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This quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson is about being self taught and self reliant. He insinuates that education is something that must be taken on by oneself and to be intuitive about your surroundings. He wants educated people to educate themselves.

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This quote by Henry David Thoreau is about being self reliant and intuitive, learning for yourself and about yourself. Character is an individual's responsibility and something one must discover on their own, without outsider help and in their own mind.

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This article featured in the Atlanta Journal Constitution is all about modern younger generations simplifying and rejecting conformity. They are removing traditional wedding bands in favor of something they like, refusing to go with the flow and doing their own thing. They are also simplifying by cutting back on the past on something they believe is an outdated tradition. Simplifying this tradition and changing it is very transcendentalist of this specific generation.

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Millennials are spurning traditional engagement rings and replacing them with diamonds embedded into fingers, WCBS reported.

"We notice lately a lot of people coming looking for that," said Sam Abbas, who owns NYC Ink Studio in Manhattan.

"I think it looks nice, but if you really think what it's doing to the body - and you can have scarring - it's so many complications that can happen from it," Cynthia Rivas told WCBS.

The biggest issue is keeping the area around the piercing clean. Abbas suggests cleaning the finger at least two or three times. When seeking a piercing artist, it's also important to gauge his or her experience, Abbas said.

"You're dealing with the blood, so you got to be very, very safe," Abbas told WCBS. "What we do, we sterilize everything."

The embedding process takes about 10 minutes. An artist marks a spot with a pen, cleans the area with alcohol and iodine and then inserts an anchor -- typically made of gold or titanium -- to hold the diamond, WCBS reported.

The procedure costs approximately $100; the selected gem has an additional cost, Abbas said.

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Millennials replacing engagement rings with diamonds embedded in fingers

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Millennials are spurning traditional engagement rings and replacing them with diamonds embedded into fingers, WCBS reported. "We notice lately a lot of people coming looking for that," said Sam Abbas, who owns NYC Ink Studio in Manhattan.

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This TEDtalk by Lisa Bodell is all about how much we need to simplify our life to be a more productive innovator. This ties into the transcendentalist idea of simplicity and just having the bare necessities. This TEDtalk is all about improving oneself by having less stress in your life, the more modern way to be a transcendentalist through removing more cyber centric things rather than actual materials.

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How Simplification is the Key to Change | Lisa Bodell | TEDxNormal

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"Dreams" by Van Halen features many transcendentalist ideas. One such idea is exemplified through the particular lyric
"We'll get higher and higher
Straight up we'll climb
We'll get higher and higher
Leave it all behind"
truly expresses the idea of transcending. Another lyric is
"And in the end on dreams we will depend
'Cause that's what love is made of"
which is about being reliant on yourself and having an intuition on which you can depend.

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In this image people are claiming to be nonconforming and unique but in reality they are just like everyone else. They shame the one person willing to actually be unique and actually be them self among a group of fakers. This singular person is seemingly transcendent above the rest of the herd and has his head firmly on his shoulders instead of having it up in the clouds like everyone else apparently does.

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This podcast with nature specialist, Chris Hauth, is all about being one with nature and the idea of the over soul. These two men talk about the idea of a higher power creating everything and about being one with everything and truly being in tune with the surrounding world and i think that truly exemplifies the main ideas of the transcendentalist movement.

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Nature Is My Church with Chris Hauth | Rich Roll Podcast

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This article by Nina Patel is all about the new tiny house movement. This movement is all about the simplification of life and only keeping the bare necessities, often times in an attempt to lighten the load before the owner goes on a trip of a lifetime. This movement is very interconnected the transcendentalist movement through the simplification of things and the removal of all things that could be a burden to make it easier for a person to find themselves in the world.

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America is having a big love affair with tiny houses. There are television shows: " Tiny House Nation" and " Tiny House Hunters." There are movies: " Tiny: A Story About Living Small" and "Small Is Beautiful: A Tiny House Documentary." Pinterest has more than 900 boards devoted to tiny houses, and design Web site Houzz showcases thousands of tiny- house photos. "Many Houzz readers have been fascinated by the idea of a portable home they can pay off quickly and personalize down to the smallest detail," says editor Sheila Schmitz. And you know a concept has arrived when "Portlandia" skewers it: Check out the " Microhouse " episode.

