Assignments |
McDonaldization Exercise
Recently I was tasked with breaking a routinized process in my daily life. This is concurrent to breaking a McDonaldized process. As George Ritzer describes in The McDonaldization of Society, McDonaldization is the movement of businesses and processes to becoming more efficient, predictable, calculable, and controllable much like the business model of McDonald’s. Essentially I wanted to do the exact opposite for this exercise.
This led me to stopping by my local Starbucks before I went to work. Instead of predictably ordering my drink and then staring at my phone until I heard my name called out, I asked the barista if they could explain how they were making my drink. Like always, I ordered a nonfat chai tea latte with an extra pump of chai. I thought I could learn something from the “professional” AKA the college student who had been making coffee for a couple months. I asked to be walked through step by step and was met with a stuttering “umm… sure?” Clearly the barista was not expecting this. They explained the basic instructions very politely. I did not really learn anything new but I was happy that they took the time and stopped their efficient process to fulfill my request.
It was relatively easy to ask the barista this question because of the friendly atmosphere found in Starbucks. Additionally there was little opposition from those around me in the coffee shop. Most were college students talking in groups or focusing on their own work, not being concerned with the odd requests being made at the counter. Although the only person to judge my request was the barista I still felt nervous before asking. This came from the fear of rejection among other things. After asking, and getting a positive result the fear was gone much like the experience that Jia Jiang had that he discussed in his TED talk, What I Learned from 100 Days of Rejection. Being a very talkative and inquisitive person, this interaction encouraged me to ask more of my “irregular” questions that would be seen as interruptions to the McDonaldization process.
This exercise highlighted how the McDonaldized process has some drawbacks. It does not allow for a personal consumer experience and leads to minimal social interaction with the business. Sometimes a personal connection can be the reason a customer returns to a business. These processes are also highly convenient but this sometimes takes the choice away from the consumer. Tim Wu describes that “convenience mean[s] conformity” in his article The Tyranny of Convenience. But according to Ritzer, the positive outcomes seem to exceed the negative such as: wider range of goods and services, no dependence on time or location, uniform quality and affordability to name a few. Our society has become dependent on this model, for good reasons, but it would be interesting and eye-opening to see a world with diversity being a pillar and not convenience.
This led me to stopping by my local Starbucks before I went to work. Instead of predictably ordering my drink and then staring at my phone until I heard my name called out, I asked the barista if they could explain how they were making my drink. Like always, I ordered a nonfat chai tea latte with an extra pump of chai. I thought I could learn something from the “professional” AKA the college student who had been making coffee for a couple months. I asked to be walked through step by step and was met with a stuttering “umm… sure?” Clearly the barista was not expecting this. They explained the basic instructions very politely. I did not really learn anything new but I was happy that they took the time and stopped their efficient process to fulfill my request.
It was relatively easy to ask the barista this question because of the friendly atmosphere found in Starbucks. Additionally there was little opposition from those around me in the coffee shop. Most were college students talking in groups or focusing on their own work, not being concerned with the odd requests being made at the counter. Although the only person to judge my request was the barista I still felt nervous before asking. This came from the fear of rejection among other things. After asking, and getting a positive result the fear was gone much like the experience that Jia Jiang had that he discussed in his TED talk, What I Learned from 100 Days of Rejection. Being a very talkative and inquisitive person, this interaction encouraged me to ask more of my “irregular” questions that would be seen as interruptions to the McDonaldization process.
This exercise highlighted how the McDonaldized process has some drawbacks. It does not allow for a personal consumer experience and leads to minimal social interaction with the business. Sometimes a personal connection can be the reason a customer returns to a business. These processes are also highly convenient but this sometimes takes the choice away from the consumer. Tim Wu describes that “convenience mean[s] conformity” in his article The Tyranny of Convenience. But according to Ritzer, the positive outcomes seem to exceed the negative such as: wider range of goods and services, no dependence on time or location, uniform quality and affordability to name a few. Our society has become dependent on this model, for good reasons, but it would be interesting and eye-opening to see a world with diversity being a pillar and not convenience.
Snooping Into a Stranger's Fridge
One early evening, I went gently rapping at my neighbors' doors. The first to answer were a middle-aged couple which I had interrupted from watching tv in their quaint living room. They were both dressed in modest religious robes, the specific religion I am not sure. Like most people would be, they were apprehensive to let me enter their home. After discussing the purpose of this invasion of privacy, the husband became intrigued because some of his colleagues are ISS professors at MSU and he had once worked in the food industry. This worked in my favor and they agreed to the strange photo-op. What I found in their refrigerator was different than what their appearances had led me to expect. The book we discussed in class, Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, planted and image in my head of what this couple's fridge would look like. I expected many spiced ethnic foods, fresh produce, and a range of meats. What I actually witnessed was the Americanized version of many of the Indian diet displayed in the book.
Their fridge had processed American classics like frozen Eggo Waffles, Country Crock butter, McCormick tartar sauce, Hellman's mayonnaise, Smucker's strawberry jelly and Klondike bars. Some hidden processed foods in their fridge were a couple loaves of whole grain bread and lemon juice. After reading Pandora's Lunchbox by Melanie Warner I now know that these "simple" foods are chocked full of preservatives like sodium benzoate, milk proteins, and enzymes—making them more processed than what is normally perceived. They also had ample amounts of fresh produce like apples, tomatoes, onions, as well as frozen vegetables. They did have quite a few leftovers being stored in the fridge and leftover meat in the freezer. Some "ethnic" foods were spotted like paratha and chutney which are both from Indian culture.
