My friend Desiree is an astronomy addict. She and her husband, Mitch, were the ones who took me to the George Observatory a few weeks ago to take my first real look at Saturn. She also found out that she could do way more star-gazing for free if she joined a few astronomy clubs in and around our area.

At her first meeting, they showed her a close-up of the moon like she had never seen before on a 42” screen attached to a Takahashi telescope. She’s now jonesing for this $18,000 astronomy machine…

The weird thing is, even though I’m a frugal, money-hoarding squirrel, I think she should get one if it would truly enhance her happiness.

I greatly value happiness. I also believe that money can be used as a tool to achieve greater contentment. Being in the poor house doesn’t lead to peace of mind, so I also highly value budgeting.

So, I suggest saving for a HUGE splurge the same way you’d save for anything else. Set aside a certain amount of money from every paycheck for the item of your dream.

Desiree could be the proud owner of a Takahashi in 5 years or less (depending on interest) by setting aside $300 a month. If that is too steep, she could put aside $150 a month for 10 years and take advantage of technological advancement while she waits. As newer models come out, the older models are bound to be marked down.

In the meantime, she can happily use the impressive telescopes that the clubs provide. She may discover that she doesn’t even want to buy her own at all…although I saw the awe in her eyes when she was simply using a lesser telescope. I see a Takahashi in her future.

What are you saving up for? Anything crazy in your future?

I know my husband wanted his own pinball machine for a while, but now I see him developing dreams around Curling. I personally have aspirations for an Alaskan cruise.