The Cost of Convenience
A couple months ago we purchased a pulley clothesline system (that's the one we bought, though I think this one is a better quality), and my husband installed it on our second story deck. The reasons he put it on the second story deck include our shady yard (the deck is above a couple of our shade trees), the dog, who would tear down some of the things from a line, and better air flow for drying clothes. I also have picked up two or three collapsible wooden clothes drying racks like this one- mine came from thrift shops for a dollar or so each. I happily looked forward to the new and improved, slimmer, trimmer, utility bill.
The first couple of weeks the clothesline got substantial use- we all love the smell of line dried sheets. I am the only person who appreciates the exfoliating properties of line dried towels, but as I explained to my daughters, towels dried in the drier with softeners may feel more absorbent, but they actually are less absorbent. The third week it rained, and we had to do laundry so the only use the clothesline saw was the set of sheets that I, um, explained to my children I deliberately left out on the line in the rain for an extra rain fresh rinse. Yeah, they didn't believe me, either.=) I should explain that when I say 'children,' I mean offspring. Most of my "children" are more than old enough to do their own laundry and they do- I help the 11 year old with his, and my daughters and I take turns doing the laundry for my handicapped daughter.
The fourth week, well, everybody found a reason why they needed to use the dryer. Suddenly, they all had urgent needs to have clothes dried now, not after hanging them out on the line. My husband and I thought about this for a while, and thought about our utility bills more, and thought about what the Progeny were learning and not learning about the high cost of convenience, so we came up with this plan. They may use the dryer instead of the clothesline any time they like. They just have to put a dollar in a jar toward the utility bills. Suddenly, the clothesline is full again.
The cost of convenience was immediately and visibly apparent to them when we asked for a dollar at the time of use. Often we also pay far too much for convenience but we are insulated from the pinch of that cost by space, time, and an inaccurate assumption about the time it takes to do something or the cost of our time.
Consider this article:
How do convenience products compare to homemade? As part of a research project sponsored by the Arizona Republic, Linda Vaughan, chair of Arizona State University’s Department of Nutrition, and student researchers purchased both raw ingredients and prepared foods to see how they stacked up. By comparing the extra cost of ready-to-eat food to the time it took to make the same thing from raw ingredients, they could determine what buyers are actually paying for the preparation.Vaughan’s group determined that the consumer was paying the equivalent of $80 per hour for the convenience of buying shredded cheese, $75 per hour for sliced gala apples, and nearly $50 per hour for pre-cut celery. Never mind the packaging that can’t be recycled.
The study also found that “convenient” doesn’t always mean “time-saving”. A frozen teriyaki dinner took 20 minutes to prepare while a teriyaki dinner made from scratch took 30 minutes to prepare. Vaughan also found that the quality of prepared meals was usually low and typically high in fat and sodium content. So the frozen teriyaki dinner tastes like oily, salty cardboard and is less nutritious. Sounds like a deal to save 10 minutes, no?
I've done a similar price comparison on canned beans, an item people mistakenly assume is about the equivilant of the same amount of dried beans- but actually... well, read the post.=)
Oatmeal is another item that astonishes me- those tiny envelopes of instant oats cook in about the same amount of time as quick oats, but cost far, far more. You don't have to measure the oats. You do have to tear open the bag, though.=)
Diapers are another- if you set up your diaper changing area to help you do this most efficiently, with the diaper pail, trash can (if you use disposable wipes or inserts), and fresh diapers, pins, and covers all in the same area, it takes about ten seconds more to change a cloth diaper than it does a paper diaper. I timed myself- and that was when I was using prefolded diapers and pins. I made my diaper changing center in the bathroom, so when I had a diaper that badly needed rinsing, I was already right there. In addition, instead of disposable diaper wipes, I just used washcloths that I conveniently wet under the nearby bathroom faucet and then tossed in the diaper pail- saving oodles of money (for traveling I made my own disposable wipes In fact, we make a lot of our own cleaning supplies because it's so much cheaper- and less toxic).
Often when reading budgeting advice from people who live a vastly different lifestyle than mine, I read something like 'Your time is worth money, so factor in the time it costs you to do something may mean it's cheaper for you to..... than to do it yourself." Where the elipses are insert something like buying over-priced convenience foods, eating out, hiring a maid, paying somebody else to mow the lawn- or buying a rotisserie chicken instead of a whole roasting chicken, or buying single wipe sink cleaners instead of a roll of paper towels or a stack of rags and a spray bottle of home-made cleaner.
We can really cheat ourselves when we decide saving ourselves five or ten minutes is worth an extra dollar or two- because saving a dollar is actually worth more than spending that dollar. You've already paid the taxes on the dollar you save. A dollar you earn is actually only about 70 cents, given taxes on it. A dollar you save IS a whole dollar.
