I have had good jobs that paid well, with company cars and expense accounts. And they came with Freedom and Power. And Travel.

I have owned my own successful business that yielded up to $200,000 per year.

I owned prime property and had a net worth over $500,000.

It does not matter what you have had or what you want. It can all be taken from you very quickly. You can get Sick. You can go through a nasty Divorce. Or Mother Nature can take away your Investments.

You fall off the middle class merry-go-round and it is hard to get back on. You are a walking wounded. And you find many others around you in the same condition.

Today I am living on about $12,000 per year. I have Health Insurance and do not have to rely on any handouts or Government Services. I am happy driving a 20 year old car. I have less Stress and call my own shots. And I feel that I am just taking a break and developing a Passion for the next Major Undertaking of my Life [as of yet undetermined but just brewing under the surface of my being].

So to those who are striving to be where I have once been – continue to do so. Do so with a Passion that burns in your gut and makes you feel more than a Cog in someone else’s Wheel. Do not do a bunch of what-ifs, just do.

You may never get a bloody nose like I did – but whatever you do, you will have no regrets.

Just be prepared to have it all taken away from you in a blink of an eye! Some things and events are uninsurable.

And remember that your goal in life can and WILL change many times in your life. But you will have an edge everytime that was not present before – Experience!.

Also, one does not need a lot of “Stuff” to enjoy life. And the stuff one owns, does not need to be the newest and greatest.

So after reading the article and comments, my advice is to establish a Passion, a Passion that burns in your gut. A Passion that does not have to be measured in Dollars, but something that defines yourself to you and to others.

Even though I struggle with the feeling that I have been hit with a bad luck stick [there are some significant health concerns I must deal with], I remind myself that I have a lot of Experience locked up in me that will be valuable in my next venture/s.

Thanks for the article – it stirred some thoughts in me.

I ended up cutting my thoughts on toeing the line between accepting “charity” and sponging off of others out of my entry since it made things too longwinded, but your points are valid and worth addressing. I’ll put my response in a new entry, since it’s an interesting springboard for discussion.

Well, that’s it, then. I’m going to write to the University that granted me my Masters and ask for my money back, in that case. I was promised riches, chalets in the Alps, potential love interests falling at my feet…. They failed to deliver on all accounts. =)

Actually, to be frank, I planned to be a college professor originally, and increased my earning potential by choosing another career path in the corporate world. Had I spent the extra years and $10,000s to get my Ph.D. as I’d originally wanted to do, I’d probably be earning even less now. I’ll count my blessings, I suppose.

You’re right about contractors, although an important thing to remember since my partner happens to be one is that it’s almost like a career in rugby–it’s hard on your body, harder still to get insurance or disability coverage, and at a certain age you need to find another field. It’s a career path with an expiration date.

I’m quite curious what you do for a living now, by the way.

If only we could all get paid alimony because we refuse to get a job or if only we were all comfortable stealing food from starving children via the food bank maybe we could all be as frugal as her. She even mentioned that she would get food stamps if she could. It seems almost miraculous that a system which allows people to misuse it so regularly found a way to at least not shoulder her fake burden on society as well!

This woman is an example, certainly, of how you can try to put a positive spin on the most dispicable of activities.

And I firmly believe also, it’s not what you make, it’s what you spend! She has the right idea about handmedowns. People throw away perfectly good stuff all the time, and a keen eye can get great stuff for very little money.

Although on a side note, I would be pretty crushed if my wife abandoned me because she “needed to change her life”.