But with a few helpful suggestions, you may be able to make it through the month with a minimal amount of effort, and a maximum return on your time investment.

The easy answer would seem to be in TV or microwave dinners, single serving meals that meet your nutritional needs at a minimal effort. However, the cost of these can be significant, and it may mean the difference between seeing that new sci-fi movie on opening night, or having to wait for it to show at the discount theatres. That is unless you have a zero-dollar entertainment budget, and only view DivX movies on your Pentium-2.

The key is cooking in bulk.

If you have the freezer resources (which we discussed in my article on refrigerator management), you can store these foods for immediate retrieval and reheating at a later date. If not, you can always invite friends over--single or otherwise engaged--and offer them a meal. This can be risky, because you will be left with additional dishes to manage (see my article on dishwashing management). The potential return on dinner guests is that they will offer you a meal or two in return--a substantial return for your culinary investment. Couples will often offer you pity meals (which I talked about in my article on "pity meals"), but be careful, you will often be left "out of the loop", not being attached and therefore seldom invited to "get togethers". But, this also has its advantages, which I will go into detail in a future article.

Your parents are always a good resource. A Sunday dinner will usually yield leftovers for you, and although there may be some obligation to wash the containers, this may be substantiated. If you plan properly, you may also bring over your laundry (see my article on laundry management). But be warned, the downside of family dinners is the substantial investment in your time devoted to keeping them abreast of your bachelor status. You may wish to have your vcr record your favourite programs for that entire evening.

Fast food also comes to mind as a convenient alternative to cooking. Be sure to shop around to find out what restaurants are offering what specials during the week. If you prepare a schedule, you may be able to earn some savings. Be careful to avoid getting into the drive-thru loop. You may end up spending too much for the convenience. We are on a budget remember.

Otherwise, keep your cupboards stocked with foods that will provide maximum nutrition at minimal effort, at a reduced cost. Macaroni and cheese, waffles, cereal, toast, and granola bars will often give you enough to survive on. Pancakes are always a great suggestion for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. But be sure to get the pancake mix that doesn't require milk, unless you drink a lot of it. That stuff tends to expire faster than your transit pass.