Tag Archives: jewelry

If I Received $10,000 That I Had to Spend on Myself…

I saw the thought proving statement, “If I Received $10,000 that I HAD to spend on myself I would…”    That got me thinking, what would I do with that kind of money if I absolutely had to spend it on myself, not save it, not pay bills, but spend it on just me, what would I do?

As my mind started tossing around the possibilities I realized that $10,000 is both a lot of money and only a small amount of money.  It would not purchase a house, a motor home, a boat, or a new vehicle.  On the other hand, if used with a bit of frugality, there is a lot that could be done with that type of “free” money.

I think I would take a few hundred dollars and re-work my wardrobe.    A larger selection and more splashy, bright colored, fun things to wear.  I might even splurge on some new shoes and a purse or two, as I tend to use mine until they are on their death bed, which I have a habit of doing with most of my clothes and accessories.

I might add a few pieces of quality jewelry.   I have some good jewelry, but I have a lot of costume jewelry and I would likely replace some of those pieces.

The majority of the money I would spend on travel.  I don’t know how far that money would take me, but I would think if I watched for bargains I could hit a few places I have never been or adventures I have never taken.    For years I have wanted to take an Alaskan cruise on the inside passage.  I have never been to the Grand Canyon, Yellow Stone, or Mt. Rushmore.   Scenic photos of Wyoming and the Dakotas capture my eye, as do many other places in both the U.S. and Canada.  I love places that are photogenic, so who knows what might grab my attention.

I have never been on a week-long cruise and that might be a wonderfTRAVELul way to kick-back and relax while seeing exotic places.  I would like to get back to Hawaii someday, and I’ve heard the Caribbean and/or other tropical islands are wonderful places to vacation.  I think it would be neat to travel in Europe, possibly visiting some or all of the countries of my heritage, those being Belgium, Germany, Poland, and Netherlands.   Others of interest are Ireland, Italy, Iceland, Greece, and Switzerland…and I’m sure there are more.  Of course there is always the possibility of a photo trip to Africa, or maybe Galapagos Islands.  The possibilities are endless.

Have I spent my $10,000 yet?  I’m sure I have.  I guess $10,000 may seem like a lot, but I’m sure I could handle spending it all on me if I had to.   Now if only that were reality.  Dreaming…..I’m only dreaming…..

 

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Filed under Activities, decisions, exploration, Life Changing, Life is a Melting Pot, Photography, tourism, travel, vacation

Happy 34th Anniversary

This past Saturday, September 12, 2015, was my husband, Ron, and my 34th Anniversary.  We typically do not celebrate anniversaries or our birthdays, but this year we both had gifts for each other.  Possibly because Ron is currently battling his 3rd round of cancer and you look at things differently.

I had decided while Ron was away on his trip west, which I talked about in When Your Husband Returns, to make him a video of photographs of us as a couple over the past 35 years (from when we met to now).  I gathered the photos into a folder, found the song I wanted to use, “Grow Old Along With Me” sung by Glen Campbell, and began putting together the presentation.

First problem arose when my daughter found me the song I wanted and obtained it as an MP3 on her phone, then emailed it to me.  I couldn’t figure out how to download it, but someone showed me how and that was fine.  Then I put the slideshow together in a PowerPoint presentation, figured out how to convert the MP3 to a WAV file for imbedding into the PowerPoint and then used the drop-down menu to convert to a video.  When I played back the video version it had an echo and played the music twice in an echo format.  Not good!  The PowerPoint played fine, but I wanted to be able to share it with family and friends on Facebook which required a video conversion.

I questioned a friend who does not live near me, and after a series of questions he asked me to email him the file so he could attempt to remove the music file from the video.  Unfortunately he was unable to do that, so I had to download a free video slide show program and re-build the presentation.  I got it re-built in a slightly different version and it played well, I was able to upload it to YouTube and then share on Facebook on the appropriate day.

I next purchased a flash drive, which I saved the original PowerPoint presentation on and placed that into an Anniversary card for Ron.  Then after midnight the night before our anniversary I switched the YouTube version from private to public and shared the link on my Facebook page, tagging Ron, in Happy 34th  Anniversary.    Everyone enjoyed viewing the video, and I have also taken all the photographs and built a Shutterfly book with them, which will be arriving here soon.

Now Ron also had gifts for me this year.  I received a sapphire necklace (my birthstone) and an amethyst bracelet (my favorite color).   We spent the day together visiting an art fair we enjoy attending every year and then going out to dinner.  A great 34th Anniversary.

Sapphire Necklace

Sapphire Necklace

Amethyst Bracelet

Amethyst Bracelet

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Filed under celebration, Family, Life is a Melting Pot, marriage