631|Get Rich Quick

What's a body but 23 proteins?

Taxes are coming up. Taxes blow when you don't expect to pay more money on top of the money you watch leave your paycheck. I was so worried when my mom told me that I might have to pay additional state taxes --I'm a student and have 25% of my check taken out already. 

There are ways to write off expenses like for business or charity. There are also forms like the 1090T form that prevents broke college kids like me from becoming even broker. The new tax bill past at the end of 2017 is something of debate. I am all for lower taxes. If I can work my shift and have enough money for groceries --I am a happy clam. I work three jobs --Learning Assistant, Teaching Assistant, and restaurant employee. All of my jobs combined, I still have about $10,000 in credit card debt already. The current tax bill proposed calls for taxes cuts and decreased interest rates to encourage more spending. Our hope is to help the weak economy climb out of its hole. Additional spending could mean increased business activity or even the starting of new businesses, which spells for a higher GDP that has been anchored at an all time low. 

But what is money?

I went to the store the other day and split my transaction between debit and credit. When I went to use my debit card, the teller laughed and said "you have to be careful, this is real money,"; but, it's not. That also is some sort of electronic connection --a pixelated translation of what my worth is. Real money, tangible money, in the United States is a mix of cotton and linen. Cotton has long cellulose fibers that make stronger connections than just wood-pulp paper. The practice of using "paper" money started back in China in the 7th century. The practice spread to Europe about 500 years later and was practiced in the Massachusetts colony in the 17th century. And these bills? These bills were notes from the bank representing the money you owned. 

What great sense of trust. 

I can barely trust my employer to pay me on time despite the fact that I know they will. Shit --I can barely trust myself to have enough money for all of my bills. But, instead of reminding middle class America how we continue to suffer financial and decrease in disposable income perccentage, I want to play a little game. 

Imaginge walking through campus and receiving two emails, all of your debt has been paid off and all of your expenses will be covered. The catch? No catch. My heart starts beating faster than hummingbird wings even thinking about that. For me, $10,000 in debt takes over two years to pay off. There exisits part of the population that can pay my debt in two hours and one stock trade. What is it like to look at items that are worth a couple of thousand dollars and feel fearless? My palms shake and cheeks flush every time the total is over a thousand. Like candy. What is the point of money if you can't spend it?

I think about investing and trading stocks but a loop holes comes into play that I wasn't aware of. If you have under $25,000 in capital in the market, you are limited to three trades a day. Furthermore, when you start trading big ticket stocks and a lot of player are involved, you only own less than a percent. In terms of big corporations, that's nothing. You need big money to start making big money back. Even savings! I earn 1% interest on my savings account, but if I have less than $1,000, I dont even make a cent.  But, there's 10% of the population that can be $10,000 down in a day and make it up in the matter of approving a bank transaction. Real money transaction linked to a savings account. 

How weightless to know you are only burdened by today. 

Imagine standing in the middle of downtown and realizing the next few hours of your life are pointless. The 9-5 job you have been working is now irrelevant and all you have is your own dignity. What do you do? Do you still go to work? Do you call the bank? Do you call your mom? If anything, I would realize how fleeting my existence really is. My goal to be paid off and earn my own money is very much so pointless if I had a million dollars in the banks. Would I finally be happy? I believe I work because I follow the norms of society. I moved out because I wanted to be independent and it was an expectation that society threw into my head. 

But now, I want to bring up a different side of things. I believe, like many women, I looked into being a stripper, a cam-girl, and an escort. Why not? I love myself and I love my body --why not celebrate being a woman and be spoiled? Strippers make about $10,000 more than I do right now --with my three jobs. The average stripper makes just under $50,000 and stay in this position for about 10 years. That amount of money, per year, can pay off almost my whole graduate program. Even on a bad day, if a stripper worked six hours, she could take home $500. That's a whole paycheck for 30 hours worth of work. But, this means long hours, sleezy men, and being physically fit. Something I don't have time for. I am not good at doing my make-up, I love to sleep, and I curb stomp all the mother fuckers who look at my crotch longer than my eyes. 

