JB and I were watching some awful show called “Million Dollar Yachts” the other day, which featured, as you might guess, obscenely expensive yachts. One ship included copious amounts of the world’s most rare blue granite, another had custom-carved whalebone accessories, and one owner had built some crazy custom golf course thing that allowed him to send ball after ball flying into the ocean in an attempt to hit various targets, while his crew stood by in a separate giant boat in order to determine each player’s score.

Can you even imagine being that rich? I was all hung up on the golf balls, like wait a minute, isn’t that kind of environmentally fucked? Aren’t golf balls the ones that have a center filled with radioactive space dust, or something? Or at the very least isn’t it possible a marine animal could choke on one? Come ON, wasteful millionaire guy, think of the ball-gagging dolphins!

Every now and then when the Powerball gets up to some ridiculous, unlikely number like $184,032,682,931,085.14 JB and I buy a ticket and launch into a pleasant, meandering, days-long conversation about what we’d do with all that money. It’s basically the polar opposite of those grim Well We Still Can’t Reduce Our 15-Year Refi Loan Like We Had Planned Because the Seattle Housing Market Took a Big Steaming Poo and Thus Our Mortgage is Like Getting Reamed With a Giant Pointy Stick Each Month discussions which result in us combing through our budget yet again and wondering if there’s anything we can skim off the top, like maybe those expensive-ass children.

What would you do with a giant mega-mountain of cash? I mean, you know, aside from donations, helping out family/friends, savings, school tuitions, college funds, and all that responsible stuff. Here’s the big things from my list:

• Quit my job, pronto. Sorry, job. I like you, and I love my coworkers, but your commute sucks and let’s be honest, if I didn’t need the paycheck we probably wouldn’t have a whole lot to talk about.

• Build a generously-sized but not mansion-huge house in Oregon, with two-story log cabin-style front windows overlooking something beautiful.

• Have vacation property in Bend, and a beachouse somewhere tropical.

• Buy a super comfy motorhome, so our family could spend weeks at a time traveling around the US

• Hire an awesome trainer to kick my ass 4-5 days a week.

• Start a business.

• Find the perfect babysitter for a weekly date night and pay to keep her on permanent retainer.

What about you?

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Ashley
14 years ago

FUN!
Pay anything off that is lingering.
Help out any friends struggling.
By a Hasselblad.
Go to culinary school.
Get Pete set up with his own shop.
MAYBE pay the kids college tuition.
Travel, travel, and travel.
Travel.

Sarah
14 years ago

1. Pay off my house.
2. Flatten my house and have a larger one built on the same property made to fit me and my family.
3. Pay off my parents house so they wouldn’t have to worry about a mortgage and my dad’s medical bills.
4. Put money away for my dad’s eventual medical care needs (Parkinson’s)
5. Take a long family vacation.
6. Get all the camera and crafting supplies I have always wanted (which would go in my OWN PERSONAL office designed for my photogrpahy and crafts in that new house mentioned above)

But only half of those are selfish…:D

Oh, and maybe I’d add on that personal trainer thing you mentioned…I could use someone to kick my ass into shape.

Melissa
14 years ago

Donate heavily to my home town HS fine arts program with the stipulation that if a single red scent winds up in any of the athletic programs, they have to pay me back immediately with interest.

Kathy
14 years ago

Oh I love this game! Hubby and I play every so often, it’s always interesting!

1. Lift/tuck/lipo (Lazy? Why, yes.)

2. Totally stealing the trainer idea!

3. Purchase land and build a new facililty for our local Montessori school. (I’m not a Montessori mom, but their school shares the building with my kids’ elementary school and the sharing is getting a bit complicated. Also, the parking lot is A ZOO. Nobody likes. Plus, neither school can expand while they’re sharing the facility.)

4. Fix up my ’97 Ford Explorer, because I really, really like it. But I’d make it a hybrid. And paint it pink.

4. Build dorms at my local college. Because it’s 2009 and they don’t have any.

5. Get my RM Certificaiton. And then…

6. Start my very own records management company. Because my community desperately needs it–most of the businesses around here are stuck in the 80’s records-management-wise and that’s SO, SO, SO dangerous. I’d do educational seminars, customized DIY records program how-to-guides, and actual, hands-on assistance.

