Doing things the hard way

[igthebold]

I've found in my life that if I can turn a potentially money-sucking process into a ceremony/tradition/ritual (in a non-religious, daily-life sort of way), the process itself becomes part of the enjoyment of the thing.

For instance, I've refused to own a coffee maker, but have instead focused on more "ceremonial" ways of making coffee, like French press, Moka Pot, etc. It slows me down, makes me brew less coffee, I end up with a better product, AND I enjoy the process of making it.

With that in mind, check out these videos, all of which have the spirit of the above: http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2012/08/best-coffee-videos-brewing-technique-tips.html

My favorite is the Ethiopian coffee ceremony, though it bugs me that it's not clear if the preparer got to share.

Another example is line-drying clothes. We've talked about the practical benefits of it, but there are others, like getting outside, slowing down, enjoying the smell of the clothes as you take them down, having opportunity to pray for each child as you hang his clothes, etc.

Yet another example is bike-riding, which allows you to actually see your surroundings, get somewhere under your own power, take more time, etc.

Any other examples that you fit into your daily life?

[shadowmoss]

I'm not sure if this totally fits with your idea, but my watch band broke this weekend.  I'm in Honduras, so it is more dificult to just run to the closest *Mart and get another one.  I stuck the watch in my pocket.  First I was amazed at how often I look at my wrist unconsciously to check the time.  Not seeing the watch when I expected it jolted me into noticing what I was doing.  This morning I intentionally didn't check the time from the sound of the alarm clock until I had to actually walk into work.  It was interesting to see I knew just from the rythim of the morning how I was doing on my commute.  I had the thought that I used to have a 6th sense of time, and with all the plugged in of electronics with constant updates on everything how do people develope a 6th sense about anything if they never have to use it.  I will replace my watch, but I'm not so worried about it now.

[Jamesqf]

I have to disagree, since most of your hard ways are - in the big picture - easier than the easy ways.  Maybe less about coffee: tried one of those French press things once, and yes, it was hard, but I couldn't see as how the coffee was any better.

Line drying clothes is much easier than sticking them in the dryer, then having to listen to the noise for an hour or so, deal with the excess heat (in the summer), etc.  Biking places means I get exercise, and can (or could, in the days before telecommuting) combine travel time with exercise time, which makes life overall a bit easier.

[igthebold]

I have to disagree, since most of your hard ways are - in the big picture - easier than the easy ways. 

My subject line was catchy and wrong. The content of the post was actually about the benefits of slowing down.. "ceremonializing" things.

As for line-drying being *easier*, I'm not sure most people would agree that it's easier than tossing the clothes into a dryer that's right next to the washer and cranking up the A/C. And biking? You have to use energy for that. That's why we buy big rolling machines to do things for us. You're just too far gone. ;)

[totoro]

I agree.  Have multi-tasked and worked and done more with less, I find it the ultimate luxury to be able to slow down.   I love that we are doing a "staycation" this month at home.  A lot of down time, little driving, good home cooking, friends over and fishing locally.  Avoiding the long weekend crowds by heading to the beach mid-week is fabulous.

I love line-drying.  I enjoy the whole experience and the smell of the clothes after.  I use a bodem but that is due to taste preferences.  I work less by choice (and yes, it will take longer to retire because of it) so I have more time to maintain our home life.  Small things are big things for me.  Being able to hang out with my kids during breaks, cooking from scratch, gardening, taking two good long walks with the dog a day, going to the library, buying fresh food daily.  The leisure to make decisions after thinking them through...

As far as "ceremonializing things", I don't do this much.  I don't have that much patience I guess.  I just try to pay attention to what I am doing and do it in a way that brings our family the most happiness in the now.

[MsSindy]

I'm not sure I woud call what I do 'ceremonalizing' something, but I have taken to doing things the slower (harder) way instead of purchasing.  A good example, is making our own ice cream or baking bread.  Both things can be easily purchased on our routine trip to the store, but it just seems to taste better knowing that I put some time and effort into it (even though it may not actually taste better).  Growing our own food falls into this category as well - it's definitely the 'slow' way to get your food!

[Jamesqf]

But home-baked bread does taste better (usually, if you're a decent baker).  Likewise, there's no comparison between e.g. a store-bought peach, and one picked fresh & ripe from the tree.

[Worsted Skeins]

So my sister in law stopped by the other day as I was cooking some black beans.  Wow, she said.  You don't just buy cans of beans--as though cooking a pot of beans is a hard thing to do.  I explained that it was far easier for me to tote a sack of dried beans on my bike than buy the equivalent servings in cans of beans.  So maybe what is one person's "hard" task is another person's easier task?

[JJ]

I have to disagree, since most of your hard ways are - in the big picture - easier than the easy ways.  Maybe less about coffee: tried one of those French press things once, and yes, it was hard, but I couldn't see as how the coffee was any better.

Ah, you see - you didn't go through the whole ceremony properly, hence the less than impressive taste.  You have to let the boiled water cool a little before adding to the coffee (above 93 centigrade overheats the coffee and makes it bitter), then you have to stir like mad, then you have to let it sit for 3-4 minutes, then you press it.  With the pressing you need to jiggle the plunger 3-4 times on the way down to release the coffee grounds from the filter to free it up a little before continuing with the pressing.  How the coffee got roasted and ground at the start is another (long) story...

But yes, I agree, we're sold a lot of "conveniences" which make things harder.  Food processors are a classic - they may save 30 secs chopping something up but then take 10 minutes to clean.  Dishwashers, for me, are the same (although if I had a big family it may be a different story).  Vacuum cleaners too - I use a brush and pan 9 times out of 10 because I don't like the noise and hefting a heavy thing around the house.

I do like the theme of this thread overall - slow down, focus on the present moment, do things carefully and thoughtfully and nothing is a chore.