Writer: A person who writes. The definition assumes neither the interest nor even the existence of a reader.
People make mistakes. It's in their nature to do so. People with money make much larger and more expensive mistakes and because of the money, the mistakes are often more spectacular than mistakes made by people of lessor means.
I have learned that practically speaking the only thing you can do with money that is any fun at all is to spend it. People of wealth, especially people of suddenly acquired wealth are quite likely, therefore, to try to trade large amounts of this suddenly acquired wealth for things that they think will bring them commensurate happiness. They nearly always trade for things. People of wealth seldom think of spending money where there is nothing physically received in return. Education, charity, or endowments are seldom the first things considered.
Now and then one of them will think of building a castle in the desert. They see a photograph of a magnificent structure built high on a hill with a majestic mountain range in the background and imagine how perfectly wonderful it would be to live in such a splendid castle in such a splendid environment, so far from the madding crowd. They would have an estate and become a landed gentleman or lady.
So they purchase land and cause their castle to be constructed in the desert. One can spend a lot of money in this way and end up with a very beautiful thing. Then comes the difficulties. Unforeseen difficulties will certainly appear.
While the castle was under construction, the wealthy couple or family lived in a beautiful apartment in the city some distance away from the construction site. They enjoyed the benefits of the large city, its schools, its shops, and its entertainment opportunities. They enjoy adventuring to the construction site, marvelling over the transition being performed on once empty land.
Once completed, the family moves into the castle in the desert and all the romance is swept away in an instant. Nothing is close by. An awful lot of nothing is very close by. That was exactly the dream, now become a nightmare.
Everything with which they are familiar is now at a great distance from the castle. Considerable time is required away from one's roost in paradise to enjoy these once-familiar pleasures.
In brief, the newly wealthy soon tire of their posh existence in a palace on an estate far from anything at all and give it up, vowing to spend vacations there but to live in an apartment in the city. Over time, the vacations become fewer, then shorter. Eventually they stop. The castle begins its new life with a pair of caretakers who keep it up enough for showings and active enough to ward off vandals, or marauding bands of Indians for all the owners know of this environment.
During this phase of the castle's new life, attempts are made to sell it. The price is based roughly on the amount spent constructing it. No one with the right combination of money and mental simplicity comes along to buy it at that price. It is so high that no buyer is found and no offers are received. The price is slowly and reluctantly reduced. This attracts the very occasional home tour but no offers. There are simply no takers at any price. No one wants to live in someone else's dream with really incredible maintenance costs and the inconvenience of total isolation.
As an additional drawback, it is rumored that the estate borders on an Indian reservation, for heaven's sake. This is something the owners failed to learn during the negotiations leading up to the purchase and construction of their castle. They must now consider the neighborhood.
The Castle was worth any amount as a dream. The realisation is so nearly worthless that it can't even be given away. Except that it can be, in one sort of way.
This is where my story begins.