I think the revelation about wealth came to me at a swanky hotel once.

I had the same experience when I stayed at the Waldorf-Astoria. It was a nice enough place and the location couldn't be beat, but for $400 a night, I was expecting something more than "nice enough." Hell, we didn't even get free coffee, which is always available at the Hampton Inn/Red Roof Inn that I can stay at for a hell of a lot cheaper when I drive out to visit my mom.

I have a really ambivalent relationship with money--I love it, don't make enough of it to live the way I want to live (and grew up expecting to live with my success in school; it didn't translate to success in life, unfortunately), and right now, I just want to make enough between my two jobs so I can pay off my credit cards, get a new computer and TV, afford my diet food until I lose some more of this weight, and then maybe see if I can get a better paying job when I'm several sizes smaller and feel presentable at an interview.

I've been at this company for fifteen years, so the idea of job-hunting now frightens me to death, especially in this changing marketplace, but I can't afford to retire on what I'm making here (no pension, and the 401(k) deposits they make every year are not enough to live for one year after retirement, let alone the hopefully 20 years I'll need). If I do get accepted by the library school next year, I'll stick around until I get my degree, but that's it.

What bugged me most about Kremen was when he said, "You’re nobody here at $10 million." I took it to mean he'd really look down on the "little people" like, well, all of us. But the more I think about it, I think he's just complaining on how hard it is to be a big fish in his pond. So yeah, if you want to "stand out" wealth-wise in his neighborhood (ignoring the issue of whether that's good or wise), it's tough, and 10 mil won't cut it.

I dunno - what do other people think about his use of "nobody" in that sentence?

I think most people, at least in the US, tend to expand their lifestyle to live just beyond their means, so it's easy to feel like anyone living in the same area making just slightly less would be screwed.

I've yet to see better value from a hotel room than the one that gave me proof of an afterlife for $160/night.

I think the only tangible benefit from wealth that I appreciate seems to come from service. It's nice to have a concierge that you can ask to do whatever. It's nice to not have to perform certain tasks. But I don't know if I have the right mentality to deal with service workers. I like them. I want to hang out with them. I have trouble asking for stuff. So in my day to day life, even if I could afford it, I think I'd rather handle most of the gruntwork myself.

bon, for the record, I don't think you're an asshole. I think this guy's asshole perception is coming from a couple of places. First, those of us outside of that environment perceive that his comparison scale is off-kilter from ours. And secondly, I think people feel like he has chosen that lifestyle for himself (work location, home location, job, hours, pay scale) but is complaining about it. Either it's miserable enough that he should (and clearly could) leave, or it's something he can choose to live with and he should (and clearly could) stay. I think it's the complaining part that's making people react to him.

Also, okay, what are people's gas prices right now? I think we're around $2.85 in Arizona. Dana, yours are definitely low; we always fill up when we're in Oklahoma & Texas. You'd think that New Mexico would be low, too, we're driving past all those oil rigs, but no, theirs was usually higher than Arizona, although not right now.

I, like Kathy, have an ambivalent relationship with money. I'm well-paid, but the cost of living around here is nuts. And in many ways, the House O' Reason is a one-income house, because freelance art is not exactly a lucrative gig. (Pete has a whole rant about it.) We're doing well enough that we can eat out when we want, I can buy most of the toys and clothes I want if I save my spending money for a few weeks, and the only debt we have is the mortgage. But I wouldn't call us wealthy by any stretch.

Upstate NY- $3.05 for gas

Halifax: The average price is $1.09/liter. (a little less than x4 for per gallon.)

Dana, yours are definitely low; we always fill up when we're in Oklahoma & Texas.

Yeah, we're usually around the national average, if not below it. I paid $2.69/gallon for my last tank of gas, though I do make an effort to find the lowest price around, within reason.