7. Buy hubby a boat, because it would make him happy.

8. Help out family/friends with mortgages/college/pay off debt/etc.

9. I thought really hard about setting up college funds for my kids and I think I would do that, but I would set it up so that they couldn’t access the money until they’d completed their AA degrees (or trade-equivalent, an apprenticeship?) and proved that they were serious about that particular career path and also proved that they were getting good grades.

Violet
Violet
14 years ago

1. Beautiful, but not ostentatious, house at Newport Beach. My husband loves it there, and that would make him extremely happy.

2. Another house somewhere else, too (I’m not sure Newport Beach is a good place to raise kids!) And I would have or build condos or guest houses close by for my mother and mother-in-law to live in, or stay in while visiting. That way they could see the kids without making me crazy.

3. New cars. Not Ferraris or anything, but nice cars that we love. I would love a convertible BMW…mmmm…

4. Quit my job and stay home with the kids. I hate my job!

5. Maid service!!!

6. Boob job/tummy tuck (what? 2 kids does a number on you), and a personal trainer.

7. Pay off the houses/debts of people I like.

8. Go to Donors Choose and pay for everything. I love that site; the things people ask for touch my heart: chairs for their classroom, balls for the youth center. I would love to help them out with all the many small things so many people need.

alomellin
alomellin
14 years ago

My list looks a lot like you.

1.) QUIT MY JOB. I hate it. I would probably get a part time job somewhere cool like a winery or volunteer a couple days a week. (I am NOT cut out to be a full time stay at home mom, and my kid LOVES daycare.)

2.) Build a home we would stay in forever. A great basement for my kids, etc.

3.) I would feel more comfortable having more children. Right now, I doubt we’ll go beyond 2.

4.) A nice lake house somewhere.

5.) I’d buy my kid some really great toys that he will most likely never get otherwise.

6.)I think I would find some family like my own and pay off their ridiculous student loans.

Anonymous
Anonymous
14 years ago

Buy up as much wild land (forests and wetlands and animal habitant)as I can get and I would give it back to the creatures that live there. I would hire the best lawyer I can find to figure out a way to guarantee the land will NEVER fall in the hands of developers.

Jenn
Jenn
14 years ago

1. finish seminary.

2. buy a motorhome, pack up dog, cats, friends, go on a tour of the US. See everything we want, come home when we are done.

3. Buy my dad the 2-seater Benz he has always wanted and get Mom to figure out if there’s anything she wants–it would probably be funding for some of the volunteer work she does.

4. Buy myself an Escape hybrid or some other similar small “truck.”

5. Buy a house in my Rogers Park neighborhood in Chicago. Make it big enough that I can set up the little “wouldn’t it be great if we all had rooms in the same house” dream I have with some friends. Build a kick ass garden and back yard space with plenty of hang out areas and flowers.

6. Pay for Sprout and Sprout 2 to finish college. Set up a trust for my teenage god-daughter.

7. Buy a kick ass mac computer to replace my PB G4.

8. Personal trainer/personal chef.

i could go on and on with this game.

Anne
Anne
14 years ago

Oh, I’m sorry, is there some sort of discussion going here? Because I can’t shake the image of a dolphin in a ball gag. Oh, you crazy S & M dolphins with your freaky blow holes. Heh. BLOW HOLE.

Erin
14 years ago

Oh I love this game.

1) Do all of the remodeling projects we’re spacing out on the house we’re buying. We really like the house we’re closing on this month, and I don’t think we’d choose a different location.

2) Quit. My. Job. I love what I do, and I’m lucky to have a job, but after 15 years of doing this, I’ve come to the conclusion that I really rather be doing something else altogether.

3) Which brings me to #3. I would go back to school to study nutrition and psychology and specialize in helping women build a healthier relationship with food.

Wow. That’s the first time I’ve actually wrote that out and articulated that. Maybe I shouldn’t wait till I get money and go for it anyway.

Michelle
Michelle
14 years ago

Okay, I’m with Anne. The Dolphin in a ball gag had me cracking up! I have such a dirty
mind.

Once we did all the responsible things, helping family, etc. I would like to travel
the world. I’ve only been out of the US once
and that was just to Mexico. My husband
dreams of a huge RV and traveling all over
the US, stopping at anything that catches
our fancy.