Why are Americans, whose homes average about 2,200 square feet, so obsessed with tiny homes? Perhaps they are responding to the benefits tiny-house owners cite: financial and emotional freedom, a greener lifestyle, the satisfaction of building one's own refuge.

The phrase " 'tiny house' put a name to the movement that was already there," says Thom Stanton, a tiny-home builder in West Virginia.

Stanton says two groups are fueling the movement: millennials, because their college loans have put traditional houses out of reach, and retiring baby boomers looking for affordable homes with minimal maintenance. Meanwhile, traditional homeowners are contributing to the trend by building tiny houses on their properties to shelter guests, family members or caregivers, or putting them on vacation land.

But there's one big drawback: Many municipalities haven't made room literally or legislatively for tiny residences. It's a challenge to find a place to park a tiny house if you don't own land. And they often fall into a legal limbo. "Tiny houses exist in sort of a legal gray area, neither explicitly allowed nor expressly forbidden," says tiny-home owner Jay Austin of Northeast Washington. Though the District recently banned "camping" in tiny-house-like structures, Austin says he has been told the provision is unenforceable.

In Maryland, tiny-house legality will likely be handled at the local level as a zoning or building code issue, according to Wiley Hall, acting communications director for the state's Department of Housing and Community Development. In Virginia, a home built on a foundation has to meet the Virginia Residential Code. But most tiny houses are built on wheeled platforms, and there are no code standards that govern recreational vehicles, says Amanda Pearson, public relations director for the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. To further complicate matters, placement on a property is determined by local zoning and land use regulations.

Sorting out these issues will be a crucial test for tiny-house dwellers, who recently formed the American Tiny House Association. But the owners of the three homes that follow have already found big benefits.

The retirement cottage on wheels

Pasadena, Md., residents Greg and Renee Cantori have had a tiny house parked to the side of their 1,400-square-foot 1970s ranch home for three years, awaiting their retirement. The Cantoris, who believe in collecting life experiences rather than material things, have had long careers in the nonprofit sector. They added green features such as a composting toilet, gray-water garden, programmable thermostat and LED bulbs to their main residence. And Greg, 55, has been bike commuting on and off for 30 years, currently cycling 50 miles round trip for his job in Baltimore. Greg and Renee, 53, even opted against installing a dishwasher in their kitchen because they appreciated the family time the task provided as their two daughters were growing up. "Conveniences create isolation," Greg Cantori says.

So it's not surprising that the couple has chosen a post-career tiny-house lifestyle. "We will be doing things that we enjoy and spending time together doing it," he says.

A tiny house "becomes your launchpad," says Raleigh, N.C., architect Sarah Susanka, author of the " Not So Big House "series who promotes building homes that are small but higher quality. "It's a lot easier to live in a tiny house when you're in a beautiful place," she says. "A version of this is the micro units in cities where the city itself becomes your living room and dining room."

The Cantoris' 238-square-foot tiny home sits a few hundred yards from their 39-foot sailboat, which is docked on a creek that feeds into the Chesapeake Bay. After they retire, they plan to sell the main house and spend time on the boat and in the tiny house - a lifestyle Greg Cantori dubbed "surf 'n' turf."

Many retirees travel the country in RVs, he says, but a tiny house "feels like a real house." The cottage-like blue house with white trim is a light-filled space with dormers and beadboard ceilings and walls. It has a large loft that fits a queen-size bed and a smaller loft for a twin; Cantori split a stepladder in half to create rungs for each loft. On the main level, the house has a sitting area, kitchen and bathroom. The house has a shower/composting toilet on the far end. The original builder fitted it with a combo washer-dryer, but the Cantoris plan to remove it; they'll hand wash clothes or use a small manual washer. They also want to buy solar panels and a rain collection system.

The Cantoris bought the $19,500 house three years ago in preparation for the retirement plan, but also because they needed a guesthouse and office. Greg and his brother towed the house from Ohio to Maryland, once parking in an Ace Hardware parking lot and returning to find a line of people waiting for a tour. The couple's land in West Virginia, where they will base the house, is within biking distance of a town for access to supplies, groceries and entertainment. If they move it, they'll tow it with a U-Haul truck.

