So what do you do on a weekend that you have absolutely nothing planned?
#1. You sleep until 6:30, 30 minutes longer than you normally do during the week. You would like to sleep longer, but dog tongues on your forehead make that impossible.
#2. You rent entire seasons of The Office, start at disc one and vow not to stop until each episode is watched.
#3. Ricotta pancakes. Completely South Beach approved, and oh, so delicious.
And my absolutely favorite thing to do when I have nothing else even remotely planned for the day:
Find multi-million dollar houses on realtor.com.
Try it sometime.
Then try to stop.
Hard, isn't it?
For instance...
Interested in a Florida waterfront eight bedroom, twelve bath house that features it's own fitness center, pool and art gallery? You might like this one: http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/11-Casuarina-Concourse_Coral-Gables_FL_33143_1108676575
Or how about your very own four-story house in Savannah, Georgia? It has a library, 5.5 bathrooms and multiple open-air balconies: http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/126-West-Harris-Street_Savannah_GA_31401_1103593702
Ever want your very own bronze elk in your front yard? How about a movie theatre? Plus, this one is a little closer to home in St. Louis. Bonus! http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/1300-South-Mason-Rd_Town-And-Country_MO_63131_1099918551
This one just blows my mind. People actually live here (then again, it is LA): http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/Nimes-Road_Los-Angeles_CA_90077_1116063815
Seriously. If you're ever bored, just go to any real estate site, type in Las Angeles, CA with 1 million as the minimum and nothing as the max, and you will see some of the most incredible houses ever.
Dubai or Morocco might come in as a close second.
As I look at these houses - while incredibly fun and great daydream material - I can't help but think that
A) they would be a nightmare to clean (though if you can afford a house like that, you probably have an entire cleaning staff)
and
B) does anyone really need that much living space? And stuff? And multiple chaise lounges throughout the house?
Think about what you could do with that much money that would actually make an eternal difference.
For instance, compare the cost of a 30 second superbowl commercial. $2.6 million was this year's asking price. That's insane for just 30 measly little seconds of airtime, most likely which will be forgotten when the next 30 second commercial comes on.
Know what you could do with $2.6 million? According to World Vision International, they would be able to build 76 health clinics in poverty-stricken countries.
30 second lame GoDaddy.com commercial vs. saving thousands of lives in Uganda, Nicaragua and Peru?
You have got to be kidding me if you would even have to think twice about that.
Don't get me wrong. If we had the finances, we'd buy a great house...Matt's dream is to have a swimming pool. Mine is to have multiple fenced acres so the dogs can have room to run and double sinks in the bathroom so I don't have to see Matt's toothpaste dribbles every morning. One day, maybe.
But I also think there are so many other important things in the world, too.
I know that getting a degree in nursing will be awesome. Job opportunities wherever we live, a nice salary and benefits. Wearing scrubs and Nikes to work every day. Many different fields of medicine to choose from. (I currently have it narrowed down to Geriatrics, Oncology, Forensics and Intensive Care. Yeah. That's not a lot, is it?)
But I pray that I don't lose sight of the big picture. A nursing degree will also open doors to things like medical missions and rural health opportunities. Helping the people who can't afford help. Immunizing and vaccinating babies in countries like Angola, where the life expectancy is only 38 years old and the physician-to-people rate is .08 per every 1000. The infant mortality rate alone is 192.5.
And if for some reason I can't travel to third-world countries to volunteer, maybe $30 or $40 a month would help those who are there. According to Compassion International, just $38 a month provides food and clean water, medical care, educational opportunities, important life-skills training and biblical teachings to children who live in poverty conditions.
I don't know about you, but having a house with 20 bathrooms and a seashell-encrusted vanity can't compare to the satisfaction of knowing you helped better someone's life, no matter how big or small the effort.
Plus, you'd have a lot less toilets to clean.
#1. You sleep until 6:30, 30 minutes longer than you normally do during the week. You would like to sleep longer, but dog tongues on your forehead make that impossible.
