The Cost of Laziness

[Shooby]

What are some things you do in life that you know are kind of lazy that cost you money?  Today, i went through the automatic car wash instead of spraying off my car myself.  

[NoNamePerson]

Eat out but it's just me and sometimes if I factor in my labor at minimum wage plus cost of fresh veggies and such I may not be costing me money but I'm still in the lazy pool since it's just easier to eat out.

[Tennesseer]

Jan 9, 2019 16:35:56 GMT -5 Shooby said:

What are some things you do in life that you know are kind of lazy that cost you money?  Today, i went through the automatic car wash instead of spraying off my car myself.  

Not sure where in Pennsylvania you live, but the current temperature (at 5:00 p.m.) in Pittsburgh is 27 degrees. Wilkes-Barre is 35 degrees. Williamsport is 33 degrees. Not too many folks are outdoors spraying off their vehicles in those temps even if they were a bit warmer earlier in the day.

[engineerdoe]

Jan 9, 2019 16:35:56 GMT -5 Shooby said:

What are some things you do in life that you know are kind of lazy that cost you money?  Today, i went through the automatic car wash instead of spraying off my car myself.  

I feel that less water gets wasted if I use the automatic.  It may be cheaper but if I'm doing the washing I am pickier and probably put in enough quarters for two full washes.  

[Deleted]

Tomorrow a guy is going to come to assemble DH's new recumbent bike.  We probably could do it, but we haven't opened the package.

I don't know that I would call it "laziness," though.  It is better for our marriage if we hire this particular job out.  And others.

[msventoux]

Automatic car washes.
Having a garbage pickup service instead of going to the .
Having a washer & dryer at my house instead of going to the laundromat.
Having internet at home instead of using public WiFi/going to the library.
Having groceries delivered to my car instead of shopping myself.
Eating prepared foods or eating out.
Having a natural gas furnace instead of heating with wood.
Having indoor plumbing instead of using an outhouse.

There’s likely a ton of things that one person could attribute to laziness and another could attribute to freeing up their time to be put to better use elsewhere.

[resolution]

I just go to one grocery store once a week and buy all my groceries there instead of going to Aldi's for part of my groceries and then other stores for specials and coupons. I am probably wasting at least $10 a week by not going to a bunch of stores.

[haapai]

Not raking the leaves up sooner.  It will cost me a pretty penny in grass seed and starter fertilizer this spring. 

[Shooby]

Jan 9, 2019 21:41:32 GMT -5 msventoux said:

Automatic car washes.
Having a garbage pickup service instead of going to the .
Having a washer & dryer at my house instead of going to the laundromat.
Having internet at home instead of using public WiFi/going to the library.
Having groceries delivered to my car instead of shopping myself.
Eating prepared foods or eating out.
Having a natural gas furnace instead of heating with wood.
Having indoor plumbing instead of using an outhouse.

There’s likely a ton of things that one person could attribute to laziness and another could attribute to freeing up their time to be put to better use elsewhere.

Yes, I guess what is the line?   One man's laziness is another's efficiency!

[tskeeter]

Jan 9, 2019 21:41:32 GMT -5 msventoux said:

Automatic car washes.
Having a garbage pickup service instead of going to the .
Having a washer & dryer at my house instead of going to the laundromat.
Having internet at home instead of using public WiFi/going to the library.
Having groceries delivered to my car instead of shopping myself.
Eating prepared foods or eating out.
Having a natural gas furnace instead of heating with wood.
Having indoor plumbing instead of using an outhouse.

There’s likely a ton of things that one person could attribute to laziness and another could attribute to freeing up their time to be put to better use elsewhere.

I decided their were better uses for my time than working.  Stuff like skiing during the middle of the week, driving to the next town down the road for a dinner plate sized cinnamon roll, doing several weeks of on site genealogical research in Southern Ireland, or cooking with friends.  

[SVT]

I've been eating out like every day for nearly 3 months now lol

Have not gone to a grocery store since Oct lol

Luckily, I'm still 5'11" 160lbs

I've noticed no matter what I get, I seem to always spend around $20/day for food.

[MN-Investor]

There are two types of answers to the cost of laziness.

First, there's the cost of postponing something because of laziness and then it ends up costing you more. Classic example is ignoring a warning light on the dash of your car and seizing up the engine.

