Thinking out loud

In this society, money talks. Sadly. Why is our worth in society related to our worth fiscally? How ought worth to be determined? What better (oops, judgement) ways are there to determine worth? As most of us know, it doesn't take an Einstein to make money - he was really well off financially. Many people we respect for artistic achievements died paupers. Mozart and Van Gogh to name two. The person who makes sure that your heat comes on in the winter is more valuable than the stock broker who basically does nothing except take in commissions from when you buy or sell stock. What the hell is that about? Intelligence doesn't seem to matter all that much, either. How ought worth to be determined? Shoe size? "Value to society?" (Again, how would that be determined? CEOs, despite their egos, are no more valuable to society than a garbage collector and the garbage collector would probably be more fun to hang out with...)

I am feeling a bit worthless right now. Don't worry, I still love me and think I am great. I have pretty high self esteem, all things considered. That being said, money is tight and my assets are not numerous - besides my natural beauty, smarts and compassion (ha) I mean. I am talking about my fiscal assets.

Working presents a challenge to me. I would love a job that I could do a few hours a day, from the privacy of my home, that contributed positively to society and at the same time brought in enough filthy lucre to help me feel like I was contributing to the household's fiscal well being. Any ideas on what that might be? I don't want to do something that is making money on specious commodities or  a scheme of some sort. Definitely not real estate dealings. Ick. I personally think that money made not from the sweat of one's brow ought to be taxed highly. Wages under $50k a year and straight savings ought to not be taxed at all - but money made off of things like the stock market ought to be taxed at the highest rates possible. Playing the stock market is, after all, just legalized gambling. And those with more money can gamble more effectively - I took a class on stock trading and found that when you bet $100,000 in the options market, you can make quite a killing on a teeny weeny movement in a stock's price. True, you can lose a lot too - but when you are making $1000 in a five minute window just by doing some studying and figuring, heck...but I find that sort of thing distasteful. Sure, I sometimes understand the ends justifying the means. The ends of being fiscally comfortable, did not justify the time I would have had to spend focusing on the stock market and associated bullshit. So day trading is definitely not what I am looking for here.

I also need a declutterer. Does anyone know someone? I haven't had the stuff that is in the house in NC for more than a year - so I obviously don't need most of it. It would be nifty if I could lighten my mental and physical load quite a bit. Sadly, I know my own limitations. I am not good at throwing things away. Not good at all. Partly because I want to believe that what I let go of will go to a good home - or at least be well and happily recycled.And partly because you never know when something will come in handy. Sigh.

Ok, that's it for this dismal post. Yay dismality! (New word)