Last Minute Luxuries

One of my favorite books is about a businessman who buys an entire country on a whim (out of a catalog). Okay, so I admit it isn’t a real country, and there are a few strange creatures that complicate his purchase, but for some reason I just never tire of reading it.

With Christmas just over, there are still lots of excuses to buy last minute gifts. So, I wondered what sort of weird, expensive and unusual gifts I could find, in a catalog, if money was not even a consideration. And, lucky for you, most of these can still be ordered in time for New Year!

• Complete with a library (books included), a customized herb garden, and an elegant chandelier, this very posh Chicken Coop comes with your own, personally selected, heritage hens. ($100,000.)
• I love this Written Word Clock that tells me the time, simply and kindly, in words that require almost no brain power on my behalf.  eg. 4:21pm = Twenty-one minutes past four p.m. ($219.95)
• An umbrella with an honest to goodness, lifetime guarantee (really). At $200. it will pay for itself (eventually). In the interest of staying dry, I will cautiously trade practicality for good-looks, and ignore the fact that it is quite boring to look at.
• If I had my own private plane, then of course this would be my suitcaseof choice ($87,000. does seem like a lot, but at least it is real leather). I tried to find out how much my plane would cost, but apparently that is a negotiable issue.  I did, however, find out that you can get a used one for as little as 2 million, but would I really want a used, inexpensive private plane? Hmm….probably not.
• In a slightly (not much) generous moment, I would also buy thesesterling silver condiment lids for all my friends who love Marmite, Jam and Ketchup. Fortunately, they do come with a full jar, but it does make you wonder what happens when they’ve finished the contents. Do I keep them supplied with Ketchup, month after month, or do I give them strict instructions to wash and re-use? (which seems a bit gauche for $150.).
• Finally, just because I can, I would have to have this miniature, signed, original illustration by Garth Williams, that was done for the book “Little Fur Family” in 1946. ($7,500.)

Why not spend some time coming up with your own luxury list; it is a lot of fun imagining what you could get, and you will be a amazed at what is out there! Why not dream a little, and begin with the Neiman Marcus Fantasy Gift List for 2012.….

Photograph of Chickens, from, where else, but “Better Hens and Gardens!”