Affluence masks the fact that the average American's relationship with material posessions is fucked up. I imagine that most of the people who vote up these stories have an inkling of that in themselves.
People need frequent reminders that material possessions are not necessary for happiness to counteract the cognitive biases and societal pressures that are perpetually indicating the opposite. To go without such reminders in the face of economic reality is extremely stressful, leading to depression, anxiety, and the growing problem of pathological hoarding. There are even now several television shows on the subject, one in the same format as the show about drug interventions. It really can get that bad for otherwise well-adjusted people trying to cope with the difference between what they need and what they want.
The truth is that you can never have enough of what you don't need, and sometimes you need the example (if not the experience) of someone living very close to the edge to illuminate the problem in your own life.
Less charitably: There is a widespread meme associating simpler lifestyle with productivity, and many people here have a craving, if not an addiction, to "tips" or "hacks" to enable them to be more productive, or at least seem more productive. Because they profess to have obtained a desirable state, people with unconventional lifestyles are just as common a subject as famous historical figures or business leaders. The idea being that if you emulate something this woman or Thomas Jefferson or Steve Jobs did, you can achieve great things as they did. The term "productivity porn" is apt.
In essence, many are just looking for another way to get more of what they want, rather than learning to want less. Two sides of the same coin, so to speak. Both present at HN.
People need frequent reminders that material possessions are not necessary for happiness to counteract the cognitive biases and societal pressures that are perpetually indicating the opposite. To go without such reminders in the face of economic reality is extremely stressful, leading to depression, anxiety, and the growing problem of pathological hoarding. There are even now several television shows on the subject, one in the same format as the show about drug interventions. It really can get that bad for otherwise well-adjusted people trying to cope with the difference between what they need and what they want.
The truth is that you can never have enough of what you don't need, and sometimes you need the example (if not the experience) of someone living very close to the edge to illuminate the problem in your own life.
Less charitably: There is a widespread meme associating simpler lifestyle with productivity, and many people here have a craving, if not an addiction, to "tips" or "hacks" to enable them to be more productive, or at least seem more productive. Because they profess to have obtained a desirable state, people with unconventional lifestyles are just as common a subject as famous historical figures or business leaders. The idea being that if you emulate something this woman or Thomas Jefferson or Steve Jobs did, you can achieve great things as they did. The term "productivity porn" is apt.
In essence, many are just looking for another way to get more of what they want, rather than learning to want less. Two sides of the same coin, so to speak. Both present at HN.