New member

An everyday system, TM, is a simple, commonsense solution to an everyday problem, grounded by a pun or metaphor. Propose/discuss new systems here.
Post Reply
zimmerdale
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:40 pm
Location: El Dorado, KS

New member

Post by zimmerdale » Thu Aug 31, 2006 6:53 pm

I emailed Reinhard about his systems, and he suggested I post the information here. In order to waste a bit less time on the computer, I'll just copy the email verbatim.

Jason
Reinhard,

I stumbled across your sites via a link on the Freakonomics blog.

I've had vague ideas lodged in the corner of my head for quite a while, and you seem to have reached the same conclusions. I like what you're doing. One similar practice I've adopted is baking all of our bread. I've said that if people want a real workout with more than just muscles as results, they should knead bread. Not only do I get an upper body workout, we save money, and we eat lots of good bread. I've toyed with the idea of working up a tongue-in-cheek diet/workout routine centered around traditional household chores such as baking bread and gardening and biking to the grocery store.

It gets me that people I know buy gas to drive a mile or less to and from work each day, and then go walk in circles on a track or walk nowhere on a treadmill each evening. Or they pay a monthly fee to go to the gym and walk. How absurd! We've completely lost any sense of integration.

I'm also interested in a design system called Permaculture, which attempts to design environments and lifestyles using natural patterns. It involves a lot of observation of natural systems and rethinking traditions. It emphasizes using elements (such as a chicken) in as many ways as possible and in as natural a way as possible. Chickens like to scratch, so put them in a place where their scratching accomplishes something. Permaculture is much more complicated than that, but you'll have to read for yourself if it sounds interesting.

In a similar way, I don't like to separate out a "workout routine" for myself. Instead, I try to structure my life so that my daily activities inherently keep me fit. But it's a bit easier for me since I'm remodeling our house and doing lots of physical labor. For people who are stuck in a city or an office job, I really like your ideas.
Jason Miller

User avatar
reinhard
Site Admin
Posts: 5918
Joined: Tue Apr 12, 2005 7:38 pm
Location: Cambridge, MA
Contact:

Post by reinhard » Fri Sep 01, 2006 2:07 pm

Jason,

Thanks for following through with this!

In a way, "Urban ranger" is really just one aspect of the "permaculture" you describe. It's the low hanging fruit that is easiest for most people to incorporate into their lives -- and probably makes the biggest difference.

Reinhard

Post Reply