I would like to go back to school and finish
the art degree I started 25 years ago. I might not ever use it, but I’d like have it.

We have this same conversation every time the
lottery gets huge.

Erica
14 years ago

There would definitely be a house with some land, but there would also be scads of people to look after the things I find too difficult, tedious, or unpleasant to do myself. They’d include: a landscaper, an interior designer, a house cleaning service, a personal shopper/stylist, a great financial advisor, a personal trainer, a nutritionist… Oh, the people I’d employ!

Joy
Joy
14 years ago

Finally fix all the things we need done on our 100 year old house. We might just want to stay there even though we can afford something bigger.

Buy myself a new pair of sweats. My old ones are getting ratty.

Hire someone to clean my house. Weekly. And make dinner every night.

Give some to charities I always wanted to donate money to, but never had the extra cash.

Send my friend who has cancer and no health insurance a big, fat check.

jen
jen
14 years ago

The best part about a windfall like this would be that neither my hubby or I would ever have to work again. No more Army, no more shitty office job! We could build our dream house in Oregon or Washington (or both…) and have a hobby farm and an art studio, and maybe have our own business too – environmental consulting, and/or a gift shop & art gallery in Port Townsend or Cannon Beach. But mostly, I’d love to just have the time to do all the little things I daydream about while I sit in this damn cubicle.

duchessbelle
14 years ago

Figure out the necessary steps to imitate Lorelai Gilmore’s setup. Job that allows me to wear fun, slightly business-y clothes but I don’t actually seem to do anything except chat in the kitchen with my on staff gourmet chef and leave for long stretches of time to go to a restaurant every day and have a sprawling house in a lovely hamlet. Oh yes, and because Stars Hollow doesn’t actually exist (sadness!), whatever tiny, ridiculously expensive New England town I end up in, I’ll just sponsor all the fun events. Starlight Festival, anyone?

mstiegirl
mstiegirl
14 years ago

I love thinking about this.

I’d do the boring stuff like pay of my debt, my immediate family’s debt, the debt of my close friends so they can do what they want instead of worrying about insane student loans, set up trusts, investments, etc.

THEN. The fun stuff. I’d set up 2 charity foundations, one in the US and one in some developing country. The US charity would maybe help young girls from low to mid income families with college expenses… or maybe music education? Not sure. Overseas I’d like to help developing countries become industrialized in a green and socially responsible way. I’d spend my time working with the charities. I’d also give money to political groups in the US so stuff can actually get done. *coughhealthcarecough*

For myself I’d hire a personal trainer, chef, HOUSEKEEPER (I despise cleaning), gardener (love plants but I kill them). After getting into kickass shape I’d get a bit of cosmetic surgery done (tucks, lifts). I’d travel A LOT – all over the world. I’d buy a home locally and also a vacation home someplace tropical.

And in my house I want the largest closet known to man.

Becky
Becky
14 years ago

OMG I love this game! Ok after all the responsible crap like pay off debts and set up college funds for kids/nieces and nephews
1.Quit my job and tell hubby to quit his
2.Vacation home on a lake
3.Sell this house and get one with a bigger and nicer yard..although in the same area..I love where we live
4.Knit…like tons…and never worry about the cost of the super nice and pretty yarn
5.Culinary School…I am a good cook on my own..but think it would be neat to do culinary school..unless I got there and hated it..then I would drop out
6.Cleaning staff
7.Personal trainer
8.I’d take a ton of time to travel and get to know our friends to the North. Canada seems like such a lovely country.
9.I’d get season tickets for Hockey and Football…along with the transportation to said games as we live half a country away from our “hometown” team.
10.I’d get a new car. My lovely purple ’98 Prizm is reliable..but nothing to look at!

Man that was fun!

Colleen
Colleen
14 years ago

I love daydreams about winning the lottery! My husband is not a daydream type of guy, so I usually do it on the walk from work to the subway.

After all the responsible stuff, I am totally with you on quitting the job. Nice co-workers, decent salary, not a pressure job at all, but the hour-plus commute on the crowded NYC subways sucks (other than the uninterrupted reading time), and honestly, I’d rather be learning or doing things for fun or the benefit of me and my family than working.

