People:
Filiep
We're not sure if Filiep really counts as an authentic
"People Page" person, as Kelly knew him before the trip. But he is very
interesting and such an advocate of the simple (read: non-technology) life that we thought
it would be ironic to dedicate a web page to him.
Unlike most Americans, Filiep has figured out exactly how many
hours he needs to work in order to live. He refuses to work any more. Luckily he works as
a freelance consultant to Dutch province governments so he has the opportunity to control
this. He doesn't like to acquire "stuff" because he will just have to move it
later, and he believes that too many material posessions tie one down.
He is probably one of the most resourceful people we know. Why
bother having a grill? To cook dinner for us one night he simply balanced a metal grate
over 2 bricks, used some scap pieces of wood left over from one of his sculptures and a
few loose branches he picked up from a nearby forest, and some newspaper. Voi la! A grill.
When Kelly first met Filiep a year ago, she secretly thought he
might be a Ted Kacinsky (Unibomber) anti-technology groupie. Oddly enough, it turns out
Filiep did read Kacinsky's Manifesto a couple months ago and in response went out
and purchased a 14-inch color TV to replace his black-and-white one. So there, Ted! And
no, he's not actually against technology, he just thinks email and the Internet
are needlessly replacing many forms of human contact: there are fewer handwritten letters,
contemplative conversations face-to-face, and general fraternization of society.
So, Filiep really makes us think. And many of the things we agree
with (Kelly more than Dave) and we can appreciate his philosophy on the conservation of
"stuff" after getting by with a backpack for a whole year. Just wait until he
finds out he's the subject of a web page on this virtual wasteland of a medium....
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