In addition to a big new house, it buys servants, private schools and nice vacations.

NPR: India's Doctors Returning Home

Dallas, fearful of being outdone by Houston's top-notch Wortham arts centre, will soon have a spanking new opera house and a big theatre complex.

ECONOMIST: Beyond oil

Fitzgerald boasted to friends in New York that he'd found a big house on the shore with a private beach, near the casino.

WSJ: The Roaring Riviera: A Guide to Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald's C?te d'Azur

He went to Niger, drank mint tea with government flacks, and then wrote a big whiny piece in the New York Times after the White House declined to accept his assurances nothing was going on.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Left-hand/right-hand disconnect spells CAIR-lessness

Writing down every dime that you spend on a latte, your favorite CD, or a much-needed manicure won't necessarily prevent you from falling into financial ruin, especially since most of the biggest financial headaches are those really big expenses like putting a new roof on your house.

NPR: Untangle Your Finances Before Tying the Knot

He plays Will Randall, the senior editor at a New York publishing house, who gets sacked by the big boss (Christopher Plummer) in favor of the slimy Stewart (a fine turn by James Spader) and vows revenge.

NEWYORKER: Wolf

At the same time, within the big markets, a range of new genres hip-hop, trip-hop, lounge, acid house, acid jazz, and many, many more are growing at the expense of the mainstream.

ECONOMIST: The record industry takes fright