Slowness
I decided to sketch another autoethnographic work over the coming months (or even years!). I want to write about slow living. I don't know what this work will be, if it will be a chapter, a paper or just extensive notes for myself. With me stepping away from overwork and perpetual busyness in academia, I want to take things slowly.
In my consumption and life in general, I focus on the basic needs. I consume very few material things and services that don't fall into the basic needs categories. I'll reflect on those categories in relation to slowness.
Food
Many years ago, at times I would have fast food with my friends. When I stepped on the path of extreme minimalism and zero-waste, I stopped consuming fast food. I generally avoid restaurants too and prefer to take my time to cook. It's such a meditative activity that I would not want to give up. Most of the food I eat is very simple. I don't consume meat and haven't done it since my early twenties. I often spend a lot of time on buying food too. Often, my partner and I walk to a food market. The slowest way to get food would be to grow our own but we do not have access to land.
Shelter
I take my time to clean my home. We live in a tiny studio apartment and practise minimalism, so cleaning never takes long. When I lived on my own, I even cleaned the floor and washed my clothes and home textiles by hand. To clean my home, I don't pick a certain day of the week, but rather I try to do it when it's sunny and pleasant. I find so much joy is slowly cleaning my home and experiencing gratitude towards everything I live with.
Clothing
In my late teens, I still had several fast fashion items, but I quit fast fashion in my early twenties. I've never liked fashion, and large fast fashion stores always felt overwhelming to me. I've written a lot about clothes in this autoethnography. As for slowness, I take my time to repair my and my partner's clothes by hand.
Transportation
I quit flying in my 20s. I travel by train to every destination I can't walk to. Whenever I can, I walk. I don't own a bicycle. Walking allows me to connect with the place more deeply.
Personal care
My personal care is minimal. I used to live with 5 items, but more recently I stopped using soap on my face and body (and this works so well for me!). Though my personal care doesn't take long, I still take my time. I don't need products to spend time with my body. At times, slow personal care includes taking some more minutes in the shower, or slowly drying my hair in the sun.