So, after quitting the job, I’d buy a nice two-bedroom apartment in Manhattan, near Central Park, and then a house in the mountains of Colorado (home to me, and I miss it). Hubby might push for a beach house somewhere, or we’d simply rent something whenever we got the urge.

After that – travel. I want my son to experience as much of the world as I’ve been able to, and there are so many places I still want to see.

Enjoy the daydreams!

aimee @ smiling mama
14 years ago

I LOVE this game! We’d definitely take our extended families on a long vacation–maybe take over an island or something. I think one of the hardest things about winning so much money would be feeling like there were so many deserving people and causes to give it to. But, it sure would be fun!

Andrea
14 years ago

Quit sucky ass, soul killing job, but not before telling bitch of a coworker who LIED about me to everyone in my department including my bosses to eat a radioactive golf ball and here, let me help cram it down your throat. Ahem.

Build new house, not huge, but comfortable, so I could have a sitting area in my master bedroom for reading and still have enough room to walk around between my bed (which will be king sized, of course) and the bathroom. Have his and hers walk in closets. I’d have an office with state of the art computers for photography.

I’d finally work on becoming a writer with publication aspirations.

I’d make sure my piece of land was big enough for a big ass garden so I could grow a lot of my own food. And having quit my job, I’d have time to cultivate it.

We just bought a new camper, so I don’t think I’d change that, but if something happened to it, I’d definitely upgrade to a motorhome.

I’d put my kids in private school.

I’d find a charity to glom onto. Maybe two. Something to do with underprivileged kids.

I’d buy a place in Hawaii. And a large two story cabin in Colorado with an incredible view.

Maybe I’d open a knitting shop, selling yarn and patterns.

But honestly, I think I’d find a way to do the things that make me happy, things like learn to paint, writing, gardening, doing stuff with my kids, knitting. All the things having a sucky ass job takes me away from. I don’t need to be surrounded by expensive things (though a couple things like that would be nice). I just want to be comfortable. And not have to clean, so I’d have a live in maid. And personal chef.

Andrea
14 years ago

Oh no, I don’t need things. Just a maid, and a chef, and a couple houses. God, could I be more hypocritical?

Penny
14 years ago

This is a very common fantasy I employ while I’m running. It gets my mind off of how much time I have left, and for some reason jazzes me.

I, too, would start a business! Among other things.

Tony
14 years ago

@Jessamyn

You have me frothing at the mouth. All the “L” lens money can buy. I’m struggling on which 50mm lens to buy, the $350 Canon 1.4 or the $475 Sigma 1.4, but man that $1500 1.2L really looks nice.

Upgrade the 50D to a 5D Mk2. Buy every accessory known to man, even those completely unneccesary ones like the $700 wireless file transmitter for those who are too lazy to hook the camera up to a USB cord for 2 minutes.

And screw renting a studio, just build one in the backyard.

Anne
14 years ago

Ooooh, I love this fantasy!

I would also quit working full time, but would probably work about 15 hours a week pro bono offering my services to a women’s shelter or something similar (I’m a psychologist).

I would get at least two full-body massages a week.

I would move into a slightly bigger, slightly nicer house.

I would spend even more of my discretionary time gardening, and would design a really gorgeous outdoor space.

I would take banjo lessons and Spanish lessons.

I would travel a lot to places on my wish list, like Ireland, Spain, Italy, the Galapagos Islands, Thailand, and, ummmmm Vancouver?

I would also buy an oceanfront house in Oregon–my favorite place in the world!

Delicious fantasy! :-)

Maria
14 years ago

Is anyone here a marine biologist???

Common, I can’t believe even my husband (Tony) didn’t go there.

-I would support Tony buying all those camera accessories he so dreams of, and build his studio.
-yes quit my job
-maybe even help my husband start his own photography business
-concentrate more on writing
-Pay off the house, because I actually love where we live.
-RENOVATE the house. Bye-bye ugly 1970’s kitchen!!!
-Buy property on Cape Cod
-Buy property in Myrtle Beach abutting a golf course and fully equipped with his and her golf carts in the driveway.
-Hire a full time cook
-Hire a full time maid service, and therefore never wash a toilet a fold a load of laundry again.

Ah, Capitalism, how I do adore thee.

Tony
14 years ago

The sea was angry that day my friends….like an old man sending back soup at a deli.

amy
amy
14 years ago

Call us crazy, but 10% to charity.

