Money Obedience

I have been so busy, I’ve not been blogging about personal finance very much. I hate leaving the responsibility to vilkri-he, but I’ve been feeling overwhelmed by work and the kids. Normally, when stress gets to me, I eat. I’m a stress eater. But, I’m eating a lot less. Why? Well, the ultimate reason is that I want to lose a little weight, but that is the outcome of a lot of other little decisions. For example, as far as personal finance is concerned, I’ve stopped all those coffee shop stops and emergency candy bars in train stations – these pit stops add up to a lot of bucks and calories. (I’ve paid $2 at the airport for the same candy bar I could get for 75 cents at the dollar store on my way to work!) But Weight Watchers also gives the advice that you should bring your own food with you during the day – again, saves you both bucks and calories. Last but not least, I’m walking a lot – saving me a little mass transit fare and burning up those calories. If it’s a distance up to three trains stops, and it’s not raining, I’m going to walk it for sure. If I have time and the right mood, I’ll walk even farther.

So, as I said, I’m busy, busy, busy. And I can’t stress eat anymore if I want to lose weight. So, what do I do? Plunk down $10 on a computer game. Egads. What the hell did I do that for? Now THAT’S the worst ten bucks I’ve spent in a long while.

I’m exhausted, but can’t sleep? Play the game.
On the commuter train but don’t feel like working? Play the game.
Hung up the phone after a stressful call? Play the game.
About to start work and feeling too stressed to start the next step of the project? Play the stupid game.
Waiting for the microwave to heat the tea that I was too busy to drink while it was hot? Play the stupid stupid game. Tea gets cold because I’m hooked on that damn game. Repeat.

(Anyone whose known me for years knows I like games. I lost many hours to games like Myst. My crack this time around? Jewel Quest II. A blogger recommended it over Bejeweled, to which I was temporarily addicted on my cell phone. But he’s right, this game is so much better!)

I’ve not deleted the game from my computer – which would probably be the smart thing to do – but I have cut back seriously on my playing time. Partly because I now have the hang of it, and see how the game progresses, and partly because I am just too busy! But which is better – pay $10 and lose time, or save the $10 but spend much more on other, more expensive distractions? Hey, would I really be so much more efficient using those bits of time for working? (If you know vilkri-he, he’d say “YES!”)

Still, I didn’t take us over budget with this “hobby.” Nor did I “waste” money buy purchasing shoes, or movie tickets (Have you seen the prices of tickets lately? Add to that a babysitter? And popcorn? You’d break the bank!) On the other hand, if time is really money, I spent a whole lot more than ten bucks!