child vs handbag.

Three Moms and a Single is a facebook page run by, well, by three moms and a single. These ladies, one of whom is a regular reader and commenter here at A Million Miles from Normal, write about all sorts of interesting issues that might be relevant to a mom, or sometimes to a single. It's a good site full of interesting info, so check it out if it sounds like it floats your boat and you get a sec.

Anyway the reason I mention them is that one of their current articles is based on a study released recently by the USDA, that middle-income parents spend a total of $222,360 to raise one child through the age of 17.

That folks, is a grand total of R1.67164089 million. Yup almost two million South African Ronds.

So, since I'm usually pretty single, and don't think I ever want children of my own (would be potentially cruel to inflict these dodgy genes on another generation), I thought I'd do a little study of what I could buy for the R1.67164089 million I won't be spending on a 0-17 year old.

Now please don't get me wrong, I love children. I have twelve nieces and nephews who I'm crazy about and all my friends have some of the most gorgeous kids in the world. So I'm not a baby hater, I just don't choose to go down that road myself. So, now that we've got that sorted, let's take a look.

People, if this study is anything to go by, I could have a seventeen year old or I could have one of these:




(thanks gav)

Or

Courtesy of Pam Golding, I could have this charming Victorian cottage in Claremont, Cape Town (Three bedrooms, two bathrooms):




Or 52 of these:


(At around R30k a pop.)

Or a good couple of weeks here:













Or 5 572 grams of cocaine:



Or

Bail for possession of 5572 grams of cocaine!

Kids, some say they're priceless. Others would, more often than not, rather trade theirs in for the Audi R8.