lol, I can understand, David
I feel almost embarrassingly spoiled by what we have available to us in the sense that I could have likely done my own for a fraction of the cost, and would have had much greater satisfaction.
However, on the positive side, I had an old retaining wall that we had taken down because it was leaning heavily. It consisted of 90lb rectangles of nearly solid concrete. Instead of having them hauled away, I chose a site in the back yard and built a fire ring approximately six feet in diameter. The intended use is to have a place to stand around when we want a campfire, and especially on new Year's eve when we have a gathering of friends.
Once it was built, I added a few blocks extending toward the center from the edge of the ring, and my intent is to top it with a bbq grill (but now Grill Grates due to the excellent information on this forum) Then I'll be able to do a bit of wood fired grillin' around the campfire.
Another unit I would like to build is a circular table large enough for 6 chairs. My youngest is a welder and I'll ask him to build a metal frame on which I can place a circular granite slab with a hole in the center (looks like a granite doughnut). Into the hole in the center I plan to put a burner (likely gas, but maybe charcoal), and then have different cook tops I can place on top of the burner depending on what I want to do. For instance, a Korean bbq topper, a paella pan, fondue pot, circular cast iron cook surface, etc. We would be able to all sit around the table and individually cook our goodies while socializing. Talk about socializing around the fire