a view, legroom, and an expensive bag

I must confess that the Vanity Fair magazine is one of my rare personal indulgences, mon petit péché mignon if you will. It’s like a virtual window-shopping for the finer things in life, a glimpse behind the scenes of the lives of movers and shakers, and insightful tidbits on geography, art, architecture, and science (albeit in much smaller proportions than the vain stuff)… all rolled into one. To me, reading my latest issue, every month, is like traveling around the world, without ever leaving my cozy lounge chair, in the company of people who do it without hardly any before- or after-thought. And in style!

So here I was, having made myself comfortable, with my cup of coffee at hand, entirely enthralled in the latest issue, when I ran into this:

Now, at that point, I had no idea who L’Wren Scott was (unbelievable, I know, that a self-declared bag connoisseur like me had never heard of the Lula bag, shameful oversight, shameful, really!) and would have completely dismissed her and her “stuff” as yet another rich eccentric with too much time and money on her hands, had I not read this phrase: “Necessary extravagances: a view, legroom seat, and an expensive bag”.

I stopped dead on my tracks.

THAT IS SO ME!

• A view: I would rather come back home two days early but stay in a room with a view during my vacation. ME!
• Seat with legroom: I would totally forgo my yearly vacation and travel every third year instead, if I could do it in business or, dare I say it, first class. ME!!
• An expensive bag: Hello!! Have you met me?!? ME, ME, ME!!!

Cue in dream sequence:

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Me, on a business (or dare I say it, first) class trip to Paris...

where I would stay in a gorgeous room with a beautiful view...

               
                           





which I would leave only to go buy myself an expensive bag! 

                             




                               Ahhhh, heaven.

(le paradis, with crêpe-au-chocolat on top)

~  * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Wait... let me indulge for a few moments more... ahhhh yessss ~ sigh ~ heaven!

The idea of necessary extravagances is not some new epiphany exclusive to only the few who can afford them. We all have something for which we are willing to shell the extra hard-earned bucks, even though we know it’s not entirely warranted or even necessary in some cases. Some people have to have their Starbucks even though they have a perfectly adequate coffee machine at home; some indulge in the collection of expensive shoes; some in different kinds of perfume. I have a friend who owns the same Louis Vuitton bag and wallet, in all the available colors, which she does not use! She lovingly keeps them stored in a specifically designated area in her closet, and she takes them out from time to time (I suspect when life gets to be too much), dusts them off, parades herself in front of her mirror adorned with a matching set, and just as lovingly puts them back in the closet. To her, that’s a necessary extravagance.

Whether it’s a fancy car, stamps, figurines, cigars, or, oh I don’t know, maybe even bags, we all have something that we know we shouldn’t acquire, yet can’t help but do. And it gives us immense pleasure, akin to what I presume the Umaid Bhawan Palace in Jodhpur gives to one “sky-scraping beauty” that is L’Wren Scott. Cheers, darling, be sure to say hi to the Maharaja for me!

 What is your little guilty pleasure? What is your necessary extravagance?