The Modern Luddite

It’s almost a shame that this blog doesn’t have a slightly broader scope; maybe “how granny used to do it” or something. Maybe that would attract the wrong crowd, though. Anyway, there’s something truly Luddite-ish about this particular article, and it’s thoroughly practical and healthy with it. So even if it doesn’t save money or time, and consequently can’t really score very high here, it definitely captures the mood of the blog.
A little something came to my attention a while ago regarding bread. Have you heard of the Chorleywood Bread Process? It was developed in 1961 as a way of making use of British-grown grain, which had a lower protein content than imported grain. The short version of the story is that by judicious application of high-speed mechanical mixers, and the addition of more fat and salt, the fermentation process was greatly reduced, allowing for rapid production of bread. Unfortunately this bread had more fat and salt, and less protein and flavour, than bread made by previous processes.

So it’s a little surprising (or is it?) to find that bread made by the Chorleywood process accounts for approximately 80% of the bread in the UK.

I was checking out one of my favourite clothing companies, Howies, when I had a look at their Doh Boy doll. And there, tucked away, is a wonderfully simple recipe describing how to make your own bread. Now, there are such things as bread-making machines, and they’re probably no bad thing. But this particular recipe is about kneading and bashing a big lump floured dough that you make with your own hands.

Delicious.

There’s a lot to be said for the Slow Food Movement.

Incidentally, I’m thinking of writing more about making and growing your own food. My cooking is basic at the best of times, so I’ll have to hunt around for inspiration. Feel free to leave a comment with suggestions.

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A long time ago, a friend of mine emailed me about a chap in Australia who started wondering why all domestic refrigerators are vertically constructed. You may have spotted the obvious side-effect of this design if you’ve ever opened the fridge while in bare feet: all the cold air falls out. Consequently the fridge fills up with warm air, which it has to cool again when the door is closed. This wastes plenty of electricity.

So this clever chap decided to buy an old chest freezer, and convert it into a refrigerator. Chest freezers have the door mounted in the top, so when opened, the cold air inside remains relatively undisturbed. He was amazed at the reduction in energy consumption; it dropped from approximately 1 kilo-Watt hour per day to nearly 0.1 kWh per day. That’s a 90% reduction in energy - and expense.

He’s even offering the service to people in Australia if they don’t feel they could do the handiwork themselves.

Even if this doesn’t directly loosen the shackles of technological dependence, it certainly makes them a lot more comfortable.

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A friend recently took me to Springfield Park community orchard in Hackney, London. What a great place! The gates are left unlocked, and anyone can pop in to tend the trees or pick apples. There are plenty of other community orchards around the country; try this Google search of all council and local Government websites for community orchards. There are plenty throughout the country.
Hacking down weeds and walking home with a bag of apples is a great way to get some fresh air. If you have children, they may just enjoy it too.

Some photos of the Springfield Park orchard:

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Some interesting thoughts about opting out of the money economy, courtesy of WiseBread.

The money economy? Yep, there are other types. Bartering, the “gift economy”, and more. Not for everyone, but definitely some interesting tips, and thought-provoking writing.

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The “latte factor” refers to the cumulative cost of purchasing coffee from high-street vendors. Every morning you visit Pret, Starbucks, or Costa for your tall-skinny-mocha-frappucino, you fork out a little. Maybe £1 or £2, maybe more? But if you’re like me, that’s every morning, and quite often at lunch time as well. So maybe that’s £4 per day. And that’s £20 per week, if you only do it on weekdays! Of course it doesn’t stop there. Think of the amount you spend on sandwiches at lunchtime. Maybe another £5 per day? On top of that coffee, that’s going to add up to £40-£50 per week! That’s a silly amount of cash, and that’s the latte factor. So how can you reduce it? (more…)

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