The second type of laziness is paying someone else to do something for you such as paying someone to mow your lawn or buying take-out instead of cooking from scratch.

For that second type of laziness, I prefer the term "prioritizing." It's the recognition that my time has value. I could buy all the ingredients to make a meal, but I dislike cooking and buying frozen meals and grocery deli items are easily within my budget. So I am prioritizing my time and my money.

[Shooby]

  In past years, I had thought of planting a garden but never did.  But, i hear lots of folks who really enjoy it and they bring in their produce to work, etc.  Bragging rights!  lol.  So, this year, i planted a really nice garden.  Had corn ,  green beans, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, peas, green peppers and mammoth sunflowers.  I really enjoyed watching the plants germinate and bloom.  But, in reality , i would rather just spend that time in the summer biking rails to trails.  I can buy produce at the farmers market!

And, because I wanted to garden "right", I had to invest money into fencing, quality seeds, the tomato and green pepper and pea plants were already started so I purchased those and had to get some Sevin to put on the plants, etc.  Probably spent about $200 to get $10 worth of produce!!  So, I would have SAVED money being lazy instead!

[Cookies Galore]

You say lazy, I say efficient! 😁😁

Examples -

I have a self-sufficient garden. Lots of succulents and lavender that take care of themselves, and I get surprise sunflowers from all the sunflower seeds that drop each year. 😊

When I make stuffed mushroom I use crabcakes from Wegmans (so good!) instead of making the crab mixture myself.

[Deleted]

Jan 9, 2019 23:35:02 GMT -5 MN-Investor said:

For that second type of laziness, I prefer the term "prioritizing." It's the recognition that my time has value. I could buy all the ingredients to make a meal, but I dislike cooking and buying frozen meals and grocery deli items are easily within my budget. So I am prioritizing my time and my money.

I agree.  When DS was little I had a cleaning lady and we had a lawn service.  It was partly because my husband at the time was a clean freak but I was also working FT.    I figured it would give me more of my spare time doing things with DS.  And, now that I think of it, my neighbor across the hall in my apartment complex cleaned my place so I had more time to study for actuarial exams when I had my first job out of college.  She needed the money but I really appreciated the time it freed up.  Now I clean my own house and mow my own lawn.  Exercise is good.

[Regis]

Jan 9, 2019 21:41:32 GMT -5 msventoux said:

Automatic car washes.
Having a garbage pickup service instead of going to the .
Having a washer & dryer at my house instead of going to the laundromat.
Having internet at home instead of using public WiFi/going to the library.
Having groceries delivered to my car instead of shopping myself.
Eating prepared foods or eating out.
Having a natural gas furnace instead of heating with wood.
Having indoor plumbing instead of using an outhouse.

There’s likely a ton of things that one person could attribute to laziness and another could attribute to freeing up their time to be put to better use elsewhere.

Grocery store?  Eating out?  You should be out hunting for your food and gathering nuts and berries.  

[hoops902]

Automatic car wash, I pay other people to do my oil changes, I pay other people to do some of my home improvement/repair stuff.

All stuff I would have done myself 10 years ago when I was making less money...now that I have significantly more money and significantly less time with a wife and 2 kids...my time has gotten more valuable to me.

My wife and I were talking just the other day about how we essentially doubled the size of our previous home and did a full gut remodel on the existing space at the same time.  Pretty much all on our own at nights and on weekends, on vacation time, etc.  We were talking about if we'd ever do a project that big again, and the consensus seemed to be "maybe, but not while we lived in the house, and it would probably take us 5x as long or we'd have to hire folks to do most of the work".  Time seemed limitless then, it was either do work on the house or watch tv...might as well do the work.  Now it's a struggle to find time to sweep the floors, much less put up roof rafters!

We can call it laziness, but it's really more about moving from a situation where time was plentiful and money was not, to a situation where money is plentiful and time is not.  It's no longer worth spending my entire weekend doing home improvement stuff since the kids can't really be around all those tools, my wife can't really lend a hand when I need it because she's watching the kids, and we can't spend any time together for the weekend.  

[NoNamePerson]

Jan 10, 2019 7:19:02 GMT -5 Shooby said:

  In past years, I had thought of planting a garden but never did.  But, i hear lots of folks who really enjoy it and they bring in their produce to work, etc.  Bragging rights!  lol.  So, this year, i planted a really nice garden.  Had corn ,  green beans, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, peas, green peppers and mammoth sunflowers.  I really enjoyed watching the plants germinate and bloom.  But, in reality , i would rather just spend that time in the summer biking rails to trails.  I can buy produce at the farmers market!

