It seems that the good folks on this board tend to live frugally. Nothing that I have really never done too well, but that I aspire too when I retire in a few years. I have my place in the country and tend to envy those that are so self-sufficient. Melissa's recent posts about budgeting and money have brought to mind an interesting alternative thought: If you ADDED $10,000 per month after taxes, to your current income, what exactly about your life would you change? I do not mean buying a new washing machine or car, etc. I mean "how would your life change?"

-- SteveD(TX) (smdann@swbell.net), March 16, 2002

Answers

If it was money that we didnt have to " clock in " for ie.. employment.... My hubby would quit his job and stay home. He hates that he isnt here with the kids to watch them grow, and learn. He loved being unemployed ( Nov thru Feb ) because he could help with the girls school work and with their PE classes. He hates leaving in the morning. And he is not looking forward to the day they come home and say " Dad, I met a boy... " that will kill him....

-- Kristean Thompson (pigalena_babe@yahoo.com), March 16, 2002.

Steve, are you sure you meant to say $10,000.00 per month? Not $10,000.00 per year? Thats more money than my annual pension total.

-- mitch hearn (moopups@citlink.net), March 16, 2002.

Per month is correct. I am talking about a drastic change in finances.

-- SteveD(TX) (smdann@swbell.net), March 16, 2002.

Wow! 10,000 a month! That's a little more than we make in a year. That would be like hitting the lottery. I guess it would change our life by freeing us (the wife and I) up to spend all our time together and doing what we love. Gardening, fishing, canoeing, and just roaming around this beautiful wilderness we live in. It would change how I work because I could buy a few select tools to make my chores easier and do a more efficient job. I'd buy a small four wheel drive tractor with a front end loader, and a wagon for hauling firewood. We currently use a tobaggon in the winter and wheelbarrow when there is no snow. I guess I'd buy a good, dependable truck too. Other than that, the best change would just be to be able to enjoy our life and our love without having to leave to go to work to make some bucks. What a fantasy. Thanks for a good thought. Hope you enjoy your retirement. Have a great day. Steve in northern MN.

-- Steve (MN) (borgia@northernnet.com), March 16, 2002.

Not much but relieve a little stress. Hubby would cut back on insurance work and stick to restoring old cars and I would get more critters and more trees for our new orchard. We'd probably buy equipment, but our lives as a whole are pretty much what we want already. Ok, I'd take my sister-in-law to Jamaica. She really needs a vacation. :) Stace

-- Stacey (stacey@lakesideinternet.com), March 16, 2002.

I would take the money and pay off the bills. I would than invest in comercial property so I could have a continious income. I would give me to good causes.

The hard part would be not to start buying "things". Just because I had the money doesn't mean I need a new car instead of a used one. I don't need a another TV if the one I have is working just fine.

I friend once told me: "You don't own things, they own you. So the less you have the more freedom you have."

-- Larry Burlingame (Larburlingame@hotmail.com), March 16, 2002.

That calculates to $328.76 per day. I would buy a large property, install prison type fencing and then hire a finical consultant, then a lawyer to watch the consultant, then a detective to watch the lawyer, then a snitch to watch the detective, then..........

-- mitch hearn (moopups@citlink.net), March 16, 2002.

lol@mitch... I would hire mitch to help me think up what all needed doing.

-- daffodyllady (daffodyllady@yahoo.com), March 16, 2002.

$120,000 a year would worry my soul to no end. I would buy the biggest piece of wild earth that I could find. Then I would start to worry that I really had no right to that much land and what about the gas to get in and out? I would love to think that money would let me grow and be all that I could be. My fear is that this year the money would mean total freedom. Next year or the year after I would be in the mind set that I need all that money to be happy and I need that great 4x4 and a bigger and better what ever. Now I may find that 120,000 a year is only covering my needs and I have so many wants that maybe I should go to work at a real job and then I'll have to move because of all that gas and...... Well I guess I fear money and "IT's" power to move people to want/need more things to be happy. Now just for the record. I am a redneck. Proud of being a redneck. Can you still be true to your redneck ways with 120,000 to use and maybe abuse? How about 10,000 extra this month and we'll call it a deal? Sheila in Oregon

-- Sheila Baker (anyonamewilldo@aol.com), March 16, 2002.

