I always say most of my life is satire and my friends have this running joke with me about it.... as if everything I do is charade. The truth is, most things are. The way I see the world, my values, and what I wish for the future couldn't be more removed from what most of the people around me want. (Though I can't decide if it's just a cop out because I don't want to sacrifice all the things I would have to give up [mainly a near single-minded devotion to my career) in order to attain the "economic/social" status that is available to me). I constantly find myself in the half-assed keeping-up-with-the-Jones' thing (though I do getting a giddy satisfaction out of doing these things for just a fraction of the cost - thrift stores, flea markets, craigslist auctions, unconventional executions) but it is really not a life I want for myself. I genuinely like working with my hands, using an axe, planting stuff, sweating, being in nature and attending to the needs of my basic survival. My only wish for humanity is that we could all see how silly all the things we spend our time on are just a distraction from what really matters - homeostasis, mental clarity and good human relationships. There is nothing inherently wrong with these other pursuits, but with 7 billion people all wanting to do them even the seemingly modest lifestyle I lead would destroy the planet in a matter of years if all of this planet's  inhabitant decided to do it at once. It's a selfish lifestyle. Plus, these other pursuits often serve as a distraction to three I listed above. We complicate things so much. We make ourselves unhappy in the process and end up miserable even though we have everything we could ever want. It's all rather sad and I am trying my best to make a slow exit.

As always Wikipedia is on point: "Materialism (adj. materialistic) is the excessive desire to consume and acquire material goods. It is often bound up with a value system which regards social status as being determined by affluence (see conspicuous consumption) as well as the perception that happiness can be increased through buying, spending and accumulating material wealth."