Greg Cantori wants to find a place for these homes in society, and asked the executive director of Civic Works, a Baltimore nonprofit organization, to set up a project in which kids in its YouthBuild program would construct tiny houses. (Students of the Academy of Construction and Design, a trade school at Cardozo Education Campus in Northwest Washington, have been building a tiny house on a lot owned by Micro Showcase, a D.C.-based nonprofit that highlights micro building.)

Cantori, who serves on the advisory council for the youth project in Baltimore, hopes to find a way to use the completed structures to house the homeless.

[What we can learn from small-space dwellers.]

A Spartan calling, and residence

Kevin Riedel of Richmond was inspired by the idea of living in "gospel poverty" and focusing on his spirituality when he built his 130-square-foot house four years ago.

The then-23-year-old also wanted "to have my own house but wanted flexibility in terms of where it could be, and I wanted something that was more affordable than getting a standard mortgage," he says.

Though his grandfather had helped his dad build a house, the thought of constructing a large house was daunting. A tiny home on wheels was a great solution. His idea was to keep the tiny house on someone's property, but when he couldn't find a place, he bought the land where the house now sits. Instead of the freedom he sought, he now has some degree of responsibility as a property owner. As the only one of his friends who owns a place, he often hosts cookouts and gatherings around his fire pit.

His cabin-like house has a gable metal roof and is clad in western red cedar. The door opens to a spacious living area filled with a refurbished love seat. The other end has an L-shaped kitchen and bathroom tucked under the loft. Including the trailer, it cost about $20,000.

His parents insisted that he include a flushing toilet rather than a composting one because they feared he'd never be able to find a girlfriend otherwise. (Since then, Riedelhas decided to become a priest; he will attend seminary at Catholic University this fall.)

"Building a tiny house definitely isn't a fairy tale," he says, noting that some tiny-house bloggers romanticize it. The first winter, his hot-water heater froze and broke. This past winter, the water supply pipe to the toilet froze and flooded the home, so he replaced the pine floor milled by a craftsman in his home town of Little Washington, Va., with vinyl tiles that resemble wood. "You have to have some degree of determination to push through the upsetting, disappointing moments," Riedel says.

Even the tiny-house movement can include the desire for more. "There's a bit of pressure to build niftier, cuter, tinier, bigger, more cleverly, more artistically, etc.," he says, which is something that he's had to fight against. The house will remain on the property while Riedel, who is completing an internship at a rectory, attends seminary. A friend, Will Gilrain, is living there now. "It makes you realize how much - or how little - you need," Gilrain says.

A home base that makes travel possible

For 26-year-old Jay Austin, who works for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, living in a 143-square-foot house isn't a political or philosophical move; it's practical. Though affordability was one reason he wanted to build a tiny house in 2012 (it cost about $50,000 including materials and labor), there was an "element of financial freedom I didn't expect," he says.

Austin travels a lot, including a recent five-week trip to India. He uses unpaid leave, something he could not afford to do if he had rent or a mortgage. He also doesn't spend a lot on household items.

Austin spent six months making weekly trips to Goodwill to downsize from his 700-square-foot studio. "Driving away felt for a few minutes like panic. That panic subsided after a few miles, then it felt really freeing." By the time he was done downsizing, it took only a few trips on his bicycle to move in.

"There is a trend in tiny-house design in which everything becomes miniaturized. I was more interested in a space that was small but not scaled down," Austin says. He prioritized the kitchen counter over clothing storage, extending the plywood countertop into the space that originally was going to be a four-foot closet.

Natural light was also important to Austin. "I put in five big windows and a huge skylight over the loft. I didn't want the house to feel tiny," he says.

The rustic and industrial house has charred western red cedar siding installed on the vertical. The small living room has bench seating on both sides with storage underneath. The kitchen countertop is butcher block with a matching table across the aisle. He stores his bicycle on brackets above a window.

The house was originally part of Boneyard Studios, a group of tiny homes in the Stronghold area of the District that broke apart in 2014. It is now parked at a friend's house in the Ivy City neighborhood.

