Bite Size Life

With the foreclosure crisis now in full swing, there are almost as many opinions about placing blame as there are folks losing homes. While the folks getting the biggest heaps of blame (and losing their homes) are poor and working class, both the right and the left are also figuring out the multiple ways that shady loans and sketchy banking practices deserve blame as well. We agree wholeheartedly, but we also know that as long as The American Dream is to own your own house, folks will struggle and strive (and get taken advantage of) to do just that. We say, let’s get more imaginative with the dream!

If a big part of the American Dream is owning a house, let’s rethink ownership and let’s reimagine the house. What if what you owned was a super-fly bedroom+ unit, one that could be yours for more like the entry cost of renting an apartment? What if what you shared were spacious kitchens and well-cleaned bathrooms? What if instead of owning that big screen TV—or even the room you watched it in—you checked out your favorite show at the nearby multiplex, for free? If the American Dream includes health and happiness (as well as home ownership) what if the local healer got to live in his room for free?

Or if we wanted to shake up the Dream even more, what if the Dream was to live in as many different homes as possible? Renting would clearly be the move. Or if it was to live as close as possible to the ones we love, sharing parts of our living spaces might be seen as living richly. We think testing some uncoupling of the bed + bath + kitchen = home could be as useful as the uncoupling of ownership + home = dream. And we’re ready to get our there and do some uncoupling…before home + dream = nightmare!