And, because I wanted to garden "right", I had to invest money into fencing, quality seeds, the tomato and green pepper and pea plants were already started so I purchased those and had to get some Sevin to put on the plants, etc.  Probably spent about $200 to get $10 worth of produce!!  So, I would have SAVED money being lazy instead!

I've always had just enough "garden" to satisfy my digging in the dirt thingy!! Never plant more than I can deal with - just four small raised beds and a pot or two to throw experimental stuff in. I don't garden to save money - just like a few things fresh off the vine. Digging in the saves me a ton of money in meds so to speak and having to see a therapist   Heck, I don't get upset if the bugs feed themselves from time to time since don't use chemicals - bugs/birds/worms gotta eat too. 

[nidena]

Jan 9, 2019 21:50:16 GMT -5 resolution said:

I just go to one grocery store once a week and buy all my groceries there instead of going to Aldi's for part of my groceries and then other stores for specials and coupons. I am probably wasting at least $10 a week by not going to a bunch of stores.

It probably balances out since you're not spending time looking for those coupons or loading them to your saver cards and you're not driving here, there, and everywhere.

[nidena]

Jan 9, 2019 22:10:39 GMT -5 haapai said:

Not raking the leaves up sooner.  It will cost me a pretty penny in grass seed and starter fertilizer this spring. 

Let it do its own thing and call it a meadow.  

[sheilaincali]

We pay a lovely man named Spencer $45 a week to mow our lawn. We could easily do it ourselves but frankly we don't want to and it keeps us from having to give up a Saturday to mow.

In the winter I pay extra per gallon to go to the full service gas station so I don't have to stand outside in the cold.

We've eaten out every dinner for the past 4 nights so we don't have to go to the grocery store.

[HoneyBBQ]

I have a weekly cleaning service. 
We also have a yard service in the summer.

[nikiz628]

I think ordering out/getting takeout would be our biggest lazy expense.

We are big DIY-ers, so we’ve never hired out any work. Someday I think we will hit a point that “throwing money” at a task will be more of a possibility. There have been several projects we’ve been in the middle of and said “‘Man, I wish we would’ve just hired someone”.

(Side note: we’ve spent the last two years adding on to and remodeling our home... just me and my H).

[happyhoix]

Jan 10, 2019 7:19:02 GMT -5 Shooby said:

  In past years, I had thought of planting a garden but never did.  But, i hear lots of folks who really enjoy it and they bring in their produce to work, etc.  Bragging rights!  lol.  So, this year, i planted a really nice garden.  Had corn ,  green beans, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, peas, green peppers and mammoth sunflowers.  I really enjoyed watching the plants germinate and bloom.  But, in reality , i would rather just spend that time in the summer biking rails to trails.  I can buy produce at the farmers market!

And, because I wanted to garden "right", I had to invest money into fencing, quality seeds, the tomato and green pepper and pea plants were already started so I purchased those and had to get some Sevin to put on the plants, etc.  Probably spent about $200 to get $10 worth of produce!!  So, I would have SAVED money being lazy instead!

I do the same thing. I love planting Kennebec potatoes, it's like a treasure hunt in the fall when you dig them up. But with the watering, fertilizer, raised beds, time spent weeding, etc., 5 lbs of my potatoes are probably $50.

Now my SIL and BIL have a large plot, probably 1/4 acre, and my BIL is retired and devotes himself to his garden. Plus SIL cans. And he doesn't plant potatoes because they're so cheap to buy. So theirs is cost effective.

[happyhoix]

Jan 10, 2019 9:23:16 GMT -5 hoops902 said:

Automatic car wash, I pay other people to do my oil changes, I pay other people to do some of my home improvement/repair stuff.

All stuff I would have done myself 10 years ago when I was making less money...now that I have significantly more money and significantly less time with a wife and 2 kids...my time has gotten more valuable to me.

