A Simpler Home: Do More by Hand
Sometimes I make things harder. We have so many tools and technologies to make everything easier – from grating cheese with a machine to taking pictures of facts and signs on buildings instead of writing them out by hand. Sometimes these shortcuts are fantastic. Other times, they can actually complicate our lives. Too many shortcuts can clutter our homes and lives, lead to debt, use more resources… Sometimes they don’t make life easier at all.
I would never suggest throwing everything out. But I’d gladly argue that sometimes a little less is better.
Moving to Germany taught me this. The average German works 400 hours less than the average American every year. They also walk and ride bikes to run errands or get somewhere instead of always turning to a car. It’s amazing how much less our neighbors consume here because they have to carry everything up stairs and over to their little apartments. No one I’ve seen seems self-conscious about carrying toilet paper on the subway.
Sure it’s harder to do things like grate cheese by hand. Yet consider for a moment what consequences come from making everything easier and faster. Then consider benefits from doing things “the hard way”. Here are some switches to get you thinking. Please feel free to share your own additions.
A simpler life really can be the good life.
Have any simple suggestions that come to mind? Tricks for the kitchen? Tidbits for around town? We’ll drink up whatever you have to share.
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Craving a few more tips on creating a simpler life? We’ve got a whole slew of ideas for you on the page, “A Simpler Life”.
October 19th, 2009 at 5:02 am
If I worked 400 hours a year less, I’d have more time to all those lovely little things like write letters and sew. I have fabric for a curtain project that’s been on hold since June.
400 hours a year less, is like getting 10 – 40 hour weeks off or the equivalent of working a 4 day work week! Of course, I’m self employed and work 50-65 hour weeks, so 400 hours would probably not even get me to a 40 hour hour week. :-(
October 19th, 2009 at 8:32 am
Katie thanks for stopping by my blog and leaving a comment. I’ll be back from time to time to see how you are doing in Germany.
October 19th, 2009 at 8:36 am
We always make popcorn on the stove. It’s so much better than microwave popcorn. I don’t use the microwave very much at all. I’d rather cook things than nuke them.
BTW, I stumbled across this blog earlier and thought of you as I was reading it. http://ruthcampbellsmith.blogspot.com/ It’s the diary of a housewife from 1925-1927. She cooks, cleans, mends, sews, walks (or rides a street car) and hangs laundry outside. Seems like your kind of lady. ;)
October 19th, 2009 at 10:15 am
I was thinking about your stories living in German and, at the same time, I was thinking about the american obsession of green life and being vegan or vegetarian and about polution, and I was asking my self why that movement is not that big in Europe. I think is because our life is already simplier than yours, we work less, so we make less money (obviously), and we pay higher taxes, so we have less money to spend (even though we are very consumers, indeed, but less than most americans).
I like the walking around thing. I used to walk to my work and when i started working at home, I gained like five kilos!!!! BTW, I love simplier life. I stopped buying fashion magazines because they made me feel anxious about everything: my body, my wardrobe, my lack of this season fashion hit, because I didnt have a 1000 euros bag… so i just stopped buying them. I felt better.
I also like to cook, I cook everything with basic ingredients, is so much cheaper, healthier, funnier, and better tasting. I buy fresh fruit, vegetables and meat from local markets and always ask the butcher where the meat came from. However, that thing you said the other day about how much water and grain you need to eat just a simple hamburguer made me think and im determinated to cut out the amount of meat I eat per week.
And lately i’ve been avoiding take aways restaurants, to much plastic. Have you heard about the slow life movement??you would love it!
October 19th, 2009 at 10:47 am
I don’t remember where I read this, so I can’t be too specific, but as I remember, the gist of the figures isn’t that all Europeans are working 4 day weeks, but that there are a lot of Americans like Sprout, working lots of extra hours and not taking what vacation time they do get.
Not that I wouldn’t love me some European vacation schedules :)
October 19th, 2009 at 11:59 am
Thanks for the link, MIHH!
PlantingOaks, I’m not sure about the exact comparison in those terms, either. What I do know is that it’s pretty common to get 6 weeks paid vacation. A law even requires employees to get a large amount of time off (4 weeks? i can’t remember now). Even self-employed people have specific benefits – like maternity leave! Of course, people also pay really high taxes to support these programs.
Begona, thanks for your thoughts. You make some beautiful points.
And Sprout, keep up that good work. You’ll get to sew those curtains one day.
Katie
October 19th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Awesome post – I love it! Even though I can’t work 400 hours less per year, there are ways to eek out extra time from what we already have. Sometimes I find myself wasting time watching tv shows (online, I don’t even have a TV), and I wonder how people get by when they have 10 different shows they “have” to watch every week. I’d rather go for a walk than sit on a couch for
Making popcorn on the stove is totally worth the extra 2 minutes it takes to wash the pot (it tastes better, and is healthier!).
And writing letters a great thing to do once in a while, because it’s so much fun getting them in the mail! I recently wrote a notecard to a young cousin of mine asking her to be in my wedding, and she sent me a nice long letter back. I love it!
And wear clothes more/wash less? This one is my favorite. I hate folding laundry!
October 19th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Gardening is one way that I simplify. If you don’t have a yard, sometimes you can track down a community garden plot instead. It’s satisfying, economical, and environmentally friendly. Plus, there’s nothing tastier than your own fresh-picked food. Even my picky 4-year-old agrees.
October 20th, 2009 at 4:27 am
I absolutely love these posts of yours. They are the first thing I read in my long list of feeds. I crave that way of life. Thank you so much for taking the time to share these little details. They are encouraging and informative.
I wonder if the Germans would find it funny (or if they would just shake their head) that this American girl needs someone to encourage her to shred cheese by hand!
October 26th, 2009 at 4:28 pm
totally agree with your list. i do this: plant your own herbs (even potted). aside from being fresh it is simple yet helpful too.
October 27th, 2009 at 8:41 am
This list really resonated with me. I used to live in a tiny wee flat in Greece and had very little storage or kitchen shelves. I shopped in the market every day and had a wonderful, simple life where people and creativity mattered more than possessions. My dishwasher broke down recently and we’re thinking of going back to life without one. It’ll be the microwave next.