An embarrassment
of riches may so far have escaped you, but at least you can dream. Let's go shopping
...
IT IS often said money is the root
of all evil and, while that may be true, it is also the root of a hell of a lot
of good fun. Unfortunately there seems to be an increasing list of things to spend
money on and rather a lack of supply which, judging by the national credit card
debt figures published recently, seems to be a problem reaching epidemic proportions.
If you were to believe the motivational
gurus who, of course, have made bucketloads of the stuff, you would know that
if you visualise yourself surrounded by wealth and prosperity, then by some stroke
of nature beyond mortal comprehension, you will in fact receive the riches you
so desire and will never have to worry about being short of a dollar and be free
of all the stresses a nil bank balance brings with it.
The
Amway zealots of the 1980s encouraged their prospects to surround themselves with
luxury, take expensive imported cars out for test drives, try on that two-carat
rock in the jewellery store and drink the finest champagne to become familiar
with the feeling of true wealth when they had sold their millionth bottle of cleaning
product to a family member or an unsuspecting friend, and moved further "upline"
into the Amway hall of fame. While all this visualisation may work, I would like
to put my hand up as one this particular theory has thus far overlooked, and it
occurred to me that perhaps I hadn't been doing it hard enough. I decided to seriously
investigate the trappings of wealth and picture my life as if money was no object,
and instead of following the path of frugality and shrewd investing, I would invest
a day dreaming up ways to part with as much money as I possibly could.
This
would be a theoretical exercise, naturally, but would be the grand-daddy of all
visualisations and would make me ready for the day when the embarassment of riches
would fall liberally upon my deserving head.
MY
PERSONAL TRAINER/CHEF All the celebrities and the wealthy across the world seem
to have their own personal trainer but I decided this, combined with someone to
prepare my meals, would be the perfect combination and could in fact almost be
perfect husband material. Oprah Winfrey made this concept fashionable and although
her yo yo-ing weight problem is not always complimentary to the skills of the
one employed to address the problem, one would have to presume she has more than
the occasional flirtation with the dessert trolley on the sly. However, the temptation
to stray from the straight line of fitness and good nutrition must surely be minimised
with the thought of a fit and handsome young man to hold your hand while enduring
the rigours of exercise and maintaining a healthy diet, and I was amazed that
such a service was offered in Wellington by a gentleman exactly fitting that description.
Life would cease to be a whirlwind of feeling guilt-ridden about my lack of exercise
interspersed with a series of flavourless frozen pre-packaged meals, and for little
more money than a week of takeaways I would be fit and be treated to breakfast,
lunch and dinner prepared by another.
MY
MASSEUSE As someone who believes having their back rubbed is better than anything
on earth, yes anything, I would employ a full-time masseuse to ease away any fatigue
from the new-found fitness regime and to keep the blood circulating to ensure
my skin and body were in the peak of condition 24/7. Never having been in a situation
of inexhaustible wealth, it is difficult to know whether these people suffer from
stress, but if there were to be a degree or two on occasions it would soon be
dealt with under the soothing hand of the masseuse who would be on hand day and
night to pander to the needs and wishes of her employer. If faced with the choice
of masseuse is daunting, you could go no better than to have Margaret Hema on
the payroll, who will not only soothe away all the cricks and knots, but will
introduce you to her wonderful range of oils which are hand-blended and 100 percent
natural, and will ensure not only that your skin remains supple and fragrant at
all times, but your brain remains alert with her wit and her quirky sense of humour.
And to keep the face youthful and unlined, opt for the new La Mer skincare available
from Kirkcaldie & Stains. I was lucky enough to be given some recently, and it
is divine, and with my new-found wealth I will be slopping it around liberally
at under $300 for a small jar.
