Uncle! (Or, Not Every Battle is Worth Fighting)

See that spikey thing sticking out of the receipts in the picture? That’s a spindle. (Of do not bend, fold, spindle or mutilate fame.) On Amazon it’s called a restaurant check spindle, but way back when, people used to use those things to keep receipts from getting lost on their desks.

And that’s exactly what I’m using mine for.

You see, I finally came to the conclusion that I am probably never going to input all of my receipts into Quicken every day. I’ve intended to do so for ages, but realistically what happens is that receipts cover my desk like snow and I get to them a couple of times a month.

Buying and using a spindle is going to accomplish three things for me:

  1. My desk will no longer be blanketed in receipts for the majority of the month
  2. I will no longer feel that “ugh, I really should input these receipts” feeling every day
  3. My energy will be freed up for things that matter a whole lot more

Because some goals are not worth having.

In a perfect world it might be nice if my receipts were always input (and in that world I would also have an assistant to do it perfectly for me). But in my CURRENT world, I have better things to do with my time. Like spending time with my family and getting enough sleep, for starters.

The world will not end because I’ve cried uncle and given up on a minor goal. Not every battle is worth fighting, especially one that has resulted in no ill effects so far. I don’t overdraw my account, and I’m not surprised by my bills.

So, here’s to my new spindle and to having better things to do!

10 comments

  • Miss Sassy Pants

    What a great idea!

  • This is a great idea!

    Receipts are why I do not track per purchase spending with cash and try to use my debit card for everything. I gave up on keeping receipts (except for large purchases and clothing). I just categorize most $20 ATM withdrawals as being “entertainment” in my budget. That way I am still keeping track of the money without dealing with receipt input.

    • The lack of receipts is why I avoid spending cash like the plague. Well, that and because when I do spend cash, it’s usually for something from a vending machine and that’s not good for yet another reason!

  • Yay for giving up time-wasting goals!

    I’m with Leslie, I input all of our purchases once or twice a month into my Excel budget, but we use our credit cards for everything we can so I can see our purchases there. If we do withdraw cash, I have a separate category on my budget just for “Cash” (it’s never more than $200 a month…usually $60-$80. :-)

    Hope your new system helps you out!

    • See, even though I pretty much use credit cards all of the time, I have to have the receipts to know exactly what I bought. Otherwise I sit there later and think, hm, now what did I buy at Target for $14.99?

  • That’s great that you came up with a solution that’d work.

  • I’m glad you found a solution that works for you and helps to keep things organized. It is good to prioritize your goals the way you did, because life is too short to miss out on important things like spending time with your family. The receipts will get inputed eventually, when the time is right for you.