West of Mars -- the Meet and Greet

I think I've been tagged for the Five Things Meme three times now. And a million other ones, too; my head's starting to swim with them all. I may not do any of them. In fact, I probably won't because I'm so overwhelmed right now. But at least I'm honest about it!

However, one of the questions in that Five Things meme resonates with me: What would you do with a million dollars?

I can say, with the utmost authority, that I would not change a single thing about my life and the way I live it. Oh, stop chuckling and disbelieving me. As Eric would say, have a little faith.

However, a million bucks (and more) has worked a transformation on my main core of characters. Eric, Trevor, Daniel, and Mitchell are all obvious; they've gone from being struggling musicians to rock stars. Rock Star is synonymous with wealth, of course; it ought to go without saying that these guys are loaded.

But there's one character I've got, a woman who met a guitar player in a grocery story and assumed he was a struggling musician the same way that she was a struggling artist. When her assumption was proved wrong, much to Mitchell's amusement, Kerri Broadhurst suddenly found herself marrying into money.

Thus, Kerri is probably the best person to ask what she'd do with a million dollars. Here's what she had to say:

When I was in art school, I used to dream of being able to endow scholarships that would help broke art students like myself. My tuition at Riverview Art was entirely on me -- my parents refused to pay a penny. In fact, they'd been quite clear about the fact that they hadn't wanted me to go to art school at all, let alone one across the country in Riverview.

But Riverview Art Academy is one of the best out there. And getting far away from home seemed like a wise choice. So I took what I had, which was very little, and I turned it into a lot.

One thing I've learned about money is that when you marry someone who's got it, you feel different about it. All those plans and dreams I'd had while in art school … they were still there, don't get me wrong. Helping struggling artists was and is important. But spending Mitchell's money didn't seem like the right way to go about doing things.

I wish I could say that we struck a deal, but Mitchell would be insulted if I even hinted that's what happened. He was always very clear about it: I was a full partner in our marriage but it was still a man's job to provide. He'd been saving up for the day when he'd be able to provide for his family -- at least, that's what he said. The truth is somewhere closer to the band's touring schedule, which didn't leave any of the guys with time to spend what they were making, although Trevor sure tries.

Basically, Mitchell's attitude meant that the money I earned from my art was mine. By this point, I was long out of art school, so my vision had expanded. One thing I've learned is that the art community at large has needs, even in a city as art-friendly as Riverview.

The point in all of this is that without Mitchell's money, I wouldn't be able to be the huge supporter of the scene that I am. He gave me this comfortable cushion that I needed to establish before I could give my own income away. Otherwise, I'd be giving away my own rent money, and that defeats the purpose; I'd need the help I'm otherwise giving.

What I guess I need to say is that it took more than just a million dollars to make all of this possible. That a million dollars doesn't go very far anymore. Not like back in the days of the Rockefellers and the Roosevelts, whose wealth was astronomical for the times. Now, I meet ShapeShifter fans who are millionaires, and they are sometimes, the most down-to-earth people you'll ever find. Some of them still struggle to make ends meet, the way I did when I was a penniless art student, cleaning a drag queen's apartment instead of paying rent.

My advice to any new millionaire is to invest it. All of it. Let it be the springboard for the change you want to see in the world -- even if that change is only that you now want to spend a grand on a pair of shoes that won't be in fashion next week, just for the fun of it. A million isn't what it used to be. Spend it wisely and make it last as long as you possibly can.

Labels: Kerri, meme, millions, money