After examining the food in the fridge, I can draw some conclusions about the couple and how they live. I think that they have a moderate to high income. This is based in the large volume of diverse foods they have for only two adults. The couple also has a hefty amount of fresh produce. Tracie McMillan simply describes this in her book The American Way of Eating. McMillan states that "good food [is] a luxury lifestyle." She discusses how a variety of fresh produce is generally not available to lower income individuals which is not the case for the couple I met. Additionally, I think that they both work because they had a fair balance between ready made foods and home cooked meals. For two working individuals, home cooked meals are possible but cannot be an every meal reality. They also had some Indian flavors in their fridge that are not typically common. This made me wonder whether they were actually Indian or just enjoy that food genre. I guess I will never know. This was quite a unique assignment. It makes me wonder what someone would say if they cracked open my refrigerator.
Their fridge had processed American classics like frozen Eggo Waffles, Country Crock butter, McCormick tartar sauce, Hellman's mayonnaise, Smucker's strawberry jelly and Klondike bars. Some hidden processed foods in their fridge were a couple loaves of whole grain bread and lemon juice. After reading Pandora's Lunchbox by Melanie Warner I now know that these "simple" foods are chocked full of preservatives like sodium benzoate, milk proteins, and enzymes—making them more processed than what is normally perceived. They also had ample amounts of fresh produce like apples, tomatoes, onions, as well as frozen vegetables. They did have quite a few leftovers being stored in the fridge and leftover meat in the freezer. Some "ethnic" foods were spotted like paratha and chutney which are both from Indian culture.
After examining the food in the fridge, I can draw some conclusions about the couple and how they live. I think that they have a moderate to high income. This is based in the large volume of diverse foods they have for only two adults. The couple also has a hefty amount of fresh produce. Tracie McMillan simply describes this in her book The American Way of Eating. McMillan states that "good food [is] a luxury lifestyle." She discusses how a variety of fresh produce is generally not available to lower income individuals which is not the case for the couple I met. Additionally, I think that they both work because they had a fair balance between ready made foods and home cooked meals. For two working individuals, home cooked meals are possible but cannot be an every meal reality. They also had some Indian flavors in their fridge that are not typically common. This made me wonder whether they were actually Indian or just enjoy that food genre. I guess I will never know. This was quite a unique assignment. It makes me wonder what someone would say if they cracked open my refrigerator.
Food Diary
Below are entries to my food diary from September 17 and 18th, 2018. This assignment was not too difficult for me to complete. I generally eat "whole" foods with some minor exceptions. While making a conscious effort to not eat processed foods, I realized something about myself; I am very much like the 1950s housewife that Lauren Shapiro described. For example, I consider my smoothie I ate on Day 2 to be quite healthy yet it has peanut butter and almond-coconut milk in it—both of which are highly processed foods. I used my creativity to combined processed foods into my meal relinquishing myself of the guilt I would feel if I ate them alone.
I normally would not be apprehensive about either diary entry until recently. Reading Pandora's Lunchbox by Melanie Warner has changed my perspective on many foods I would not have considered highly processed. For example I learned that Greek Yogurt typically has milk protein added to it to give it its iconic thick texture. This affected me when I was grocery shopping for a Greek Yogurt to put in my smoothies. If I was shopping for Greek Yogurt a month ago, I would just pick up any kind that has nice packaging and is a reasonable price. Now when choosing a yogurt option I scan the ingredients to make sure they only include pasteurized milk and live cultures. The only one I could find was Chobani! To separate myself even further from the processed yogurt, I made my own using my InstaPot. This assignment in combination with our readings has done nothing but open my eyes to the deception I have encountered for the past two decades. Many other Americans, like myself, are swindled just as easily while still having the perception that what they are eating is "natural" and healthy—and it needs to end.
I normally would not be apprehensive about either diary entry until recently. Reading Pandora's Lunchbox by Melanie Warner has changed my perspective on many foods I would not have considered highly processed. For example I learned that Greek Yogurt typically has milk protein added to it to give it its iconic thick texture. This affected me when I was grocery shopping for a Greek Yogurt to put in my smoothies. If I was shopping for Greek Yogurt a month ago, I would just pick up any kind that has nice packaging and is a reasonable price. Now when choosing a yogurt option I scan the ingredients to make sure they only include pasteurized milk and live cultures. The only one I could find was Chobani! To separate myself even further from the processed yogurt, I made my own using my InstaPot. This assignment in combination with our readings has done nothing but open my eyes to the deception I have encountered for the past two decades. Many other Americans, like myself, are swindled just as easily while still having the perception that what they are eating is "natural" and healthy—and it needs to end.
Day 1 (Normal)
Banana Clementines Apple Roasted Sweet Potatoes Diced sweet potatoes mixed with olive oil, salt and pepper, then roasted. Butternut Squash Soup Pureed roasted butternut squash mixed with milk, cinnamon, and salt. Chicken and Diced Tomatoes Chicken breast marinated in herbs and garlic then cooked with diced tomatoes. Almond-Coconut Milk Peanut M&Ms |
Day 2 (Unprocessed)
Banana Clementines Apple Chicken and Diced Tomatoes Chicken breast marinated in herbs and garlic then cooked with diced tomatoes. Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie Spinach, banana, homemade greek yogurt, peanut butter, and almond-coconut milk blended together. Steamed Carrots Carrots mixed with cinnamon and butter then steamed. |