How Bill Gates Spoils Himself

When you're the world's second-richest man, you can have anything you want. So what, exactly, does Bill Gates buy when he's feeling indulgent? Books, he tells Mary Riddell for the Telegraph. "I buy a lot of books, which is nice. I just buy them.” Travel makes the list, too. First-class, asks Riddell, quickly realizing "that this is like wondering if the queen takes the bus." Replies Gates, “No, even better than that. I happen to have a plane. But beyond that extravagance, how much food can you eat, how many clothes can you wear?"

Continues Gates, who says he plays tennis, bridge, and skis, “My kids go to a nice school, and I have an exercise machine that I should use more. Beyond a reasonably limited amount, it all goes to charity, but in no sense have I denied myself anything I wanted. I just didn’t happen to want to build a pyramid and own many things." Should his kids want said pyramid, they'll have to build it on their own. Gates says he's leaving "well over 95%" of his fortune to his foundation, adding that “once they graduate from college, then they’re largely on their own." (But if they come home to visit, they're in for a treat. Click here for more on his mansion.)