My local paper asked what you would do if you won 20 million dollars. Tomorrow. Bam. It’s yours, now what? It started this girl dreaming. Imagining and doing a little bit of planning. If you just let yourself dream and imagine for a minute, I think you can get a pretty clear handle on what it is that you REALLY want out of life. And it all looked a little like this…
I would move out of my house and into my dream house. People who know me know the one. I would pay the owners whatever they asked and get ready to become the beach bum I’ve always longed to be. The guest wing would always be welcome and we’d have an open door policy for family. That’s the advantage of a guest wing, right? I can just go on living and hardly even notice they are there. If I don’t want to.
We would entertain, adopt if having children continued to be difficult, and fill our house with even more love and laughter than there is now. It would be one of those places to go, to just be happy. It would be visually stunning, sure {ha!} but the heart of this home would be what people admired most. I’d bring someone in to cook for us everyday. I would join them in the kitchen sometimes or dismiss them and take over. You know me, I love to cook unless I haaaave to cook.
And there would be lounging. Lots of it. By the pool after my laps were done for the day. Lots of reading, lots of conversation and lots of green smoothies. Can you imagine the entirely organic produce you could lavish your body and soul with. Gosh. To have to spare no expense, what an amazing treat. To say here self I want you to have the very best.
There would HAVE to be a big fat sorry work, I’m done. I would continue to blog, of course, and take the opportunities that come to me via that. But day job? See ya, wouldn’t want to be ya. I wouldn’t even pretend that it wasn’t them it was me. Haha. Naaah, I don’t mind my job at all, I just want more. Note to self Suger, maybe do something about that, yeah?
There would be a travel agent on the phone. Booking flights to Italy to see my favourites, to Africa to share it with my Kel and San Francisco to sip coffee and hang out. If there was somewhere beautiful or captivating that I wanted to see, I would add it to the list. People doing great things, I’d be there in a minute just to witness them. Maybe some of it would rub off? Then I would then spend some time travelling Australia. Short bursts so I could return home to my family. We might even visit all the cousins and friends in the areas we NEVER seem to get to.
I would buy the beautiful clothes and shoes I love without hesitation. Continue to keep it simple but I wouldn’t blink an eyelid if there was something special I wished I could own. I’d probably donate almost my entire wardrobe and start again. Heck. I might even request some custom items from my favourite local designers. I have a board on Pinterest of clothes I wish someone would make for me. Now would be my chance. Imagine what you would do with your personal style without a spend limit?
By now I figure I would have, depending on the final price of MY house, have spent a nice chunk of change. That’s okay. There would be more to spend gifting monies to my family and the people who were there when I needed to borrow $20, or a tub of butter. The foundations that I donate to now on a smaller scale would be increased and donated to more regularly. I would be a good fairy dropping cheques from the sky. Do you ever wish you could repay those people who were just so generous with you that it changed you? I do. Now would be my chance.
Maybe now really is my chance. $20 million dreaming aside. 2013 was a good year for us. We managed to pull ahead and really settle into life. It’s hard to describe but maybe now IS the time to really give generously to those who helped us along the way. Maybe now is the time to look for something more fulfilling to do, see some more places, do some more things. Live a little more. You know? Maybe it’s time to stop saying we don’t get out much.
Then maybe I’ll get lucky and the $20 million will just show up?
What would YOU do with $20 million?
Hi! I’m Melissa Walker Horn. Around here, they call me Suger. I’m the Chief Blogger and doer of all the things here at Suger Coat It. Blogging since 1901; I love a casual ootd, taking photos, and writing about things that irk or inspire me. I love wine and cheese, long days at the beach and spending time with my family. I make stuff for the internet over at Chalkboard Digital. You know, living the sweet life.
Ha, my hubby and I have this conversation all the time. It’s a good way to while away the time on a long car journey 🙂 I think it’s awesome that most people include charitable donations in their “if I was rich” lists 🙂
I’m not sure if I would work, given the chance to give it up completely. I do think I’d go mad without something to do all day!
It really is. Lots of fun. Way better than lame road trip games. 😉
It’s great to see, right? Even better that this sort of thing prompts us to consider if there is a way we can help now.
I’m sure I could adjust. Haha.
If I won the lottery, I’d stop working and writing… which is pretty much what I’m doing now. I don’t think my change much because I pretty much do what I want now. Maybe I’d get a maid to do the housework though.
Haha. Sounds perfect!
Great post, I love doing this. I would buy the closed pub in our town (there’s nothing so lonesome, morbid or drear…) and create the best beer garden in Australia with Sunday Sessions and the first act would be Dan Sultan. I would also tar the road on the corners of our house as I am sick to death of bloody dust and locals thinking its awesome to slide out their cars and then hit our struggling screening bushes. I would then make a footpath from our place to the General Store and Skate Park so the kids and I don’t have to lookout for B Doubles and nut bags in cars while riding/scootering (i’m sounding a bit grumpy with my money now). If I got third or fourth division I could just get a rocking chair and some cats and scream at everyone who drives past! I just have to actually buy a ticket now…….
Nothing more lonesome, morid or drear indeed! Haha. And apparently you’re going to support the local council. Love it. Maybe you should run. 😉
A beautifully thought out post. Your writing gets better and better – thank you for sharing 🙂
Thank you Carly. x
We hardly ever play lotto only the big ones when we remember. But Ben aways makes me laugh with his hypothetical spending of money. There’s so many things I do, first thing would be to hire great financial advice, buy a dream home, set up trusts for the kids, take care of our families, help out several of our friends with homes, trusts for our godchildren (we’ve got four of them), give to charity, eat well, drink well, travel and loads more. But mainly it would be about ensuring that the ones we love are taken care of too, so a shitload of money would be given to others.
Us either! But it makes this game a little more fun to forget that fact. Haha. Your plans sound great.
I would buy our apartment, and another couple and knock out some walls making one uber pad! ….and cause we live in inner city Melbourne, that would about take care of the 20 mil.
Haha. Indeed it would Jen. Pricey city you have there. 😉 The rest sounds great too.
My goals are pretty much the same.
There’s a gorgeous $8mil mansion near my house with a private lagoon that is utterly my dream home. It was actually up for sale when there was a $20 or $30mil lottery on and i so badly wanted to win just for that!
I would take care of some family with health issues & who have always had to scrape by.
I’d find the best doctor I could afford to help my husband see if what’s wrong with him is really what’s wrong with him. Because I don’t trust doctors – and I want a second, third and fourth opinion.
And of course, the charities I try to support now would get lots of hugs and donations.
Sounds great! Ahhh now to win.