A Penny Saved

Recently I reflected a bit on the dilemma of money vs time.  In my latest food budget post, I wrote about how often I eat out, and how my food budget is simply out of control.  The question that kept getting to me is why, why why? 

After going through my MS Money reports and trying to track down when the problem started, it all started to become clear.  Once I started my current job, my food spending skyrocketed.  When I started my business ( in addition to my day job ), another jump.  My day job used to keep me busy between 80-90 hours per week - quite a jump from the 35 or so that I worked previously.  With less time, and more money, I didn’t spend as much time worrying about how much food cost.  I no longer wanted to take the time to clip coupons or search for the best deal.  Cooking seemed like a terrible idea - after all, it takes quite some time.  Once I started my business, my hours at work dropped to the current 55-60, but I of course work at home now about 20-30 additional hours.  So my total time spent working is about the same. 

So, what changed?  At my new job, my pay was significantly higher than my old job.  My free time ( non-working time ) however, was at a premium - I work most of the time I’m awake these days.  Since I had more money and less time, I started looking for shortcuts to speed up any of the mundane tasks of life, so I could spend more time on the enjoyable things ( spending time with my family ).  I don’t think it’s necessarily wrong to do things this way, but I do think it’s important to keep track.

Since I’m a financially smart individual ( if I do say so myself ), I think it’s time to really get a hold of my food budget.  I know it will take a bit more time than I’m used to lately, but I hate throwing money away, and that’s what I’m essentially doing.