At lunch, hubby and I discussed going out for dinner that night.

"I have an idea," my hubby exclaimed.

"Do tell," I responded.

"We'll pack up the bikes, drive over to the Glen, then bike into town, have dinner in town, and drive back to the Glen." This was an alternate plan to our normal routine of dinner at home, followed by a walk—our new get-into-shape regime.

Later that day, he packed up the bikes. We got stuck only a block from our home—road construction kept us waiting about 15 minutes. During that time, we fiddled with the bike lock, trying a number of possible combinations until he surprised me and remembered the combination. Even so, the correct combination worked only some of the time. Scrap the idea of leaving the bikes and going to a restaurant. A new plan emerged. "We'll get to the park, I'll stay, and you get the Chinese takeout and bring it back," I suggested.

All proceeded as planned. It was a beautiful evening, temperature about 70 degrees, with a light breeze. The Chinese takeout was good. My fortune was sort of OK... "Hard work without talent is a shame, but talent without hard work is a tragedy." The ride back was a bit more stressed, being slightly uphill, but we made it.

On the ride back, hubby asked, "How do you feel?" 

"What do you mean?" I replied.

"Are you happy? Or are you very happy? Or are you very, very happy? Or are you very, very, very happy? Or are you ecstatically happy?" 

"I'm very happy." I responded. He was clearly deflated. "If I am very, very happy or very, very, very happy, then you can't do any better. There will be no new goals to aim for. And consider, the ride back was uphill. It would have been better if it were downhill. Then, the Chinese food was good, but there are better cuisines."

"No, you don't understand," hubby continued. "Consider this: Would you be happy if you had $100,000?"

"Yes," I said.  

"Would you be happier if you had $100,001?"

"Yes." 

"Would you be happier still if you had $200,000?"

"Yes, I would."

"OK, would you be happier if you had $1,000,000?"

"Why yes, yes," I happily replied.

"Would you be even happier if you had $1,000,000,000?"

"Yes, yes, I would."

"That's it!" hubby said. 'I can't make you very, very happy at any price."

I guess I am not getting the $1,000,000,000, either.

Adele Zagofsky