Bed. That is the “luxury” you should prioritise above anything else.
I’ve slept in all kinds of qualities of bed (and discussed it with others who have done the same.)
The quality of the bed you sleep in at night is a huge factor in the quality of the you that you are when you’re awake. The best sleep I’ve had on bad beds is still no better than the worst I’ve had on good ones and when you repeat that day after day, into week after week, into year after year, the cumulative effect on both your quality of life and physical health is immense. You should never make sleeping on a bad bed your long-term plan if you can possibly avoid it.
Every single day of your life is influenced by the quality of sleep you got before you started and therefore the quality and type of bed.
It is a huge gap in privilege between people who have lifestyles that make a good bed a standard expectation that is easily achieved and those who have to make do with what’s cheap. The former group will always just be healthier, happier, better rested and more prepared for the challenges in front of them than the other.
I’d recommend a good quality pocket-sprung mattress (you can’t really find cheap bad ones) over a sturdy wooden slatted frame although the modern foam mattresses are also very popular now and can be a good choice if you can’t easily realistically get a massive heavy inflexible mattress where it needs to go.
A bidet. Main con is having to use toilets not at home.
honestly only thing preventing me to buy bidet is that vision that after every other toilet visit will be disgusting.
long time ago I spent some time in japan and having integrated bidet in every toilet was amazing, but for me it is all or nothing, either want to live in the world of bidet or in the world of toilet paper, not in the middle.
Recurring house cleaning services.
I’d probably be divorced by now if we hadn’t made the investment. It doesn’t cost as much you think and whatever it costs the mental health and couples benefits of a clean home is worth the investment.
I’ve thought about this but always get turned off at the thought of strangers in my little messy 1 bedroom apartment.
Any tips for finding a good one or additional points to help me make the plunge?
They’ve likely seen a LOT worse. Just remember the difference between a maid and a cleaner. A maid clears up the mess, a cleaner cleans the place. If your getting a cleaner, you’ll need to make some effort to get the mess out of their way.
I’ve also found that’s a useful effect. If you’ve someone coming in to clean every week or two, then you have a deadline and motivation to do your tidying. I don’t want to pay a cleaner to waste time shuffling around my clutter.
The first time they come is really hard (so much shame), but it gets easier. I’m not going to pretend that I’m not sometimes up at 5am cleaning before the cleaner comes, though.
Just ask around and google. Word of mouth is your best bet for finding someone running a one person business, though you can look at any noticeboards in shops near you–my local coffee shop generally has someone with a flyer up. Yelp and Google will turn up worker-owned cooperatives, which makes me feel better about the ethics of paying someone to clean.
A nice keyboard, mouse and monitor. It’s the way you interact with your computer the most and yet many people seem content with bargain versions, even when they spend 8-10 hours a day using them.
Same for your computer chair. Get a comfy one, you’re gonna sit in it a lot.
getting an extra-long phone charging cable is such a silly purchase but it’s sooo useful. like i can’t live without one at this point. phone almost dead but the outlet is too far away? not anymore it’s not!