Tiny-home living surprised Austin "by how not surprising it is," he says. "There's just less walking between different parts of the house."

Silver Spring resident Nina Patel writes about home design and housing, and contributes to Date Lab.

More resources for tiny-house living

Tiny house plans:

http://www.houseplans.com/exclusive/lester-walker

Tiny house blog:

http://tinyhouseblog.com/

Comet Camper blog and downsizing course:

www.cometcamper.com

www.cometcamper.com/e-courses

More from our Summer 2015 Home & Design Issue

The backyard barbecue, upgraded: Pavilions, pools and even TVs

It's not on the menu, but design is key to a restaurant's success: Wisdom from the pros

Review: Apps recommended by designers

Graphic: That man cave is going to cost you

E-mail us at wpmagazine@washpost.com.

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Tiny house, big benefits: Freedom from a mortgage - and stuff

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America is having a big love affair with tiny houses. There are television shows: " Tiny House Nation" and " Tiny House Hunters." There are movies: " Tiny: A Story About Living Small" and "Small Is Beautiful: A Tiny House Documentary."

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This is a picture of me, after I dyed my hair brught red to spite my family and society. I wanted to truly transcend the grips of society and be a true nonconformist, like most teenagers, by expressing myself. It was also the first time I dyed my hair all by myself with no help from anyone else. I was proud of myself for shedding the bonds of this society and, in my opinion, proving I could be self reliant and responsible.

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This poem by transcendentalist poet Emily Dickinson has themes of simplicity. In the poem she states that shes nobody relying on undertones of just needing basic necessities not even a name. She also uses the theme of nonconformity by not having a name or "being somebody" like the rest of the population.

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I'm Nobody! Who are you? (260) - I'm Nobody! Who are you?

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This quote by Henry David Thoreau exemplifies the transcendentalistic idea of being self reliant. In this quote Thoreau is also encouraging people to transcend the idea of being just good but he wants them to aim for better things.

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"Love Story" by Taylor Swift is about teenage love and rebellion. One of the main concepts is being unique and true to oneself, being a true individual diverging from the set path as in the lyrics
"So I sneak out to the garden to see you
We keep quiet 'cause we're dead if they knew
So close your eyes, escape this town for a little while
'Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter
And my daddy said "Stay away from Juliet"
But you were everything to me, I was begging you, please, don't go"
exemplifies the fact that the couple is not welcome but they chose to do their own thing instead of pay attention the rest of society.

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This is a photo of Minnie Haha Falls in Rayburn County, Georgia. This waterfall is one of my favorite places. i love climbing to the top of the falls, especially since I'm scared of heights. The breathtaking natural beauty of this well hidden waterfall is difficult to climb but the climb is worth the view. Reaching the top feels like I'm on top of the world, transcending the rest of the world's standards and truly relying on myself and no one but myself to safely reach the top.

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This picture of a person looking at the milky way is symbolic of the push for self reliance in the transcendentalism movement; for people to go off on their own, like Thoreau and live life simply with no distractions or trappings of lavish lifestyle to truly become one with nature. It also relates to the notion of the over soul and universal mind, of there being something out there more than just us, and it transcending modern thinking.

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This quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson embodies the transcendentalist ideology of the universal mind and the over soul. This quote also pertains to the idea of being self reliant and working for yourself to make decisions and act upon them with the support and backing of the universal mind and the ultimate intelligence.

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"What a Wonderful World" is  a song about transcendentalism and being closer with nature and transcending the struggles of life. one lyric
"Well, I see trees of green and red roses too
I'll watch them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world" is exemplary because is talks about nature and the amazing world surrounding us. Also the lyric
"Someday, I wish upon a star
Wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where trouble melts like lemon drops
High above the chimney top
That's where you'll find me"
also talks about transcending your everyday struggles somewhere in the future to move on and live more simply without your troubles.

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OFFICIAL  Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwoʻole - "What A Wonderful World" Video

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This painting of a quaint little town with Cthulhu watching over the townspeople relates to transcendentalism through the idea of the over soul and universal mind. Cthulhu is an "elder being"' according to H. P. Lovecraft, which is symbolic of the over soul and one's separate lifeline. Cthulhu is an universal mind and is representative of the rest of the world.