Bested!

Do you insist on the best of everything?  Perhaps we need to define "best."  Is it the highest caliber available in its class, or the highest caliber available in your class? Within your personal parameters, how do you decide what works best, for you?

Isolated decisions may require prioritizing, weighing costs/benefits. A new car, even a home improvement. But how about a whole new house? A gabillion new things, requiring a gazillion discriminating choices. Or not -- you could just let someone else design your lifestyle. Yeah ... nah.

A wise person advised: Select an area upon which to lavish attention; pull back on others. The kitchen versus the laundry room, then. The master suite versus lesser bedrooms, the entry hall versus the stairwell, easy enough. But ... the salon versus the kitchen? There may arise a logic problem. Because if you prefer A over B, and B over C, then you must prefer A over C. Right? Alrighty, then.  Do you? Or do you prioritize your kitchen over your bedroom and your bedroom over your salon and your salon over your kitchen? Ahh.

Another wisdom: Select a few features for maximum impact; economize on the rest. Okay! Stone countertops versus high-end appliances. Polished cement versus floor tiles. The fireplace surround versus the ... hmmmm, trouble. What gives? Turns out, it's actually easier to give up an entire feature (dumb waiter) than to choose between integrated sinks and standard porcelain. The fixtures you love -- the ones you like well enough -- or the stuff for which you settle?

You might think affordability would simply decide it all. Think again. Or don't even try, because the
wily human mind will out-justify you. Say you win a thousand house-dedicated dollars! Where will you spend it? More to the point -- how often will you spend it? It would reduce the cost of the custom front door. Or the panel-front fridge. Or ... how about adding an accent wall in the bedroom? And there you blithely go, convinced that windfall has saved you money.

Here's another sneaky mind angle: You get an estimate for integrated sinks, compared to standard sinks. Frugal you then starts checking out standard sinks. Upon which, you come across a hand-hammered copper sink! Which costs more than an integrated sink!  Logic be damned.

The best, then?  It's the best you can do.  Whatever.  Being human.