OCU,
re: "BTW, using the above salary/net worth criteria, where does that place YOU?"
Salary-wise, I'm doing decently. Middle class.
My longstanding policy has been to not discuss my cumulative wealth. I don't see that there's anything to be gained from it, and (experience has shown) such announcements invariably get thrown back at a person as either unimpressive ... or bragging. And who's to say that it's not? This is the internet. Why should whatever I say be believed?
I also regard it as no one else's business. You made the mistake of volunteering your information - and look at all the ribbing that's resulted. (While it's tempting to think of you guys as friends, some things should probably be kept under wraps.)
I will say that, like you, I've been employed almost continually since I was very young, and that I put myself through school on my own. Now someone's probably going to come back with, 'But I bet it was a state-funded college, right???' - to which I can only *sigh* and say that it's hard to find a decent college in California that is not.
Except for an older sister who divorced and went on welfare when she was 35+, no member of my family has ever done anything to be ashamed of. No convictions, no welfare or food stamps, no aborted babies or tolerance for those who don't pull their weight. Most of us eat meat. When I was a child, my family had it hard for a time. I spent more than a year living in a 16 foot trailer with no bathroom, six occupants, and walls that would cake with ice at night from condensation off of our breath. But rent was $30/month, and we got by.
Given my fairly humble origins, I think I've done okay. Unfortunately, if I faced similar challenges today, I probably couldn't succeed. There's too much government, too many government-induced obstacles, and a government-bungled economy that has caused prices to soar.
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