I don't think my life would change too much. It's like the price of gas. I don't really pay attention because the price doesn't make me drive any more or any less. If I have to go somewhere, I go. If not, I don't. We're not wealthy by any means, but we have enough to do what we want. I might travel more often, that's about all I can think of. It's like Bruce Springsteen says: "If I got more money, I got more to worry about. A Man with a million dollars gets million dollar problems".

-- rose marie wild (wintersongfarm@yahoo.com), March 16, 2002.

I doubt our life would change much other than it would be nice to not have to worry about how to pay the bills and we could be debt free. We could do all the fixing and repairs we would ever need to do. We would also probably travel a little because we could afford to pay someone to do the milking and take care of things here. I would also have much better equipment to work with..and oh yes...the new John Deere tractor!!!!

Most of all I would really enjoy doing for others. What a wonderful thing to be able to annoymously help put a child through college, or buy struggling family a new car, pay some bills off for someone, etc.

-- Karen (mountains_mama2@hotmail.com), March 16, 2002.

This is forever 10 g's per month? Heck just give me a years worth! Buy more land, some new equip, probably get that draft horse I want to pull a wagon, reno ther house, and adopt a baby from China. Ok two years worth, then someone else can have it.

-- Ross (amulet@istar.ca), March 16, 2002.

I know most, if not all of the money would go to charities such as Doctors Without Borders, Greenpeace, World Wildlife Fund, Nature Conservancy, etc. Those people are doing things that we believe in but don't have the gumption or in some cases the expertise to do. I'd like to comment on Kristean's post. Your husband, and possibly you are in for a big surprise when your girls marry. You will fall in love with your sons-in-law and treasure them. That is, with a little luck of the draw. We were very lucky, and are very thankful for that.

-- Dianne Wood (woodgoat@pacifier.com), March 16, 2002.

I'd put new tires on my truck then start adding $10,000.00 a month to my savings.

-- DAVID Constantin In Wisconsin (cajundavid@hotmail.com), March 16, 2002.

When I win one of those huge lotteries, I have it all planned. I am going to buy farm land! As much farm land as I can save from the developers! Then, I'm going to find young families to live on that land!

I've got to win that big one soon though. . . or I'll never win the race with the bulldozers!

-- J McFerrin (JMcFerrin@aol.com), March 16, 2002.

Wouldn't change much about our actual lifestyle. We have few bills and are content with a 10 yr old Blazer and 28 yr old Ford pickumup. Guess I would like to breed and raise Morgan horses with all that money. Our horses are the only animals not required to pay their own way and I haven't been able to justify having any foals.

-- Scotsirish (notreal@anywhere.net), March 16, 2002.

A guy could starve to death on only ten thousand a month around here. Heck, after Federal, Social Security, Employment, State, County, Local, Street, and mailbox tax was deducted, you'd only have about $27 left anyway. Around here, the more money you make, the more you are punished. Guess we're some of those "Evil" rich people that the Dems are always alluding to.

-- Chuck (reply@mission4me.com), March 16, 2002.

Hilarious Chuck! I was doing some taxes for some folks last week, and they had to work for 12 weeks, just to pay their Federal Taxes alone!!!! I just wonder if it is worth it... That did not count, state tax, or Social Security or the Medicaid. Also many people paid for in Federal tax than we made!

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), March 16, 2002.

Sorry, should have been "more in Federal tax than we made"

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), March 16, 2002.

Pay off all debt including house. Either tear down house and build place I really want or fix this place up and keep it. I really like my house but it needs some work. O.K. so I get the roof I want, have the wood floors finished, pour cement in the basement, undo the awful things the previous owner did to this house, paint the outside. Fix up the pasture with good hay/grass, redo the fences plus some. Fix the barn and put up a better stable. Other than that I wouldn't change my life more than to make it more self-sufficient and easier for me to take care of.

