Like a lot of web-monkey types who sit in front of their computers all day, I work from home at least several days a week. But I still make a bento lunch in the morning for myself whenever I can. Why bother? you might ask. There are lots of good reasons for it, but here are my top five.

1. It's a time saver. If I'm making a bento for someone else anyway, it takes almost no extra effort to make another one for myself. So it saves me the time and effort of scrounging up a lunch for myself later in the day.
2. It makes me a better bento maker. If you only make bento for your partner or kids, how do you know if the bento you packed is really good at lunchtime? If I make one for myself too, I can really see how things taste after some time at room temperature - I can find out if something that is good when it's just made turns blah, or if something really holds up well.
3. It helps me start the day off in the right frame of mind. It's easy to get rather sloppy and sidetracked if you are working at home, but making the bento lets my brain know that it's a working day, and it's time to get down to business.
4. It keeps me out of the kitchen! Instead of aimlessly wandering into the kitchen and scrounging around for something to eat, I have a neat little box of prepared food to eat at the proper time. You know the pose: bent over, peering around around the fridge, vaguely waving your bottom around ...it leads to mindless snacking. Not good if you're trying to watch your weight. (You can even make little snack bentos for yourself if aimless noshing is a major problem.)
5. It keeps me on track nutrionally. Instead of getting hungry at lunch and grabbing any old thing that fills up the belly, I have a pre-planned, nutritous meal just there ready to go. It's a lot tastier than stale crackers and cheese too.

Whether you're a telecommuter, own your own home business, a student cramming at home or a stay at home mom or dad, bentos make sense!