The work is done: With a “penny saved,” the work has already been completed and you have already paid your taxes. To earn another penny to replace it, you have to work again and pay more taxes. This may not be a big deal for a few dollars, but when you make it a habit to reduce your expenditures and live a more frugal life, you can save hundreds of dollars per month. Not spending that money means not having to work again to replace it. I would rather have my money working for me, instead of the other way around.
No guarantees for future earnings: Most of us will wake up tomorrow, go to work, and earn our paychecks. But there is always the possibility of losing your job due to corporate downsizing, being fired, of otherwise losing the ability to work and earn income (hopefully only for a short period of time). Saving money allows you to hedge against the possible loss of future income.
Although in our culture we like to say 'time is money,' it's really not necessarily so- and that's a limited view:In Living More with Less Mrs. Longacre writes:
"...most of the maxims by which North Americans handle money aren't found in the Bible, not even in Proverbs....
One of our most pervasive notions is that time is money. ...as far as I have been able to determine, the idea is found in no language except English nor in any culture outside of North America."
She wrote this book in the seventies, so that may well have changed and we may well have exported that shortsighted proverb along with our fast food restaurants and pop culture. And it's true that sometimes time is money. But time is also required for relationships, for space for thinking, for pleasure, for intangible gifts that enrich our lives and lift them beyond the utilitarian.
While hanging clothes on the line, something they often do in pairs, my daughters not only save money, they spend time in the sun they might not otherwise. They spend time together, and often a conversation takes a deeper level when it accompanies some mundane task like dish washing or hanging clothes on the line. They practice frugality. While out on the deck hanging out clothes they often find themselves thinking deeper thoughts about the books they are reading- because they have the space and freedom necessary for the mind to work things out. Other tasks, such as bread baking, muffin making, sewing, spray painting a battered desk instead of buying a new one, making soap, and changing cloth diapers also include such valuable benefits as learning and practicing a new skill (a skill some people pay money to learn, or pay money to have others do for them), we gain satisfaction from a job well done, from the work of our hands, from contributing to the family's well being by reducing its expenditures- these are all things that are tallied up in the debit side of the account book when we focus overmuch on convenience.
Sometimes we need to take the time to 'brush it slow,' Mamas.
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16 Responses to “The Cost of Convenience”
September 11th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Hrms. Everytime I have compared the price of shredded cheese and block cheese, they have been the same per ounce. Is there something I am missing?
September 11th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Specific details, obviously, will always vary based on geography, the grocery stores available, and brands available to any individual, as well as what sorts of cheese one is buying. I compare prices regularly between block and shredded cheese, and sometimes find the shredded is actually cheaper, sometimes it is the same, and sometimes it is far more- this can happen even in the same store on different days.
Whatever the regional peculiarity that makes one detail or another not apply to you, the principle remains the same- we don’t always properly assess how much we are paying for convenience.
September 11th, 2009 at 4:56 pm
You said your daughters often hang laundry in pairs – I might try this. I don’t think hanging laundry is terrible drudgery, but my daughters seem to think so.
Better yet, maybe I’ll go back to doing much of it myself and choose a helper each time. Then hanging laundry can become quality time.
September 12th, 2009 at 2:13 am
“One of our most pervasive notions is that time is money. …as far as I have been able to determine, the idea is found in no language except English nor in any culture outside of North America”
when I went to France this idea did not exist, for sure. (Its the only Non-North American place I have been so it is the only example I can provide.) People would arrive at a restaurant for dinner and leave 3 or 4 hours later. This is the pervasive way to eat (dinner out) there! Americans would say “what a waste of time”. They by law are only allowed to work 35 hours a week. Some careers less than that. (this ties into time is money as well). people take leisurely walks in the park, and spend time with their family and friends. While because of French labor laws, overtime is usually 2 to 2.5 times that of the usual hourly wage, most people do not scramble for overtime just to make money, because they recognize that quality time is important. While I suppose I’m not providing examples of people shredding their own cheese or whatever, I was on holiday, I didn’t live amongst the people, so I can’t say as to that side of life. All I know is that an American, given the opportunity to make double or double and a half time, would automatically take it, even if it is taxing, and can turn them into a workaholic that will disrupt their quality time with loved ones. certainly that is something that North Americans have problems with today.
my mom thinks I’m crazy for wanting to and planning to cloth diaper my future children. she says “its not healthy”. I say “why do you say that?” “because if it was people would still do it!” “no, disposable diapers are actually LESS healthy and people use them for convenience”. I had no idea people actually thought that until we had this discussion!
September 13th, 2009 at 11:04 am
I am really enjoying your blog, especially as we are expecting our first child in four months! Anyway, what do you think about your drying racks? Is there anything in particular you like to dry on them? Thanks!
