Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Sick and Rich

While watching "Football Night in America" this past Sunday, Bob Costas stated that Keith Olbermann wouldn't be there to go over highlights because he had strep throat. This got me to thinking: Even if one is a millionaire, they're not immune to sickness. Having a boatload of money doesn't mean all your days will be lived in pleasure. For just a moment, I realized that having a lot of money might be a tad overrated.

An incident from 10 years ago brought home the same point. I was driving in downtown Rochester and saw a 30-something lady at the wheel of what looked to be a very expensive convertible. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that she was singing along to a Celine Dion song.



You would think that if someone is loaded, they would have access to more "refined" music, but here she was listening to one of the top recording artists of the day. As she drove ahead, it comforted me to know I didn't have to make 100 grand a year to hear the best that the music world has to offer. *insert Celine joke of your choice*

Full disclosure: I saw Celine in Vegas in 2005 and have to admit that I do like several of her songs. She closed her Vegas show with this one.

9 comments:

houstonmacbro said...

Yeah, I think most people think millionaires are completely different. I used to have a boss who was a certified millionaire and he drove an old beat up car, had ratty looking clunky shoes, but lived in a modest Washington, DC house that he had bought for $40,000 but with appreciation was well into the millions of dollars. He was just the most normal person you'd meet and you would NEVER suspect he was loaded.

Brian Mongold said...

The rich and the famous are just like us, they just have more materialistic items in their possession.

Where some of us have stress regarding how we are going to pay a bill, they have different stress such as paparazzi and staying fit. I couldn't imagine having TMZ follow me around everywhere, then make fun of me whether I was nice or rude to them.

Paige said...

Really? You liked Celine Dion? I agree with you on so many things (or so I have come to discover) but definitely not the Celine thing. I don't like a single song of hers.
I am also totally intrigued to know what you think well off people listen to....

Sarah said...

i'm a sport... i'll give it a go and report back.

Rocketstar said...

Evolution knows nothing about money.

Thomas said...

Houston, nice to hear that not all millionaires fit the typical stereotype. One of my favorite songs speaks to this:

"He said the only difference is what you're gettin' paid
He didn't care that everybody knew my name
He said it's all for nothin' if you don't stay the same"

Brian, I agree that the rich have different stresses. In general, the more money you have, the more you worry about losing it. With the economy in its present condition, it might almost be better to have less to lose.

Paige, I think the rich listen almost exclusively to gangsta rap.

Sarah, I could watch any Celine video 5 times in a row at full blast before electing to watch the first 30 seconds of Kid Rock's "Warrior" video.

Rocket, you said it. Evolution is completely indifferent to such things.

Timothy Smith said...

They say money cant buy happiness but if you manage it correctly it can buy security.

In my pursuit to make more money this is indeed all I am after, security.

It does not buy happiness at all, I can attest to that as the favorite times in my life was when I was starting my company and living out of my truck!

But when you have more financial security it does tend to reduce stress and free your mind of such problems.

If you chase after material goods you end up in more trouble. Things you own tend to own you (fight club quote).

If you are even in a position where you make good money my advice is to keep your lifestyle the same. Then the money does in fact buy you security, lowers stress and indeed can improve ones life.

If you bring your lifestyle up to match your new found wealth you are right back where you started from, worrying about money.

Sometimes its best to carefully think about what you want because you may just get it. I always wanted employees and a successful company but now I worry about my employees making enough and I have added a whole new level of stress to my life.

I often wonder if life would be easier making less and having a 9-5 job. I am sure it would be less stressful.

I do not envy the rich and famous, they seem to have no privacy and most have no moral direction to their lives.

Your health is everything!

Thomas said...

Tim, can't argue with you on the value of financial security. It surprises me how reticent so many are to put money away.

I only buy big-ticket items when they're really necessary, like the bed purchase from a couple months back. I'm also not too hot on having the latest gadgets (iPod, flat-screen TV, high definition, razr phone) just because they're new.

Ah, yes, "Fight Club". What an excellent comment the film is on the times we're living in. So many of us live beyond our means without thinking of the long term.

Perhaps one day, if you really want it (and have enough socked away), you can have the 9 to 5 job you mentioned. In the meantime, you seem to have a good program going as far as exercise, eating right, reading interesting books, and spending time with family.

Stress will inevitably creep up no matter what one does. Therefore, having the skills to positively deal with it are invaluable in my mind.

Anonymous said...

I've known a few "rich" people in my lifetime, and honestly, they've never seemed much different.

www.silverneurotic.weebly.com