I wrote in the introduction to the Slow Guide to Melbourne that the quarterly 'mook' (half magazine-half book), Dumbo Feather, was an inspiration and it absolutely continues to be. I was invited to a DF social night in Melbourne recently and was buoyed by the camaraderie and generosity of spirit among the 50 or so people there. Visit slowly does it to read the beautiful responses evoked by a book giveaway in the new Dumbo Feather newsletter. It's a lovely introduction to the community this relentlessly positive and delightfully creative enterprise is bringing together. And the new edition of Dumbo Feather, pass it on, celebrating ordinary people who do extraordinary things, has just landed in stores and newsagents.

Is it any coincidence that the best tasting food usually takes longer to cook? Vegetables slow roasted are not only better for you they preserve flavour. Bread is better when it is given extra time to rise and patience when marinating is a culinary virtue.

It's unfortunate that the age of microwaves and tupperware our food has also begun to taste like plastic. I find cooking joyful rather than a daily chore. Last winter I discovered home made soups from my mum's high school cooking textbook: the kind that take half a day to cook. After many adventures, my favourite ended up being tomato, a revelation in my narrow world of Heinz big red.

It was deeply satisfying to put my vegetables on to bubble and murmur away for a couple of hours, occasionally slurping at my brew and simply absorbing the warmth and good smells that filled the house. I don't consider myself a gourmand or talented cook, but I surprise myself with the food I can make from scratch, with fresh ingredients and my own hands.

I am one of the wretched that loads themselves up with too many projects and then loses themselves in the business (busy-ness... coincidence? I think not) of it all. But I'm increasingly putting more time aside to cook, by myself and with friends. There is something deeply nurturing about it. In fact, I have started inviting friends over not so much to eat, but to cook with me, the journey of cooking the food being just as fulfilling as the end goal (fulfilling; full-filling: i was once told that eating slower is better for you as well, as you feel full faster).

My latest food excursion away from the world: taking time to sit and eat an orange with my hands.

Aimee (21 year old brisbane-dwelling student amused by small things)

Become a walking billboard for slow with one of these unique and extremely limited brooches or necklaces, constant reminders to you and anybody that checks you out to live more and fret less. We made them to help ingratiate ourselves with the media but decided – mercenary marketing types we are – that they were too good to just give away. So contribute to this website with a useful comment, email with an idea for a thread, or just share something suitably slow and you'll go into the running (or should that be cantering?) for one of the 10 pieces we'll give away at random over the next couple of weeks. There are also fabulous blackboards, which we'd be very happy to keep all to ourselves. But we could probably be persuaded to part with a few if asked nicely.

After a year of not living nearly slowly enough, getting pent up about the proper use of semi-colons and the like, worrying about the cost of printing in Australia and stressing about the thousands of things it takes to put books together, we’re happy…nay, relieved to say The Slow Guide to Melbourne and The Slow Guide to Sydney will be published from 1 October and will cost $29.95 each. Quite unexpectedly on time. See slow guides (top right) for the hard sell because, right now, we’re going back to smell the roses. Oh, and if you find mistakes, do let us know. But not until AFTER CHRISTMAS!

Technology promised us more time for leisure, but instead strapped us to computers, mobile phones, Black berries and other gadgets that constantly remind us of the time and the fact that we don’t have enough of it. We’ve become enslaved by the clock, an overlord from which we can’t escape – unless, of course, we actually decide to.

Is time a force we’re constantly pushing against, to be more productive, competitive or happy? Or is it the wondrous cycle of the natural world? Does time sound like ‘tick-tock’ and ‘beep-beep’, or the dawn chorus of birds singing and nocturnal creatures scurrying? Does it have a little-hand and a big-hand, or does it look like the changing light as the sun comes up, moves across the sky, and goes back down again?

City life is controlled by mechanical time yet we humans are naturally governed by biological time. Research by Deakin University and Parks Victoria found that these competing clocks cause us to become tense, irritable and unfocused. To counter those negative effects, tune into the natural world more and ‘clear your head’. Take off your shoes, smell the jasmine, notice nesting birds, visit an island in the middle of the Yarra…

The Idler is a twice-yearly mook (half book-half magazine) from Britain that is dedicated to the lost art of loafing. Editor and purveyor of this whimsical, inspirational, hilarious and largely impractical philosophy for living is Tom Hodkginson. I crossed paths with Tom nearly two decades ago, when I was a work experience kid doing two weeks of getting in the way. Tom is also author of two great books, How to be Free and How to be Idle. Visit The Idler where, among other things, you’ll find this Freedom Manifesto:

BAKE BREAD
MUCK ABOUT
QUIT MOANING
STOP CONSUMING
START PRODUCING
BACK TO THE LAND
SMASH USURY
EMBRACE BEAUTY
IGNORE THE STATE
REFORM IS FUTILE
HAIL THE SPADE
HAIL THE QUILL
LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR
BE CREATIVE
DIG THE EARTH
MAKE COMPOST
DOWN WITH HEALTH
DOWN WITH SAFETY
DOWN WITH WORK
DOWN WITH PENSIONS
BE ALIVE
BE MERRY
Be Free!

Slow the rush of thoughts flooding your brain. You are visiting this website? Where are you, in the context of your surroundings? Are you comfortable? What can you hear?

Mindfulness is perhaps our greatest gift and the greatest gift we can give back to the planet. Think in the moment about what you’re doing. It will encourage you to slow down and enjoy what you’re doing, to get more out of life and feel in greater control. All you have to do is think about it. Drink a glass of water and remind yourself, “I am drinking a glass of water”. Think about the taste, the health benefits, the purifying goodness.

Just try and think about what you’re doing some more in your daily life, whether you’re walking, working or even stressing. Think about ‘what’ instead of ‘why’ or ‘when’. It will help you develop a quiet mind, the most powerful tool any of us can possess.

The new edition of Dumbo Feather, pass it on, comes out on 30 September. If you’re not already familiar with Dumbo Feather, you’re in for a treat. It’s a beautifully designed and lovingly produced quarterly magazine that focuses on the stories of five ordinary people who’ve done extraordinary things by following their dreams and believing in themselves.

Dumbo, you might remember, was a cartoon elephant ridiculed because of his unfeasibly large ears. His handicap was also his special power because he was able to fly. But he didn’t believe he could fly without a ‘magic feather’ given to him by his friend Timothy Mouse. If you’re waiting for your own magic feather, this could well be your inspiration. Visit the website www.dumbofeather.com to subscribe or pop along to your local newsagent.