Tough Decision 1.1

• Step One:  DEFINING MY DECISION:  I have a tough decision to make in my personal life that some of you may think this is not a hard decision, but to me it is one of the toughest decisions I have to make in the next few weeks.  My friend who I have known for over 30 years is getting married and she has asked me to be a bridesmaid.  Her wedding date is next January giving me plenty of time to do what I have to if I accept.  That is an honor, but this is the tough part:  she lives back in Michigan where I would have to go for the wedding and take time off work and make flight arrangements etc. and the biggest thing at this point is: can I honestly afford it because I would have to buy a bridesmaid dress, shoes, flight, rent a car, motel, spending money, take time off from work, and even though I have known this person for over 30 years and keep in contact with her, I have some wonders if the tables were turned would she do the same for me?

• Step Two:  CONSIDER THE POSSIBLE CHOICES:  I have several choices that I can make at this point:   the first is to accept her offer and start making arrangements now and if I find that later on down the line I can't afford this, I could make up something and call her to say I can't do it.  .  I can graciously decline and explain to her that it would cost me too much to do this.  I also have the choice to accept her and start planning early in stages and purchase plane ticket when it gets really cheap, buy the dress closer to time, arrange hotel and rental car or just go for it and not look at the cost but that this is a friend of mine who wants me to be in her wedding party.

• Step Three:  PROS AND CONS:  There are a lot of pros and cons to this:  PROS:  I will enjoy the trip and see my friend get married and be a part of her day.  The trip is in January up in Michigan, where I can see snow again.  I have plenty of time to maneuver my funds and can purchase items in pieces.  I will be taking a couple of days off that I deserve for me.  My son has offered to pay for his ticket and go with me so I don't have to travel alone.  I will be seeing a lot of old college friends from Michigan, lots of them I have not seen for a long time.   CONS:  the trip will set me back at least a grand or two, I wonder if my friend would do this for me, I would need to let work know now for  coverage, it will be cold up there thus I would need to carry more snow clothes with me, I don't fly well, I am not that much of a party person especially when I have flown so many miles I will be very jet lag and tired out.

• Step Four:  MY BEST CHOICE:  I think at this point my best choice is to accept the offer and make purchases over a period of time so that I don't feel the pinch as much.  I would not be hurting a good friend's feelings, I would enjoy the time off, and basically make this time a great time to go back to Michigan, my home state and drive around the area just for fun.  .

• Step Five:  MY PLAN OF ACTION AND MONITORING MY RESULTS:  At this point my plan of action is to accept my friend and slowly start purchasing the things that I will need for this trip.  I will let my employer know of the days that I need off and get this approved.  Once the approval is official, I will have my son purchase the plane tickets, rental car, and motel as a package to save money.  In time, I will purchase the dress and any other miscellaneous things that I need so that when I fly to Michigan I can enjoy my time with a friend in her moments of glory and happiness knowing that I will be a part of her happiness.  I will be able to make time to drive around the area I used to live in and see the changes in 10 years that have been made.  It will probably make me really appreciate where I am now because the time of year she is getting married is January ... snow and usually lots of it..unpredictable weather conditions but ultimately my plan of action will be step by step until the day I fly out.