Shopping Till I'm Dropping

Costco: temptation averted

Buying in bulk to get the lowest price--like finishing everything on the plate--is a compulsive behavior that I'm trying to control.

Needing only six AA batteries, I nevertheless was tempted by the Costco display in Hawaii Kai; the pack of 40 Duracell AA's was on sale for $13.99, 35 cents per unit.

There was no foreseeable requirement for buying extra for my own use in Hawaii; my local relatives are also hoarders prudent shoppers and had plenty of their own, and I wasn't going to carry nearly three dozen batteries onto the plane, possibly slowing the TSA process.

Safeway: nope.

Safeway was selling them at 4 for $7.49, or $1.88 per. I would have to buy eight for $14.98, just to get six. Nope, I would rather buy the Costco 40-pack and leave 34 on the sidewalk for someone else to use.

CVS' promotion had the Duracell AA's on "sale" at 8 for $7.99. $1 per battery was much improved but still wasteful since I'd have two extraneous units.

I finally settled on the CVS store-branded six-pack for $5.49.

Paying 92 cents each was 2.6x the Costco price but was the optimal decision.

After all this running around, there's a philosophical point that I've been pondering for quite a while.

My investment portfolio has reached the point where I can gain or lose thousands of dollars each day.

Is it worth spending an hour agonizing over $14 vs $8 vs $6, especially since the sands of time are running low? We know that we should change our behavior to adapt to changing circumstances, but it's much easier said than done.