My wife and I were talking just the other day about how we essentially doubled the size of our previous home and did a full gut remodel on the existing space at the same time.  Pretty much all on our own at nights and on weekends, on vacation time, etc.  We were talking about if we'd ever do a project that big again, and the consensus seemed to be "maybe, but not while we lived in the house, and it would probably take us 5x as long or we'd have to hire folks to do most of the work".  Time seemed limitless then, it was either do work on the house or watch tv...might as well do the work.  Now it's a struggle to find time to sweep the floors, much less put up roof rafters!

We can call it laziness, but it's really more about moving from a situation where time was plentiful and money was not, to a situation where money is plentiful and time is not.  It's no longer worth spending my entire weekend doing home improvement stuff since the kids can't really be around all those tools, my wife can't really lend a hand when I need it because she's watching the kids, and we can't spend any time together for the weekend.  

I have four raised beds, too. I don't use pesticides, but I'm not so comfortable about the bugs. Every time I try to plant cucumbers, just as I've successfully gotten the first cukes, squash bugs infect them with a bacteria that makes the vines wither.    Within a week, the vines are dead.

[NastyWoman]

I really, really dislike cleaning so once a month I pay someone to deep clean my home. I just tidy up a little and that is it. The time saved is used to just veg out and that is totally worth it to me

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Jan 10, 2019 15:14:50 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

Jan 10, 2019 7:19:02 GMT -5 Shooby said:

  In past years, I had thought of planting a garden but never did.  But, i hear lots of folks who really enjoy it and they bring in their produce to work, etc.  Bragging rights!  lol.  So, this year, i planted a really nice garden.  Had corn ,  green beans, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, peas, green peppers and mammoth sunflowers.  I really enjoyed watching the plants germinate and bloom.  But, in reality , i would rather just spend that time in the summer biking rails to trails.  I can buy produce at the farmers market!

And, because I wanted to garden "right", I had to invest money into fencing, quality seeds, the tomato and green pepper and pea plants were already started so I purchased those and had to get some Sevin to put on the plants, etc.  Probably spent about $200 to get $10 worth of produce!!  So, I would have SAVED money being lazy instead!

I do the same thing. I love planting Kennebec potatoes, it's like a treasure hunt in the fall when you dig them up. But with the watering, fertilizer, raised beds, time spent weeding, etc., 5 lbs of my potatoes are probably $50.

Now my SIL and BIL have a large plot, probably 1/4 acre, and my BIL is retired and devotes himself to his garden. Plus SIL cans. And he doesn't plant potatoes because they're so cheap to buy. So theirs is cost effective.

Yeah, I'm here, other than I have a $50 batch of pesto in the freezer.  My only saving grace is that my oregano, thyme and rosemary are still alive and I go out and snip them to use regularly.  But a package of herbs at the grocery store runs me about $1.50.  I could buy a lot of herbs for the $100 I spent planting my herb garden!

[Deleted]

One other extravagance/laziness- more and more often I have a driver take me to the airport for a trip, even when it's cheaper to park.  (It MIGHT have been cheaper to get the driver when I took the 3-week trip to India and Nepal but I've done it for much shorter trips, especially if it's an early-AM departure.) 


It is so nice to have someone waiting for you when you land and have the car nearby instead of Long-Term parking.

[TheOtherMe]

Jan 10, 2019 17:14:19 GMT -5 NastyWoman said:

I really, really dislike cleaning so once a month I pay someone to deep clean my home. I just tidy up a little and that is it. The time saved is used to just veg out and that is totally worth it to me

Same.  I consider it saving my sanity.

[Deleted]

My dislike of shopping has grown to include the grocery store over the past couple of years. My last 2 big grocery shopping trips, I ordered online and they brought it all out to the car and loaded it into my trunk for me. They even come out and get my paper coupons to apply to the purchase. The first time, I was really happy I did it that way because it was cold and raining when I picked the groceries up and I didn't have to get out of my warm, dry car.

I have one more time to do it for free, after that it's a $5 fee. It feels like the epitome of laziness to not want to shop for my own groceries. Oh well. I see a lot of $5 fees for that service in my future.

I gave up on mowing my yard myself a couple years ago. I think I washed my car myself one time last summer. I don't clean my gutters myself anymore. A lot of the home maintenance things I use to do myself as a younger single Mom, I'd rather pay someone to do for me now. When my son moved halfway across the country several years ago, I quickly realized that he had me spoiled. A lot of the things around the house that I did "myself" were actually often with his help once he was old enough, if he didn't just do it for me.