down to a money pit rather than having flexibility
and control over their time.

People are also losing interest in traditional work spaces, or 
work spaces all together. As tech advances and jobs change,
the possibility for many of working from 'home' (wherever 
that might be) is more common.

And when people eliminate a large house and all of the costs
associated with one, the demand for a higher income is reduced,
making temp jobs and other forms of income (including owning
your own business) a doable option.

Retirees want to be able to travel and come and go as they 
please. Millennials are bucking the expectancy of their being
the 'inactive' screen-obsessed generation by becoming more 
involved, and escaping from the comfortable domesticity of 
the suburbs. 

The desire to flip the dynamic of comfortable, staid, restricted
living is generating entire new lifestyles, jobs, industries...
People are more and more interested in rewriting their story
rather than just accepting the norm. Revolution is afoot.

***

Housing 2.0

Another great trending alternative to traditional homes

and apartments has been the school bus conversion practice.

In addition to outrageous pricing in rental property (either 

apartment or house living) there is another awful obstacle

involved for those of us who are pet owners.

The restrictions against the number of animals and the size 

of the animals that tenants are allowed to have have become

standard due to insurance costs. Or at least, that's what leasers

are saying is the reason. 

As far back as 2003, when I was looking for rental 

housing around the Tampa area, I could not find ANY place that 

would take me because of my large-breed dogs. The place I 

finally located was inconveniently far away. in a neighborhood 

that wasn't safe, and with a ridiculously high security deposit.

So, one great solution (for pet owners in particular) is to have

complete control over the rules of your environs. Having a 

mobile living space that you own is the perfect way to do so.

In my search for a bus to convert, I have found that there

are many different conditions of bus available, and of

course just as much variation in price for the differences

in product.

You can find a bus in varying levels of completion/ working

order based on (of course) what finances you have available, 

as well as what your mechanical skills/building abilities are.

But if you're not trying to have the hippest, most

mod bus in existence, you can find a whole spectrum of 

usable buses. For those of us just needing adequate shelter 

this is a great option. (Besides--animals destroy everything 

anyway, so..)

Freedom of how you live and where to live is increasingly

important, so until we arrive at a shortage of available school 

buses due to increased demand, this option still rocks.

What would be awesome is if an entrepreneur of a philanthropic

nature were to set up a business where they buy up used school

buses, spruce them up modestly with a crew of homeless or

poor folks with the appropriate skills, and, Habitat-for-Humanity

style, set up the very people who do the work with a bus-home

of their own.

If you have the money or the space to donate, I can help make

it happen. Any takers?

*** 

Simplicity, itself

Out with the old!

Ideas like Feng Shui have been in use in our
country for a while now, sometimes more in vogue
 (read: 'fad') than others. But as times and the world
around us become more and more complicated, 
people's brains are seeking means of controlling
the things they can: Their immediate environment.

Cutting out clutter has been the focus of some
Americans for a while now. Whether inspired by 
spiritual beliefs of an Eastern nature, being scared
by watching episodes of "Hoarders," or being 
inspired by the great George Carlin bit on 'Americans
and their stuff,' clearing out one's space has been
a steadily growing idea.

The idea of having a less-crowded, more-simplified
living space in order to produce a less-stressed, 
more-relaxed person is a great one. Getting the 
American public to give up purchasing 'stuff'
after decades of having their identity made to
seem dependent on said stuff...that's taken 
some time to change.

  

But, the more distressed people become, and the more 

powerless they feel about what's happening in the world,

I imagine more will find solace in reducing their belongings.

In recent years, the 'tidying up' and 'purging' movements

have picked up more steam, in part thanks to endorsements 

like Oprah Winfrey's. But even before this, we were seeing 

trends like 'life coaching' and 'professional organizing'

becoming more popular.

It takes time for concepts to spread and for people to 

become open to the changing of mind and habit...but 

we're getting there.

***

Housing

A huge, growing trend in the last decade has been the 'tiny 

home movement,' which arose due to a number of factors.

Affordable housing continues to dwindle, even as wages remain

stagnant. This has led to an epidemic of homelessness in the U.S.

 (and around the world.) Lack of available housing led many

to seek alternatives to traditional (or standardized) ideas 

about dwelling spaces. But it's more than just price reduction.

Americans are increasingly becoming disinterested in the

trap of consumerism, and seek to simplify their lives by 

reducing the number of their possessions. Having a much

smaller space in which to store 'Things' makes that goal

infinitely easier to achieve.

Out of necessity, folks without the means to jump into a full-scale

tiny-home had been finding themselves living in metal buildings,

sales of which had gone up as more and more were becoming

emboldened to take to that lifestyle. Needless to say, in our 

prestige-obsessed society, living in metal buildings was not as 

warmly-received by the media or the general public as folks

living in adorable, custom-built, trend-following homes.

There was definitely a stigma attached to people who were

'living in their shed/garage.' Baby steps.

As people become more comfortable with bucking the

traditional, limited way of approaching life, not only does

a particular trend gain steam but it also opens the doors to

other progressive ideas. We are--and will be--seeing all kinds

of innovation in our housing realities. It all starts with 

opening our minds to new housing concepts.

***

A New Frontier

Americans find themselves on the precipice of an entirely new

way of life nowadays, as our society and culture continue to

undergo significant transformation .

This blog won't be about politics. It won't get into the blistering

debates and division that we have seen escalating in this land for

the past several years--A division which ardently threatens to

worsen considerably before being resolved.

Many of us from my generation (I was born in 1969) never thought

life would undergo such a drastic transformation in our lifetime.

But here we are, with severe economic shifts, job market changes,

housing shortages, income inequality, and many other related problems

converging to make survival a different kind of beast than we've 

experienced.

Here is where I will promote Ideas, Inspiration, Innovations, and 

(hopefully) Insights into what we will need in order to get through

this vastly unrecognizable world. My hope is that those of you drawn 

here will have ideas to share as well, because together we can concoct

the best solutions to the issues we all are facing.

Jump on in!

-Robert Sayre,  3/13/18

***