Audio of Wanda Urbanska by Growing Bolder, at growingbolder.com

Caption: Wanda Urbanska

Posted: 05/21/2008 2:12pm

TV host Wanda Urbanska really practices what she preaches. She believes in simplifying life and she and her husband have done just that. They moved out of the city and and headed for life in small town North Carolina.

Urbanska is the host of the "Simple Living" show on PBS and she's also the author of three books on the subject. She and her husband wrote their first book of the same name in 1992 and haven't stopped downsizing since.

Now, many people are taking note of Urbanska's actions and moving to the countryside, in what many call the "Green Acres" effect. She says there may be some challenges with rural living, but acquiring things, joining clubs and moving to the big city adds up to a whole lot of stress.

Urbanska wasn't always a simple girl, though. She's a Harvard grad who wrote for big-time papers like the Washington Post and LA Times.

She talks with Growing Bolder about what it's like to live in a town with a population of 8,400 and the four themes of her TV show.

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Sam Peck
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Posted 3:21 pm August 29th, 2008
Wanda's my kind of woman--likes to KISS (keep it simple, silly). This philosophy must be in the minority because so many have so much and, personally, I don't see how they live with all that stuff. My dream is to declutter local schools. As a retired library media specialist I've seen schools jammed full of unused and/or outdated educational materials. As a current school volunteer, I still see this ongoing problem. Surely there are places that could use these materials. I truly enjoy simplifying and like helping others but many are unwilling to change--sadly 'things' often define someone.

Thank you for introducing me to Wanda, Sam Peck
Ann
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Posted 12:23 am May 27th, 2008
Thank you for doing the interview with Wanda. I agree we need to get back to Simple Living. I try my best to de-clutter and organize. Guess I better get rid of my receipts I have on the counter. I do have them in a basket, so they are organized. Putting them in a file out of sight would be the better thing. I will put that on my list of things to do.

We moved to a small town right outside Mount Airy aka Mayberry from the hustle and bustle of Orlando, FL in 1992. Life is simpler, but with the gas prices getting out of hand I try not to drive any more than necessary. I usually go to town once or maybe twice a week now. If I have something important, like work, I also do my shopping on that day. I multi task in other words.

Learn more about Simple Living with Wanda Urbanska at www.simplelivingtv.net.