I was reading the other day in the newspaper about the most recent winner of the state lottery, and I had to laugh when I read the part about what he wanted to do with the money. He talked about building a house and buying a new car, and then added in some other trivial things that he wanted to purchase. Of course, Heaven forbid he should give some of his earnings to charity...but that's another story. Anyways, as I got back to work after my break of reading the newspaper, I got thinking about what this guy will actually do with his earnings and where he'll be in five or ten years. Remembering the trivial things that he said he wanted to do with the money, I immediately thought that he was probably going to be living much as is right now in five to ten years. I imagine that he'll end up squandering the money on some particularly ridiculous things that he'll purchase just because he can. Did you ever realize that if you do have the good fortune to come into money much like the guy I'm referring to did, that, if you take care of your finances properly, you could live comfortably for the rest of your life. Sure, you'd probably want to still have a job or a career for a while, just to keep yourself occupied, but you could probably pay off the house you have, your car, any outstanding loans you have, and then live a simple unadorned life using that money that you got. I wonder how many people out there end up doing things correctly with their finances. I shudder to think that those who handle their finances with some responsibility are in the minority...which is just terrible to think about. Of course I'm not just thinking about people who come into money doing not-so-great things like gambling or playing the lottery. There are plenty of ways to come into money that don't necessary carry such a negative connotation. You could have a trust fund, an inheritance after losing a loved one, you could invest your money, you could get a raise or bonus at work. Maybe even thinking abstractly, you could invent something innovative that someone buys off of you. The possibilities for ending up with money as a result of responsibility and good ole hard work are pretty endless. I wonder how many of those people who have squandered away their money or savings look back at the positive possibilities they had and just want to kick themselves for doing what they've done. I would hate to think that God offered me an opportunity to do something positive for my life, for my family, or even for a charity, and then I passed it up by just being stupid. Wow, wouldn't that be cool to be able to use the returns on what you invest to be able to give to a charity (or two) on a regular basis? Hehe...listen to me go on and on about this...but seriously it must be the graduate student in me, wanting to get done with my school early so that I can get a job and put some of my prudent financial thinking to good use. Maybe, like these "pretend" people who I've been referring to in this post, I will think differently about things when I final have the financial wherewithall to make some of these big decisions. I'm hoping that I'll continue to mature in my financial thinking as I get older. I mean, at twenty-six, I guess I'm pretty much as "grown up" as I'm going to be (eek!). So enough about me! What about all of you? Do you have any interesting stories that you would like to share about this particular subject (or any subject for that matter)? I've heard from some of you recently who have had some interesting comments and other things to say about my posts. I love when I see a new email saying that someone has sent me a message from Biblekeeper. As always, your comments and questions are what keep me going and thinking about this financial things. I hope that you'll keep reading, and I'll do my best to keep posting fun yet informational material for you to read.