Everyday Systems

This is a "TED" talk by Barry Schwartz, the co-author of "The Paradox of Choice". Basically he states we have so many things to choose from now it paralyzes are ability to make choices.

I have watched this a couple of times and then began placing it in the context of "dieting." I'll let those interested in watching, watch it, and then form your own thoughts on how the 95,700,000 links to dieting might affect some people's ability to lose weight.

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/barry_ ... hoice.html

I posted a link to this a couple of years ago! I hadn't thought about it in terms of dieting/weight loss. It seems to me that in places where there is more of a food culture and not so many options, people generally don't have the problems with gaining weight and if you want to lose weight -- you just cut back some. Not 500 different plans (and variations of those plans) from which to choose.

I have the book (it's a good read). A lot of what he says makes sense. I hadn't thought about it in terms of dieting either.

This excerpt from French Kids Eat Everything mentions limiting variety.

I like the part when he talks about his grocery store having 175 different salad dressings. I wandered into my pantry yesterday and noticed I had bought a bottle of Green Goddess and Thousand Island sometime in the past. Probably because they were there on the shelf. I'm a Bleu Cheese guy.

And I am still a button fly jeans wearer.

I read the book Rubbish! about the garbage study a few years back. One of the findings was that households that frequently ate foods with similar ingredients had less food waste than household that ate meals with a wider variety of ingredients.

This has subtly been influencing my cooking. I don't cook a lot of Chinese or Asian since it would require different ingredients than what I normally buy. We eat well but very plainly. The most "exotic" cuisine I make is Mexican, and that's just chili powder and cumin.

Barry Sears claimed that most people eat about the same twenty foods over and over. I thnk he meant "dishes," such as spaghetti or hamburgers. Certainly seems true with my high school students. He said you had to change what those were. I don't think he meant to count individual fruits or veggies as separate. I tend to have similar foods repeatedly but there is still variety in sauces/flavors. I've just found what I like the most that makes me feel the best. I lean towards Middle Eastern and Indian flavors. Iranians ate incredibly similarly over time and location. They were not exceptionally slim but you didn't see morbid obesity. Can't remember if they threw out much.

Very interesting! I think that the response to a multitude of choices is to make a decision and stick with it or make a decision and only review it periodically. Senator Joe Lieberman wrote a book called The Gift of Rest: Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath. He carves out a day per week without cell phones, cars, etc. I think this practice can help deal with lots of choices.

Certainly, taking away choices is a sad alternate, especially since income redistribution is suggested. Reading Douglass' autobiography on the slave vs. the freeman, I see that there is tremendous joy in simply being able to earn and keep the fruits of your own labor. "Income redistribution will make everyone better off" sounds suspiciously like taking from the person who earns money and giving it to the person who does not earn it, and the justification is that it helps the person who earns the money. Sadly, this same argument was used with this slaves. They were told that the master was taking care of the slave who could not take care of himself.
Kathleen

Kathleen wrote:Very interesting! I think that the response to a multitude of choices is to make a decision and stick with it or make a decision and only review it periodically. Senator Joe Lieberman wrote a book called The Gift of Rest: Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath. He carves out a day per week without cell phones, cars, etc. I think this practice can help deal with lots of choices.

I'm not religious at all, but I've been taking Sunday as a day of rest for a number of years. I'd started reading about it when I was reading about simplicity and the idea appeared in some newspapers and magazines, too. At about the same time I took a job at which we only worked 3 Sundays/year. It seemed like a good day to rest up for the rest of the week.

I know that some people (due to religious beliefs) don't cook or do any housework on their Sabbath, but I don't go that far and, obviously, I don't stay away from the computer. (I do try sometimes!) I cook, but generally don't do any housework or shop. I try not to drive, but I will go visit people or go to parties and so on.

It was quite an adjustment at first, but now it's habit. I especially enjoy the Sunday afternoon nap!