It's been a week since we came back from Russia, where we spent two weeks with children. The trip was wonderful. In addition to my good mood, I took some ideas for positions out of Russia. The very first idea was to write about what Russian women are wasting their time on and to save German women's time in household management and cooking. Post is not critical, I just noticed a few moments in the management of the economy, which can really save time and effort. Perhaps some of you have been doing horror for a long time in a different way, it's great. But there are general trends, and I tried to describe them. So, what do Russian women lose time on and save time for German women?
1. Purchase of products.
Feeding a large family is not an easy task for both Russian and German women. And buying food is a big part of it. Only, according to my subjective estimates, it takes German women 1-1.5 hours a week on average, while Russian women spend much more time on this task. Sometimes an hour and a half a day! What is the reason for this striking difference? Shopping from German women is carried out once or twice a week in one supermarket: one trip (by car, bicycle or with a cart on wheels), one round of the store with shopping on the list - and everything you need in the basket, one turn at the cash register.
Private trade is thriving in Russia: there are a lot of small shops that are not far from home. In one place something more expensive, something cheaper, so you have to stand in queues. And all this is time. I have noticed that many women in Russia wear all their purchases: watermelons, milk, potatoes. But this is a huge loss of strength! In such a situation, it is very difficult to stay balanced and patient in the evening as a mother and wife. So, if you want to save up to 5 hours a week and a lot of energy:
- Make a shopping list for the week (or 5 working days and weekends),
- Shop at the same place (hypermarkets) once or twice a week, if possible,
- use a car, a stroller (you can buy a special grocery net for it) or a shopping cart,
- Give way to the cash register after you if he or she only has yogurt and bread in his or her hands. Little things, but nice! Yes, and smile to the cashier. Someone needs to start:)
2. Split products.
In Russia, I faced a problem that I have already forgotten about. Many products here are sold unfinished or partially cut. I understand why people prefer to buy meat in pieces rather than in minced meat, but undivided chicken or fish are colossal "thieves" of a woman's precious time. In Germany, everything is sold in a form that is as close as possible to the cooking process. You can buy chicken already cut into small pieces, big ones, legs or wings. Meat, for example, is already sliced to make pork pilaf. All you have to do is put it in a pan or multi cooker and add the rice and other ingredients. Fish is sold without bones. Wash, salt and throw on the pan - that's all the work of women. If you want to save up to 3 hours of time per week, buy products as cut as much as possible.
3. Hand dishwasher work.
In Russia, it is still considered normal to wash dishes with your hands. In a family with children dishwasher allows you to save about one and a half hours of clean time a day! I'm not talking about the skin on your hands, about quarrels with your family about: Who washes dishes today? There are no such problems in Germany for a long time. All the families I know have dishwashers. And the point, I think, is not in income (or, first, in them). After all, Russian families have money for washing machines, new TV sets and cell phones of the latest models. I wouldn't hesitate to change my TV set for a dishwasher:) In this case, you can save not one and a half hours, but much more!
4. Homemade work pieces.
I have nothing against the home work pieces. It's nice to eat my own. But if you really don't have enough free time to communicate with your family, to work or study, it's better to use what others have prepared: parents, neighbors, shops. In Russia, many people make and consume compotes and jams. Sometimes only because it is "pathetic to throw away". For me, the nutritional and energy value of these products is very, very doubtful. Vitamins are not enough, sugar is a lot. And what is most dangerous, children, and we ourselves quickly get used to sweet liquids, and then the water seems to be not tasty. But it is so important - to drink ordinary water! (Here I wrote about how much to drink on the day of water). And you save a lot of time on it. And what should we do to avoid throwing away the harvest? Drink freshly squeezed juices. They take a lot of fruit and berries. On the other hand, you will get a guaranteed charge of energy and vitamins. If you can't do it anymore, you can't do it yourself.