Food Diary
Information on what constitutes this assignment:
During day one I was trying to prevent eating any types of processed foods which as you can see by the list below I didn't eat much. I found myself overthinking everything and hungry most of the day, I realized then that I am so dependent on processed foods. Like many I am still unclear of what the exact definition of processed foods are, but reflected on what I ate it seemed to me like everything is processed. On day two I was assigned to eat according to my regular daily consumption, yet I will admit this was also difficult since all I could think about was if what I was eating was processed. I would say my day one had some influence on my day two, but it was interesting to note that I did have more food overall.
During day one I was trying to prevent eating any types of processed foods which as you can see by the list below I didn't eat much. I found myself overthinking everything and hungry most of the day, I realized then that I am so dependent on processed foods. Like many I am still unclear of what the exact definition of processed foods are, but reflected on what I ate it seemed to me like everything is processed. On day two I was assigned to eat according to my regular daily consumption, yet I will admit this was also difficult since all I could think about was if what I was eating was processed. I would say my day one had some influence on my day two, but it was interesting to note that I did have more food overall.
Day 1:
I prevented eating processed foods during day one and it did not go so well because I love eating chips. Day one was also during the weekend which is when I typically eat more processed foods.
Day 2:
During day two I ate two times which is what I normally eat during a school day. Although during the week I eat from the cafeteria and don't really have another choice other than what they serve. I had chocolates as part of my dessert.
I prevented eating processed foods during day one and it did not go so well because I love eating chips. Day one was also during the weekend which is when I typically eat more processed foods.
Day 2:
During day two I ate two times which is what I normally eat during a school day. Although during the week I eat from the cafeteria and don't really have another choice other than what they serve. I had chocolates as part of my dessert.
Refrigerator
What’s Left Over:
Looking at this couple’s refrigerator I realized they didn’t have any prepackaged dinners unlike Laura Shapiro opinion that many homes have shifted from home cooking to heating up something in the oven or microwave. Although this couple did not have any prepackaged dinners I did notice they had varieties of cheese. They seemed to have fallen into the realm of individuals who eat processed foods, by Melanie Warner’s definition. This couple also had a lot of cokes which if I were to have guessed without having seen their skin complexion are Hispanic. These individuals had a few vegetables, but I also noticed they had an unripe tomato towards the bottom of their refrigerator which leads me to infer that they have access to a farmer’s market because grocery stores like Walmart or Meijer typically sell ripe tomatoes not unripe tomatoes. I also noticed they had frozen peppers and tomatoes in their freezer which if I were to infer they either stay here for the winter or do not go to the grocery store or farmer’s market very often.
I can’t imply the income of this couple just by looking at their refrigerator because I am not sure how often they go get groceries or how often they restock their refrigerator, to look how it did at the instant I took the picture. In addition to the abundance of cokes in their refrigerator I realized they had left over food. I could imply they eat out every now and then, but it is hard to tell since there was only one container and it could have been for a special circumstance.
Looking at this couple’s refrigerator I realized they didn’t have any prepackaged dinners unlike Laura Shapiro opinion that many homes have shifted from home cooking to heating up something in the oven or microwave. Although this couple did not have any prepackaged dinners I did notice they had varieties of cheese. They seemed to have fallen into the realm of individuals who eat processed foods, by Melanie Warner’s definition. This couple also had a lot of cokes which if I were to have guessed without having seen their skin complexion are Hispanic. These individuals had a few vegetables, but I also noticed they had an unripe tomato towards the bottom of their refrigerator which leads me to infer that they have access to a farmer’s market because grocery stores like Walmart or Meijer typically sell ripe tomatoes not unripe tomatoes. I also noticed they had frozen peppers and tomatoes in their freezer which if I were to infer they either stay here for the winter or do not go to the grocery store or farmer’s market very often.
I can’t imply the income of this couple just by looking at their refrigerator because I am not sure how often they go get groceries or how often they restock their refrigerator, to look how it did at the instant I took the picture. In addition to the abundance of cokes in their refrigerator I realized they had left over food. I could imply they eat out every now and then, but it is hard to tell since there was only one container and it could have been for a special circumstance.
McDonaldization
On my way home, I was thinking about the assignment I was given in class in which I had to disrupt some aspect of a McDonaldized process. I will admit I was also a bit hungry, so I decided to stop at Burger King. I took the first exit that announced a Burger King in which I then realized how quickly I diverged from the expressway and it reminded me of Tim Wu’s article. How convenient was it for me to not drive a mile before taking an exit that offered the fast food restaurant I wanted. It then came to mind that I was also using the GPS on my phone which allowed me to leave my rout without the worry of getting lost. Perhaps I am one of the many individuals that have allowed convenience to decide many things, as stated by Wu. Maybe I wouldn’t have taken the liberation to leave the main expressway to get something to eat if I didn’t have a GPS because I would have been afraid of not knowing how to get back to my rout.
“Can I take your order?” The young lady from the drive through asked me. “I would like a number ten, and is there any possibility I can get the chicken grilled instead of crispy? I would also like it without any lettuce or tomato” I will admit I expected some resistance, but instead she responded very politely. “That will be $8.05, at the first window please.” I suppose the long line of cars in front and behind me influenced the lack of resistance. I then drove up to the first window paid my meal and asked her how her day was going. She said it was busy, but that overall it was going well, she then thanked me for asking how her day was going and although our interaction was short and quick I could tell she was confused by my approach. The fact that she thanked me for asking how her day was going, made me realize how monotonous fast food restaurants and other businesses are because of McDonaldization.
Workers are expected to ask the customer what they want and nothing else, they are not told to interact with the customer beyond that of taking an order. According to George Ritzer, McDonaldization offers efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control. While this is true and may have its benefits, mainly for the owners, what is the cost of such process. Taking into consideration the young lady who seemed confused by the simple fact that I asked how her day was going, seems absurd. McDonaldization has made employees subject to customer’s attitudes. What if the person behind me was rude and said something disrespectful to young lady, what was she supposed to do then? Smile and say have a great day? Perhaps, since employees are told that they must work in a world in which the customer is always right. This type of reasoning is part of the McDonaldized process where employees are expected to respond in a certain way regardless of how they actually feel.
“Can I take your order?” The young lady from the drive through asked me. “I would like a number ten, and is there any possibility I can get the chicken grilled instead of crispy? I would also like it without any lettuce or tomato” I will admit I expected some resistance, but instead she responded very politely. “That will be $8.05, at the first window please.” I suppose the long line of cars in front and behind me influenced the lack of resistance. I then drove up to the first window paid my meal and asked her how her day was going. She said it was busy, but that overall it was going well, she then thanked me for asking how her day was going and although our interaction was short and quick I could tell she was confused by my approach. The fact that she thanked me for asking how her day was going, made me realize how monotonous fast food restaurants and other businesses are because of McDonaldization.
Workers are expected to ask the customer what they want and nothing else, they are not told to interact with the customer beyond that of taking an order. According to George Ritzer, McDonaldization offers efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control. While this is true and may have its benefits, mainly for the owners, what is the cost of such process. Taking into consideration the young lady who seemed confused by the simple fact that I asked how her day was going, seems absurd. McDonaldization has made employees subject to customer’s attitudes. What if the person behind me was rude and said something disrespectful to young lady, what was she supposed to do then? Smile and say have a great day? Perhaps, since employees are told that they must work in a world in which the customer is always right. This type of reasoning is part of the McDonaldized process where employees are expected to respond in a certain way regardless of how they actually feel.