Lynne Kiesling
Count me among the economists who enjoyed the Wall Street Journal’s funny article about how cheap we are. But I also get a lot of pleasure out of trimming the Christmas tree, so I’m not inclined to be so stringent in following comparative advantage that I want to hire someone to do so. I do, however, agree with Justin Wolfers that hiring someone to take it down is very, very appealing. Instead, though, the KP Spouse is bribing me with pizza to do so this evening.
Lynne,
My wife and I just had a similar discussion not about paying someone to take down the Christmas tree (which the family did collectively last night, with some mild amusement) but about paying someone to clean up and do the dishes after a dinner party. We decided that might be the best use of $50-100 for the entire year.
Agreed! A few times when having large parties we’ve sprung for hiring in someone to help in the kitchen and keep up with the mess as it arises, and it’s worth every single penny.