So, with this whole “let’s try and be more responsible with my money” thing, I decided to make another change. Since I moved to New York, I have not done my laundry (in the city) a single time. I mean, laundry has been done, but I’ve been taking it to the nice people right next door for wash and fold. Meaning they do it, not me. It’s not the most expensive thing in the world and I had told myself that, with as much as I make hourly, spending my time sitting in a laundromat was not cost effective. (I like to trick my brain into thinking that my justifications are very sound and logical, but the truth is, the time I would be doing laundry is not time I’m “missing” work…so my logic is crap.)

Which brings us to today and me sitting in a laundromat for a little under two hours doing my laundry. And all it took was one time for me to realize that I should really be doing my own laundry. First of all, it’s about half the cost of sending it out. Second of all, I can hang dry what needs to hang dry without paying an extra $2 per article (which, just so you know, I didn’t do…I would just wait to wash those things until I was in Utah or Arizona or Indiana…). Third, it’s some quality reading time. Fourth, my laundry smells good as opposed to smelling like the industrial laundry chemicals it is washed in I send it out. Fifth, I met some really nice people. And finally, because I was at the laundromat and there are places to conveniently fold my laundry, I actually folded it while I was there, so all I had to do was put it away when I got home.

One of my concerns was how crowded it would be and how long I’d have to wait for a machine, but apparently, my new workout regime is paying off in more ways than one since my new bedtime is usually before 10pm and I’m lucky if I can sleep past 7am, so no crowds. And my nice, new laundromat friend informed me that if I’m there early on Saturday, there’s never a wait. So, looks like that will be part of my new routine. And not only am I saving money by doing it myself, I think I’ll also be saving money by not having to replace certain things quite as often as I would given the wear and tear of industrial cleaning.

Look at me making fiscally responsible choices. And it only took me thirty some years to get here.