Pay off our student loans. And the house.

Stay where we are- we love our town- but gut the house and do every single amazing renovation we want.

Travel! I mean, we can’t LIVE in the house while it’s being redone, right?

Sock away immediately for all the kids college.

The hubs would be able to quit his evil, soul-sucking job and go back to school just for the hell of it. I’d be able to hire a cleaning service and a part time nanny so I wouldn’t have to drag the kids around to work with me. (I already get to do what I love- I know, lucky me.)

And that’s really it. I would just like the opportunity to live debt free and have time with the hubs.

Oh wait.. trade in our current Rutgers season tickets to the luxury box seats. Hell YES, go RU!!

K
K
14 years ago

I’d change my phone number and then buy an existing home in Carmel, CA. I don’t think I’d build new b/c the environment needs that as much as it needs, well, golf balls in the ocean.

Mandy
Mandy
14 years ago

1. Get out of New England faster than a toddler throws a tantrum when Spongebob is over.
2. Season tickets to a baseball team that plays somewhere WARM
3. Houses all over the place, for me and immediate family
4.Oh yes, personal chef, trainer, child care
5.Shiny jewelry and cars
6. Philanthropy to education and animal welfare

Jamie
Jamie
14 years ago

I think about this question a little more often than I should probably admit to…

1. Quit my job. Instead, start up a massive, nationwide personal enrichment/sponsored apprenticeship program for floundering 20-somethings who would have no specific career direction, but would desperately like some. (what? I’ve been there, and it sucks.)

2. Spend every summer volunteering at “Hole in The Wall” Camps throughout the country.

3. Buy an enormous house in Cape Cod, or in the Hamptons, and throw the trashiest, most midwestern parties I can create. Real Housewives most definitely NOT invited. NASCAR and 40’s, anyone?

4. Take a world MotoGP tour to see all the races in a season – would make my BF’s life.

5. Buy that tri-gold pave ring set I’ve been eye’ing at the Van Cleef & Arpels on Michigan Ave.

6. Put away millions for each of my family members, so they can live comfortably off of the interest.

7. Personal chef, housekeeper, accountant, lawyer. All on retainer. All mine. All the time.

8. Make friends with Kimora Lee Simmons

9. Buy real estate in Eastern Crete, the islands off of Vancouver/Washington, London, Florence, and a kick-ass home base here in Chicago. Of course.

Stacy
14 years ago

My office does a $5 buy in whenever the Powerball gets REALLY high. That being said, to make myself feel better about not contributing, I googled the odds of actually winning (found here: http://www.durangobill.com/PowerballOdds.html)
I wish I could afford to even DREAM about winning….

Amity
Amity
14 years ago

“think of the ball-gagging dolphins!”

Me thinks this is giving me a much different mental image than what you intended.

And, I would be non-stop traveling with my lotto winnings the second the check hit my hot little hand.

KB
KB
14 years ago

We might not tell anyone about our windfall and leave them wondering when they get the note from the bank that says their mortgage is paid in full. Of course we’d have to hire someone with hacking abilities to find out loan info; that would cost some.

We would continue to work and we would pay our babysitter what she’s worth.

We would buy the house here (CO) that we’ve been lusting after and also a summer home in Alaska (Anchorage area) with lots of windows.

Mrs Soup
14 years ago

Mr. Soup and I play this game too, although we never buy lottery tickets, so I doubt we’ll ever win.

First off, pay off all of our debt and both of our parent’s debt.

We would then buy a huge chunk of property and build a house. This house would be specially built for our tallness (I’m 6′, he’s 6’4). We would also buy a house on the same property for both my parent’s and his mom if they wanted it.

Horses! We’ve always wanted horses….some day.

We would also proceed to take a month long trip to the British Isles, bringing my parent’s and his mom along.

Spiff up our computers and I would get the full camera gear workup. We would then proceed to work on building our own business.

Accidental Olympian
14 years ago

Pretty sure my boyfriend and I do this every single week. We actually already have a plan. If we won we first call everyone we know to tell them how lucky and cool we suddenly became. Then we call our jobs and QUIT. Immediately. Even if we found out we won at 3am on a Friday night. This is me not afraid to leave a message. Bye bye jobs!