Susan

-- Susan in MN (nanboo@paulbunyan.net), March 16, 2002.

Hmmmm....that would be 17x more a year than I live on now. I'd stay here, fix it up better, get a new ATV, pay off my debts, have even better food storage. All that stuff would be a huge change. I have spent my entire life being frugal. With more money I could afford to not worry if I'm going to be warm enough, be able to drive my 1986 car, buy gas, take the pets to the vet, own more than two pair of pants, etc. It would be nice to afford clothes, food, heat, etc. as if they were NOT luxury items.

-- Peace and Carrots Farm (wsm311@aol.com), March 16, 2002.

Give is away to those who need it. Oh I'd keep another extra $500 per month but all the rest would go for His work! Old hoot. Matt.24:44

-- old hoot gibson (hoot@pcinetwork.com), March 16, 2002.

$10,000 more a month after taxes, wow, that would put us up there in the "nicely wealthy" category. Well, I'd pay off our debt first, then buy some farm equipment, a newer pickup, and start a life long ambition of raising Irish Draught horses-- and be horse poor again (grin). The old saying is "How do you make a small fortune raising horses? Start with a large fortune"

Oh, well--at least we're happy.

Stacy in NY

-- Stacy (KincoraFarm@aol.com), March 16, 2002.

Ooops, forgot the most important part, and something I've always wanted to do and will someday, free lease horses to 4H kids. I firmly believe that a horse is a great thing for a kid.

Stacy in NY

-- Stacy (KincoraFarm@aol.com), March 16, 2002.

and then after all those taxes, whatever you spend will be taxed some more. If you don't spend it and instead invest it, you'll be taxed on that too. Then the final insult, when you die, the rest will be taxed.

-- Dave (multiplierx9@hotmail.com), March 16, 2002.

Additional income only gives me money problems. No money No problems. I prefer getting by just fine.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), March 16, 2002.

This probably sounds weird, but I really do like my life the way it is. Maybe a little more money would be nice, but for me that much to have to think of the responsible thing to do with every month would probably complicate and change my life in ways I would rather not. (I think a lot of you missed the "after taxes")

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), March 16, 2002.

If God sent it, I could do for volunteer work what is paid employment now, support some scouts through camps/adventures, take off a year here and there and hike the AT, Pacific Crest, Continental Divide and North Country, & Ice Age trails. Hostelling through England/Scotland/Ireland. Buy LARGE amounts scrub and harvest saw palmetto berries in perspetuity for rexall-sundown. Oh, and prepaid college plans for ALL the grandchildren.

-- Mitzi Giles (Egiles2@prodigy.net), March 16, 2002.

I would be able to donate most of it to projects now that I only wish I had the spare income to give. Things like sponsoring kids in poor countries. I'd like to set up a microbank to provide microbusiness loans to women in third world countries, or even here in the US. I'd like to be able to pop a thou' in the mail anonymously when I hear of someone having a spell of hard times. Stuff like that.

-- snoozy (bunny@northsound.net), March 16, 2002.

I'd be shopping for a lot more land than we are now. And the home we plan on building ourselves would go up a lot faster with some paid help. There's really not much else that we want or need that we don't have now. Really enjoy washing dishes by hand while looking out a big sunny window in front of my sink. When weather is warm, I love listening to the birds and breeze in the trees. So wouldn't even think about a dishwasher. And I can't think of anything we could buy that would add to the quality of life that we already have now.

Then, I'd start spending on things that help people and the environment. Do something to help people without health insurance get good health care. Find some single parents and help them get into good, energy efficient homes. Being a single parent is one heck of a hard road to hoe - I was one once. Pay a reporter, well, to get the low down on area industry that pollute air, land and/or water. Publish my own monthly newspaper if necessary to get those stories published and in the hands of people.

