But something someone said to me offhandedly over a year ago stuck in my mind. "There are no modern-day Medicis," she said. "Corporations and foundations send grants to museums and theatres. Occasionally, a wealthy matron or civic-minded financier will pony up to buy a bust or underwrite a fund-raiser. And the National Endowment for the Arts offers what little it can to artists and musicians. But where will the next Renaissance come from? Who is helping the dreamers make their dreams real?" I won't pretend that I'm trying to make anyone's dreams come true, except maybe my own. But I booted up Quicken last year and told it to divert a little bit?not a lot, but not an insignificant amount either?from every paycheck I deposited into a separate account. I called it "Medici", told Quicken to fill it and tried to put it out of my mind. But then, throughout the year, when I saw a chance to help someone on their way to a dream or a passion or a way to bring beauty or interest into the world, I took a little out of my Medici fund and I gave it away. It's entirely self-serving on my part, not because I expect their gratitude, but because I expect that at some point, it's going to pay a dividend to me that can't be calculated in interest points. It will bring a little bit of music into the world. It will brighten my life through their creation or, at the very least, through my being able to share their joy in the act of creating.
via anil: <blockquote>I believe in the idea of everyone being a Medici, except without the nasty Medici habit of infiltrating the papacy. (“Pope Hacking”, coming soon from O’Reilly.)</blockquote>