What purpose does money serve in your life?

Money is a very transient substance in my life.  It can be many things to many people.  In my life, it's affords me the opportunity to do the things i want to do in life.  It's afforded me knowledge (Purchasing this laptop so that i'd have the opportunity to share my thoughts w/ you here ;p) will help me to see a  bit of the world, helped a bit of it, and afforded some fun for me along the way.  By  no means am i well off, and in a lot of ways i'm glad, beacause it's given me a specific kind of perspective in that i know what it feels like to go without,  and it's where the love in my family made me feel like the richest person in the world.

Apropos, the topic in question comes a day after i won a contest in which i am to receive a decent sum of the stuff.  Kinda surreal, i don't quite know what what i'm going to do with it, but i'm sure the answers will come.