Drat! Looks as if $10,000 a month won't be enough to do everything. Could I please have $20,000 a month instead???

-- Carol - in Virginia (carollm@rockbridge.net), March 16, 2002.

Start an intentional community and continue living the homestead life.

-- Kevin in NC (Vantravlrs@aol.com), March 16, 2002.

I had to stop in and dream a little. I save up the money and buy a large farm/ranch debt free. Then I would take in children who have been abused or have had difficult experiences in their lives and help them heal through farming. I think being on the land and working with the land (and animals too) is a very healing process and I love being with kids!

-- Kate (yngve@theofficenet.com), March 17, 2002.

Same answer my father and Grandfather befor him gave. KEEP FARMING UNTILL TI IS ALL GONE IN FIVE YEARS. Searously when I was about twentyfive another guy and I were trying to decide about our retirement years. And we thought that if you could have about $300.00 a mounth tax free you could live very well. My disablity is over three times that and it ain't even poverty level today. That 10 grand a month sounds good untill you find out that every thing else goes up the same X 8.

-- Butch (beefarm@scrtc.com), March 17, 2002.

Pay off the mortgage and burn up the phone lines quitting my job. In that order. Buy a decent truck (not new, just decent) and a grand horse trailer w/sleeping quarters. Other than that, give to charity, help my aging mom and her sister, put son into college, save for retirement, fix up house, buy dH that mini studio he's been looking at. Give to those doing good works - Homeless shelters, battered women's shelters and youth at risk programs. And last but not least, I'd finally get my toggenburg goats and stay at home and garden and milk!

-- Cindy (colawson@mindspring.com), March 17, 2002.

Steve: Wow! I can't even fathom $10,000 "extra" per month but here goes. I think my life would change quite a bit. I would continue to work as a Parent educator, because I love it so much, but I sure could finally leave my weekend position!! Please, please, please. Anyway, I would want to set up a foundation to help parents afford to take the various parenting workshops offered, as well as set something up for continuing education for those who don't qualify for student loans and have no resources to pay for it. I would then have to learn how to administer such a fund, so I would need some education as well. I think it would be the COOLEST thing to be in a position to help Moms & Dads become the best they can be, whatever that is for them. $10,000 a month would sure go a LONG way to help the people who genuinely want to change their lives. What a wonderful dream you have put in my head. Thank you! Judy

-- Judy Hill (hillsacres@sk.sympatico.ca), March 18, 2002.

Well, I'd buy that back block of the family farm that's mostly shale and sandstone, but backs onto the mountain and is so beautiful. My brother could use the money for what is otherwise unproductive land too. I'd love to do that, but with my health the way it is I'd NEED electricity, and then I could afford to have it run two miles to there. Of course, I'd have a few sheep, goats or a cow, and (health again) milking machine. Poultry, of course, and some tank-raised fish. Then I'd use all that to regain what I could of my health (don't have time to do what is necessary while I'm trying to keep getting to work). Use the spare time to flesh out my qualifications, both for personal satisfaction and for future income.

-- Don Armstrong (from Australia) (darmst@yahoo.com.au), March 18, 2002.

We'd be able to go to the doctor and dentist when we need to. I'd get good quality things that really last, and get rid of all the broken and patched ones. Might as well be honest- if we had more money, we wouldn't be so frugal, we wouldn't keep all this stuff 'in case we need it someday'. I'd go to college, and start the boys on music lessons. I'd plant beautiful things and buy potatoes from some local organic farmer who needed the business. Money doesn't have to be a bad thing. It can also be the fuel necessary to help make your dreams come true.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), March 18, 2002.

It would probably change my childrens' and future grandchildrens' lives more than mine. That's where I'd like to see it go, honestly. As for me, I'd probably hire more done than I do now, not work six and seven day weeks but try to cut back to five (maybe even four on occasion). I might travel a little more. Truth be told, I couldn't travel much less. ;o)

-- Gary in Indiana (gk6854@aol.com), March 18, 2002.