You're worth it!

Why it is worth investing in the small luxuries of life

 Luxury is such a loaded word, isn’t it? To some it evokes images of lavish suites in exclusive hotels; to others it means expensive ingredients served up in eight-course meals in three-star restaurants. To some it means designer bags and jewellery; to others it is exemplified in private-plane travel. 

 

Everyone has a different definition of luxury. For me, the greatest luxury in the world is that of time – that is, time to oneself, that you can spend on self-care without feeling guilty about not fulfilling one responsibility or the other. But, of course, there are a thousand other luxuries as well that go towards making life worth living. The test, of course, is which one of these could I absolutely not live without.

 

I spent some time thinking about this and came to the conclusion that it’s not the big stuff that I would sweat; it would be the small, even negligible, things that I simply could not bear to give up. Here are just some of them, in no particular order of importance.

 

·       My morning cuppa. This has to be perfect if my day is to start off on the right foot. And the only way it does is with my particular blend of Fresh Brew capsules (made from Indian coffee beans). The moment that beautiful aroma fills the kitchen, all feels right with the world. I am now so addicted to this that I even travel with a sleeve of capsules so that I never have to go without that particular caffeine buzz.

·       Rice, rice, baby! Ever since my diabetes diagnosis, I don’t eat rice very often – and then, only in small quantities. But there is no compromise on the rice in question. It has to be Kamini rice (very close to Gobindobhog rice – but even better!) that I buy in bulk whenever I visit Kolkata. In my view, this is the king of rice and works well with almost any style of cooking and cuisine. Or you could just add a pinch of salt, slather with ghee and enjoy on its own.

·       Fresh flowers. I don’t have a garden and my balcony is too small to grow too many, so the way I cope is by making a weekly visit to the neighbourhood flower shop to buy the blooms that are in season. My favourite is the nargis, but that has a tragically short season, so I often have to make do with tuberose, roses or lilies instead. But so long as they are colourful and plentiful and all around me, I am happy. 

·       News and entertainment. As a news junkie, I probably spend way more than I should subscribing (online) to foreign newspapers and magazines. Add to that the subscription costs to all kinds of OTT platforms and the bills sort of add up. But no matter how much all this amounts to, I can’t bear the thought of giving even one of my subscriptions up. I guess this is my version of FOMO!

·       Vanity. I don’t really care too much about make-up, but skincare is an entirely different matter. My husband is always shocked by how much I am prepared to pay for a night cream. And no matter what, I have to get my hair coloured professionally. As the adage goes, I am worth it!

 

Unkindest cut

Now that it’s time to tighten our belts a little, which luxuries are you willing to give up?

It’s that time of the year again. When the office grapevine begins to buzz with how the raise scenario will play itself out this year. If you are one of God’s chosen creatures, you will probably end up scoring a decent raise. But if you’re not – and given the state of the economy, I’m guessing this is far more likely – you will be fobbed off by a token increase that is risible given the rate of inflation.

And if the Fates truly have it in for you, then you will be sent a sad little form letter from the HR department telling you this is the time for all good men and women to come to the aid of the company by sacrificing their salary hikes at the altar of corporate profitability.

In that case, like millions of other hapless souls, you will be forced to live on a wage that buys much less than it did and doesn’t, in fact, go very far. And that means those dreaded words that strike terror in every middle-class heart: budget cuts.

Cuts. How cruel it sounds! Cuts: as in something that hurts, causes you pain, injures you and leaves you less than whole. But however traumatic we find it, cuts are something that all of us will have to make as our salaries fail to keep up with our expenses. And the first thing to go will be the little luxuries that make life a bit more fun.

But when it comes right down to it, what luxuries would you be willing to forgo? And which of them would you find impossible to live without? In other words, which of your luxuries do you need rather than just want? Which of them are just luxuries; and which of them have become that dangerous thing called Luxecessities – luxuries that have turned into necessities as you try to cope with your daily grind.

Speaking for myself, there are some things that I simply refuse to forgo, no matter how frivolous they may seem to the rest of the world. And on top of that list is hair-styling: highlighting, trimming, conditioning, blow-drying. The rituals just add up every year – as indeed, does the expense. But I don’t grudge a rupee that I drop at my friendly neighbourhood hair salon because it is simply the best pick-me-up in the world. Fine, go ahead and judge me (as I am sure you are!) but I consider the money spent here the best investment ever. It makes me feel good about myself, and there’s no substitute for that in an increasingly gloomy world.

To make up for this profligate spending I have given up on my coffee habit – well, after a fashion anyway. I no longer drop by Barista for an early morning cappuccino or two; I don’t send out for a couple of double espresso shots in the late afternoon; I don’t buy a tall glass of creamy cold coffee when I’m feeling a bit peckish. Instead, I’ve invested in a coffee-maker which is considerably less complicated to operate than it looks and spews forth coffee that would do any Italian restaurant proud. It makes espresso, it serves Americanos and froths up a mean cappuccino. (Word to the wise: use south Indian roasted beans; they’re a fraction of the price of Illy and Co and just as good.)

Another luxecessity I find hard to give up is book-buying. There is something so supremely addictive about the high that I get from browsing through book-shops that I find it hard to go cold turkey. I love the smell of freshly-bound books, the clutter on the shelves, the colourful covers, the juxtaposition of the sublime with the ridiculous. I love the inevitable dithering between two equalling compelling volumes and then heading home, warm with the anticipation of spending the evening curled up with my latest purchase.

To fund this addiction, I’ve given up on magazines. I’ve always been a bit of a mag hag, devouring everything from shaming gossip rags to elevated publications that lecture me about the state of the world. But of late, I’ve begun to feel that the expense is simply not worth it. There’s nothing here that I can’t get for free on the Internet. And if there’s some really compelling content then it’s easier and cheaper to download the app on my Ipad anyway.

Don’t ask me if any of my cuts have made the slightest difference to my household budget. I haven’t the foggiest. But just the thought that I’m trying to cut down on frivolous expenses does make me a little better.

If you’re looking to make a few economies of your own, here are some ideas.

• Cut down on eating out; restaurant bills have a way of piling up. And if you’re paying by credit card you may not even notice until it’s too late. Instead, tap into your inner Domestic Goddess (or whatever the male equivalent is) and turn cooking into a fun, family activity.
• Rid yourself of the multiplex habit. The expensive tickets, the popcorn and soda combo offers begin to add up after a while. Discover the joys of ordering movies on Showcase or the delights of DVD box sets.
• Forget about exploring exotic, foreign locales on your vacations. Revive those old-style home-stays you enjoyed as a child when you spent holidays in the houses of family and friends. Who knows, you may just end up gaining much more than the money saved.