#2. You rent entire seasons of The Office, start at disc one and vow not to stop until each episode is watched.
#3. Ricotta pancakes. Completely South Beach approved, and oh, so delicious.
And my absolutely favorite thing to do when I have nothing else even remotely planned for the day:
Find multi-million dollar houses on realtor.com.
Try it sometime.
Then try to stop.
Hard, isn't it?
For instance...
Interested in a Florida waterfront eight bedroom, twelve bath house that features it's own fitness center, pool and art gallery? You might like this one: http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/11-Casuarina-Concourse_Coral-Gables_FL_33143_1108676575
Or how about your very own four-story house in Savannah, Georgia? It has a library, 5.5 bathrooms and multiple open-air balconies: http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/126-West-Harris-Street_Savannah_GA_31401_1103593702
Ever want your very own bronze elk in your front yard? How about a movie theatre? Plus, this one is a little closer to home in St. Louis. Bonus! http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/1300-South-Mason-Rd_Town-And-Country_MO_63131_1099918551
This one just blows my mind. People actually live here (then again, it is LA): http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/Nimes-Road_Los-Angeles_CA_90077_1116063815
Seriously. If you're ever bored, just go to any real estate site, type in Las Angeles, CA with 1 million as the minimum and nothing as the max, and you will see some of the most incredible houses ever.
Dubai or Morocco might come in as a close second.
As I look at these houses - while incredibly fun and great daydream material - I can't help but think that
A) they would be a nightmare to clean (though if you can afford a house like that, you probably have an entire cleaning staff)
and
B) does anyone really need that much living space? And stuff? And multiple chaise lounges throughout the house?
Think about what you could do with that much money that would actually make an eternal difference.
For instance, compare the cost of a 30 second superbowl commercial. $2.6 million was this year's asking price. That's insane for just 30 measly little seconds of airtime, most likely which will be forgotten when the next 30 second commercial comes on.
Know what you could do with $2.6 million? According to World Vision International, they would be able to build 76 health clinics in poverty-stricken countries.
30 second lame GoDaddy.com commercial vs. saving thousands of lives in Uganda, Nicaragua and Peru?
You have got to be kidding me if you would even have to think twice about that.
Don't get me wrong. If we had the finances, we'd buy a great house...Matt's dream is to have a swimming pool. Mine is to have multiple fenced acres so the dogs can have room to run and double sinks in the bathroom so I don't have to see Matt's toothpaste dribbles every morning. One day, maybe.
But I also think there are so many other important things in the world, too.
I know that getting a degree in nursing will be awesome. Job opportunities wherever we live, a nice salary and benefits. Wearing scrubs and Nikes to work every day. Many different fields of medicine to choose from. (I currently have it narrowed down to Geriatrics, Oncology, Forensics and Intensive Care. Yeah. That's not a lot, is it?)
But I pray that I don't lose sight of the big picture. A nursing degree will also open doors to things like medical missions and rural health opportunities. Helping the people who can't afford help. Immunizing and vaccinating babies in countries like Angola, where the life expectancy is only 38 years old and the physician-to-people rate is .08 per every 1000. The infant mortality rate alone is 192.5.
And if for some reason I can't travel to third-world countries to volunteer, maybe $30 or $40 a month would help those who are there. According to Compassion International, just $38 a month provides food and clean water, medical care, educational opportunities, important life-skills training and biblical teachings to children who live in poverty conditions.
I don't know about you, but having a house with 20 bathrooms and a seashell-encrusted vanity can't compare to the satisfaction of knowing you helped better someone's life, no matter how big or small the effort.
Plus, you'd have a lot less toilets to clean.
1 comment:
On a weekend we have nothing to do, we watch House Hunters and every house related show we can find... and dream! Constantly baffled how people are looking to spend $450,000 on their first home... I'm sweating our house loan, and it's much, much smaller!!!
I'm like you though... what would you do with all that house? Really? There is so much more you can do with that much money! Our country wouldn't be in the financial state it's in if people concentrated on needs instead of wants!
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