September 13th, 2009 at 7:57 pm
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about whether it’s worth the time and effort to hang out the laundry. Here’s my blog post about it:
http://motherskitchen.blogspot.com/2009/03/hanging-out-wash-well-meaning-or.html
If you have fuel efficient gas dryer, it’s probably not worth the time to do it, outside of the intangible benefits, like being outside and smelling line dried clothes. That’s why I do it!
September 13th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
I agree, this is something we often take into consideration. We do use the dryer because we have terrible allergy issues, and the increased energy bills are less expensive than doctor bulls for our family;)
In our area, the shredded and block cheeses are the same price, and coupons have been available on the name brands recently (and our store doubles) so that makes them substantially cheaper than the generic brand. Last week I was able to get them for free when matched sale and coupons, so I used all the coupons I had and froze the excess. This same store runs the rotisserie chickens on sale for $3.99 one night per week, and I get them and shred the meat to use in recipes, and it makes 2 meals for our family. It pays to read the sales ads and watch for in store signs!
Finally, most of our neighbors use a family lawn company to cut their yard. We had an issue with a lock getting stuck on our gate and couldn’t get the lawn mower to the front yard to cut it. So, I called the number and got a free estimate. We have small yards (about 1/4 acre lots including house!) and they wanted $45 for just the FRONT yard! My neighbors pay this weekly. It just shocked me. Instead, I put down newspaper on the carpet and pushed the mower through the house to cut the yard. Where there is a will to save, there is a way, LOL;)
September 13th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
[...] what you are actually paying for ‘time-savers’? Here’s a great article about the cost of convenience. [...]
September 14th, 2009 at 12:06 am
Great post! I was directed here via Owlhaven.
Life can get hectic around here sometimes, and that’s when “conveniences” are nice. HOWEVER, when these conveniences become the “norm”, I do notice I become lazier, less attentive to the home environment, a little directionless and unmotivated… When I cook from scratch, wash diapers, sew, grow a garden, walk instead of drive etc., my days are filled with purpose and meaning. Being a SAHM is hard work, but very fulfilling.
September 14th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
I genuinely enjoy using my laundry line (during the warmish months here in Alberta), don’t mind mending, enjoy baking and cooking from scratch, using homemade cleaners, etc. But today, it took my daughter and I one and a half hours of peeling, coring, quartering the little apples from our trees to fill just one crockpot (for applesauce) and I’m thinking this is not worth my time!
September 14th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
[...] Owlhaven posted a link to a blog on “The Cost of Convenience.” I recommend reading it. If we could sit down for tea, there are a lot of things in the article we could talk about. [...]
September 14th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
I love my line dried clothes and diapers. I think that line drying helps disinfect the diapers even more, and they surely smell better.
On the canned vs. dry beans…I always used canned…I have wasted a lot of money trying all the ways I can to get dried beans to actually softe and it has never worked.
September 14th, 2009 at 2:29 pm
Xenia Katie makes a great point – when our very lives are busy, we tend to gravitate towards convenience items out of “necessity”. Part of frugality is spending our TIME wisely as well. Slowing down, staying home more, choosing less activities for our families all lend towards a frugal lifestyle. Y’can’t hang your laundry on the line if you’re always out and about…it’s just about the last thing you want to do, because the beauty in hanging laundry is at the bottom of the list of must-get-done-NOW!s.
September 16th, 2009 at 7:30 am
I’m not sure I’m ready to install a clothesline, but I love your post. What you did with the can on the drier and requiring a $1 makes me think I should put a can by each light switch in my house. My kids would need to put a quarter in when they turn a light on, and could take a quarter out when they turn it off (or I would get the quarter when I turn it off)… this idea has potential!
Steve
September 16th, 2009 at 5:47 pm
I have become crazed with hanging up laundry instead of using the dryer I throw things in the dryer for 3 minutes or so to steam out any wrinkles (our high-efficiency washer spins all the water out, but puts the wrinkles in), then hand them on a super-cool drying rack. (www.bestdryingrack.com) I don’t have an affiliation to them, but it’s so cool and gadgety- it folds up to nothing, and can be used inside or carried outside. (Tie it down in the wind, though: http://lloydandlauren.com/2009/03/31/a-small-fail/ )
September 17th, 2009 at 12:34 am
Steve, it did occur to me that the dollar for drying clothes idea could be put to use for other items, too. We live in the country and sometimes my driving-age Progeny take the van into town for trips I feel are unnecessary. So I asked for a gallon of gas every time they take the van to town.
One-errand trips magically ceased.-
Food left out that might spoil, or requests for convenience items that cost extra money.
Mrs. W, I am surprised beans don’t soften for you- do you live at a high altitude?
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