Then we pack, call the little Olympia airport near our house and book a private jet. No matter what time it is. It will be taking us and our dog, (because when you are a millionaire you don’t have to make your poor dog ride in the belly of the plane in a crate) somewhere tropical.

On our flight, and subsequent three week vacation we’ll iron out the remaining details such as pay off debt, pay off the house, buy vacation property, get motor home, pay off parents homes, get new cars, etc.

Maybe this weekend will be the one…

Lawyerish
14 years ago

Obviously, both of us would quit our jobs. Immediately.

We’d buy a massive apartment on Central Park West.

Also buy a home elsewhere — I’m torn between a villa at the Four Seasons on the Big Island of Hawaii or a summer home on Nantucket. Oh, wait. Lottery win — both!

Write a book.

Get a share in a private plane so we wouldn’t have to fly commercially AT ALL, EVER EVER EVER.

Hire Paula Radcliffe or someone of her ilk to be my personal running coach.

Travel, travel, TRAVEL.

Start a foundation/non-profit focusing on Vietnam to improve prenatal, maternal and early childhood care, to involve women in economic development, to fund medical grants and educational scholarships for impoverished families and to enhance conditions in schools and orphanages.

Open a combination bakery and children’s book store that would sell Danish treats that my grandmother used to make and would have lots of fun, bright play areas and quiet reading nooks.

Lawyerish
14 years ago

Oh, yes, and buy an apartment in our same building for my parents and any visiting family to stay in whenever and for as long as they please.

Redbecca
Redbecca
14 years ago

Quit current jobs (although hubby might want to stay in his?) and do something we enjoy for a change, regardless of income.
Pay off all the debts for everyone – student loans, car loans, mortgages, etc., in the family (his and mine).
New cars.
Totally expand/remodel and WINTERIZE the beach house in Maine and live there during the “warm months”.
Buy a house along the Big Sur coastline and live there the rest of the year.
Annual retreats to someplace warmer than Big Sur coastline and Maine.
Sock away/Invest the rest for kids college, retirements/nest eggs because you know thats how much it will cost down the road.

How is that for starters?

ErinM
14 years ago

Did you know they have eco-friendly golf balls for those millionaires? They dissolve in the water within 48 hrs. Saw it on a millionaire show once.

I would:
Quit our jobs and start our own business
Hire cleaning lady
Buy home in mountains and on water somewhere
Travel my ass off!
Donate BIG to cancer research
Buy motorhome, boat, new cars/trucks
The possibilities are infinite!

Devon
Devon
14 years ago

I love these conversations. You learn so much about what people really value. Time to spend with your short peeps. A place to keep everyone safe and warm.

I would buy a house big enough for my 2 kids, an almost-step kid, and perhaps a cat. An SPCA cat. I would keep my house clean, because I wouldn’t work anymore. I would travel with my hunny and see things I haven’t had the chance to. I would set my kids up with lessons in anything they wanted. I would let Libby audition for commercials, because I would have the time to drive her there, and the crap-load of money it takes to start.

I wouldn’t buy anything big. But I would make our lives big.

Veronica
Veronica
14 years ago

i’d fuck with Walmart… buy them out and then shut down all their evil stores. Although they are cheap (we all love cheap), I still think they’re evil with all their child labor and shit.

Then I’d hire Batman to go after all the slimebags that are inhumane to animals – and I’d ask Batman to torture them for a while – let them taste their own medicine.

After that I’d seek assistance from the mob to go after all pedophiles – and do with them what they will. “no mercy,” karate kids.

I think that about does it. I’d then sip on a margarita and marvel at all my good deeds.

Alyson
Alyson
14 years ago

Yipee!

Okay, so, I would:

Pay off my friend Mary’s house so she could go kayak or whatever most of the time but I’d still have a place to stay close to Jazzfest.

Pay for my friend Megan’s wedding and get a kick ass band!

Husband quits job, duh.

Houses in Hawaii and New Orleans

Super cruise for friends and family aboard a Clipper Ship in the Caribbean.

I’m sure I’d donate a TON to worthy causes and or start my own, but I need to research more on that – will have the time once I win

Get a PONY! And a Kelly bag. Husband gets some sort of ridiculous car.

Oh, big piece of land somewhere with like 8 dogs and room for the pony.

