Red 22

I'm not a fan of uncalculated risks. I don't ride motorcycles. I always wear my seat belt. I floss every day.

However, and perhaps ironically, I am a big fan of calculated risks. I once quit a great job because my boss was not fulfilling his promise to find me adequate office space (he let me quit, and then called two days later and said he'd found the space). I've been para-sailing, scuba diving, and canopy swinging. I've boldly taken jobs I didn't know how to do, and moved to new cities where I knew not a soul. I've been on dozens of blind dates. I consider myself gutsy, but not stupid.

Many of these risks push me outside my comfort zone. And although I know and love my comfort zone, I also realize its important to step outside the padded room and take a healthy, calculated risk with a good chance of return now and then. I consider the inability to take the plunge when the cards look good a major liability in life.

Talk is cheap, but I had the opportunity to put my money where my mouth is recently. My mother was in town shopping for a condo near me in which she would reside part-time. This second residence would allow her to have a home near me and my sister, and would allow her to see and (let's be honest) help raise the grandchildren which are hopefully soon to come. Not what she ever thought she'd be doing at age 71, and not what I thought I'd be doing at age 39, but here we are.

We looked at several overpriced, underwhelming condos and were both disappointed. Then our realtor told us she had a nice ranch for us to view, and asked us to meet her at the tail end of an Open House the next day so she could walk us to the ranch.

We arrived at the Open House with 15 minutes to spare and it was immediately apparent that this property was all wrong for my mother -- lots of stairs, views of the ocean, not appropriate for a part-time property. And yet I was mesmerized, "This is amazing. This is amazing. This is amazing." The realtor slyly suggested, "You could always buy this place, and your mother could buy yours."

Ding! Ding! Ding!

But I'm not in the market for a new property. But this place has lots of stairs. But I never thought I'd shell out money for a water view. But I'd have to MOVE!!!

And yet, it just felt right. I could picture myself in this new condo. My mother was more excited about living in my familiar space than in a new condo she didn't know. This was a one in a million opportunity. And, although I like to squirrel my money away like acorns for an eternal winter, I could afford this place.

When a great, calculated risk comes along -- be it a relationship, a job, an investment, or a new home --- and it offers a substantial chance of gain, you've got to take it. Its uncomfortable, its scary, and its terribly exciting. At that moment you have to take all of your chips, put them on Red 22, and spin the wheel. And that my friends, is why I just purchased a new home.