The current statistic is that there is 4% of the population working in the sex industry. This is a rough estimate for a couple of reasons. First off, this is an illegal industry for the most part. Second off, strippers pay to work their shifts and don't claim all of their earnings. Thirdly, some of these strippers are under the age of 18 and do not report as works. Very few countries have legalized prostitution and even then, illegal sex workers still exist. This is a dangerous industry that involves a lot of drugs and a lot of money with no reliable source. You don't know if the man under you has a gun in the back trunk or roofies in his pocket but you sure as shit know that you'll be facing the consequences. 

Every job is hard and every job is different. Each job comes with a set of morals, qualifications, and consequences. The secret to happiness though is not the amount of money the job brings but whether or not you can handle yourself. Emotional, I can handle my job. I love knowing that students are bettering themselves with a little help from me. I love knowing I can make soneone have a special evening, but I also love knowing that when I come home, I should shower cause it's the end of the day and I don't need to wash away my regrets. I could never work in field where I knew what I was doing was wrong or illegal. I think about men that tell me it doesn't matter that they have children because they are more concerned about their happiness than the developing life of a small human.

Life is not meant to be fair or equal.

Palm oil is a really big industry for a multitude of countries and corporations. The United States Kroger company is a big importer of palm oil. Palm oil is found in cosmetics like lip gloss, foods like Nutella, and even some industrial things like petroleum-based products. This is such an important industry that there is a palm oil price index. Countries like Nigeria depend on this price index as a lot of the Nigerian current capital is coming from construction afer their oil export decrease. Countries like Thailand and the Philippines depend on palm oil --they make money with very little else. In Indonesia, there is another problem afoot. Many males are working along side active volcanoes to extract raw materials like shale. 

I mentioned earlier the issue of consequences and how each job has one. The people of these Southeastern Asian countries are not thinking about their health, their air, or their surrounding environment. Like the stripper dancing on stage, the host smiling at the front door, and the man with a bluetooth headpiece are all concerned about the same thing --making money. I am in no place to judge these people either. This is the only life that they see as possible.  and boy, are they doing their best to make it livable. 

Palm oil production though is very dangerous. The slash and burn agricutural practice is very popular for palm oil because it is quick and clears a lot of land. The forests of Southeast Asia are being destroyed for these massive farming operations. Hundreds of acres at a time are lit on fire with plume that stretches to the next three towns over. The result? A growing list of endangered species including tigers. But, forget about the animals --humans are animals too. Think about the environment. Not only is carbon dioxide a biproduct but so is sulfur dioxide, which stays in the atmosphere longer. In addition to the production of two greenhouse gases, often times, microparticles are released into the air too and contaminate the lungs. 

"I said I was going to buy my way to heaven."

Now this sounds awful. A currency made from the devastation of animals and countries. But, this isn't the worst form of commercial activity. I think about Indonesia again and how comapnies like Gap get away with paying cheap laborers and even cheaper rent for fabric facilities where women and children spend days over vats of chemicals dipping the same pieces of cotton we use as money. And the consequence of this job? The leftovers are dumped into the Citarum River. Depending on the time of day, the river can change from vibrant blue, light pink, and thick brown. Devastating is the whole population of fish floating belly up. 

But, none of this is the point of this post. The point of this post is to get richer. First off, start be being a better fucking consumer. Look up where your products are coming from, who is overseeing product production, and what is in your product. Next, stop being lazy. Look up what the unknown ingredients are in your products. Many lipsticks have really heavy metal complexes that no only dry your lips but kill the living skill cells. Start buying locally too or with globally partnered charities. Instead of sitting and complaining how the big man is getting rich from your money, start sending that money to places that don't have the choice of having a moral profession. Lastly, know nothing in this world comes easy and without a catch. Recall the situation earlier where everything was paid off... Now add the requirement of purchasing over $10,000 in gift cards and sending them to an undisclosed location. Is your debt worth your future? 

How much are you worth?

One of the best lines I ever heard was to be happy as a work in progress. Don't sell yourself short. Imagine how much sweeter your port wine will taste, how much faster your sports car will drive, and how much better you will look in your Prada shoes when you say you own all of it and you earned it all by yourself. I secretly think that the secret with money is the idea of being free. Some of the happiest children I have ever seen have been barefoot and dirty chasing a lizard around an unpaved city center. They weren't happy because they had moeny, they were happy because they understood the value of embracing now. You are only free when you can be present and active with yourself in the moment --not in the past that has already happened and not in the future that will never come. Own your debt and wear your path like a badge of honor. You have one existences and you better make it worth the air your freeloading.