Set my parents up in their retirement – send them to both Alaska and Hawaii.

Buy up a bunch of land and not develop it.

Michelle
Michelle
14 years ago

pay off all my debts.

buy myself a lovely home – not too big, but just right, in the dc suburbs.

buy my parents a house to retire in, in the in a place of their choosing.

buy my sister a car and pay for her to finish school.

buy myself and my husband a new car.

buy a beach house in outer banks, nc.

put $ aside for my children’s education.

put aside $ for retirement.

quit my job.

have another kid.

hire a nanny.

hire a trainer.

GO SHOPPING.

travel.

Rachel
Rachel
14 years ago

Tell my bosses to suck a bag of dicks. Make that two bags of dicks. Flip them the bird.

Pay off everything.

Fix the legacy of the DIYer that used to own this house (electrical in the shower WTF!).

Have all the crap adobe dirt removed from my front and back yards down to 8 feet. Replace with sandy loam. Landscape.

Travel through Great Britain.

Set up a family foundation to create no-intrest loans for relatives to go to college, keep track of the family tree and create a photo and document archive.

Have family reunion and invite all 1800+ members of my very extended family. Charter planes to bring the ones from Great Britain and Australia.

Finish AS degree (after only 14 years). Get masters at UCSF. Not work two jobs while I’m at it.

Buy land. As much as I can in as many places as I can. Conserve what is conservable. Wait for developers to buy me out on the rest. Only sell to developers who are building attractive things.

Buy giant empty lot 10 blocks from my house. Turn into community garden.

Tell my bosses to suck a bag of dicks…from Barbados.

Deb
Deb
14 years ago

“ball-gagging dolphins”

HAH!!!!

Deb
Deb
14 years ago

Also:

Get a nice humongous loft in some awesome city (Seattle, Portland) with a huge terrace so I can be outside without coming into contact with Nature. Furnish awesome loft with all that furniture I covet but can’t afford at Room & Board. Have a bathroom I don’t have to share with ANYONE. A bathroom with a fireplace and a television and a wet bar and trashy romances.

Travel extensively and eat at all those yummy looking places on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.

Have a ridiculously expensive purse.

Artemisia
14 years ago

Oh, first the responsible stuff, blah, blah, blah, inlcuding setting up an endowed think tank for poverty issues.

Then!

I would build a wonderful, gorgeous, sustainable cabin in the Absaroka mountains in Wyoming on, oh, 1,000 acres or so, and have the most amazing kitchen ever. And I would hire a team of conservationists to manage the 1,000 acres as a wildlife refuge.

On part of the property I would have camp sites set up so that family/friends could come out AT LEAST once a summer and we could have reunions. I could see ALL of the nieces and nephews grow up. There would be fishing and permanent horseshoe pits and BBQs and a bonfire. It would be awesome.

And I would travel and travel and travel.

Thanks for asking. This put me in a great mood.

HollyLynne
14 years ago

Oooh! Fun!

My husband and I would both quit our jobs in order to work full time on our own businesses (jewelry line me, record label/music publishing him).

We’d buy a Neutra somewhere in Silverlake and restore it.

I’d get myself a decent car already.

We’d FIANLLY GO TO DISNEY WORLD.

And we’d buy a little house for vacations in Conwy, North Wales where we were married.

Eliz
14 years ago

1. Build a new house of just the perfect size – big enough for us and the stuff important to us, but not so big that it costs out the nose to have some one help me clean it on a regular basis.

2. Hire someone to help me clean it on a regular basis.

3. A condo or townhouse in the same subdivision as aforementioned forever house for visiting family so that they can visit more often and spend longer periods of time when they do come.

4. Vacation condo in Park City and house on the beach near Charleston, SC.

5. Sure, a trainer but more importantly, someone to come to my house to do hair and makeup every morning. I’m one of those people who only really feels on top of my game when I’m “done.” As a WAHM, this is a constant struggle. And I don’t even wear much makeup, but to have someone to take care of this pesky task would enable to me to hit the ground running every day.

6. In addition to college funds, house funds for my children. Imagine what they’ll be able to save and do for their kids with that sort of head start in adult life.

7. Set up a foundation and spend my time evaluating worthwhile charities to fund.

Vic
Vic
14 years ago

Two words: WEEKLY MASSAGE.

Sigh.