A laundry and dry cleaning service…

…or more specifically: a laundry and dry cleaning service right near my office.

I’ve now been homeless for two straight weeks and I think I’ve done a pretty bang-up job so far. From the most basic needs like shelter and nutrition to those closer to the “want” section like fitness and socializing; I’ve found economical and efficient means for addressing the majority of them. But until today, the one piece that was always missing was laundry. I was going through clothes like I had ants in my pants. And on that note, the other night I DID have ants in my pants.

During the past two weeks, I determined efficient ways of:

• Buying groceries in adequate quantity on a budget (while maintaining focus on good nutrition)
• Trading out clothes from my backpack with those in storage
• Incorporating an occasional catch-up with someone from outside my little bubble

…but there was always that sack of  laundry in a garbage bag under my desk. Until now. 

This discovery is big.

It’s HUGE.

The alternative options required a significant investment of time. And surprisingly, it’s not spending money that is my biggest constraint, it’s time. It’s funny, you’d think someone going homeless to save money would be willing to deal with quarters and a couple hours of time to save the buckage instead of having someone else do it for you at a premium, but I truly don’t have time for it. The opportunity cost of doing the laundry myself is just too high. In those two hours, I could’ve made close to $100 doing consulting work. When you work a full-time job and two consulting jobs on off hours and weekends, time becomes scarce fast.

I’ll have my first order of clean clothes in my hands tomorrow afternoon. I hope they’re still warm =)