Portrait: Hollywood Hills, California

My nanny friend complained to me this weekend that her bosses were ignorant elitists. Unaware that 99% of the world does not live the way they do.

I guess I'm in the 1% only I choose to not have full-time help. So I hang out with nannies. I live by celebrities. I live in a big house with spectacular views.

I've never been so lonely in my life.

I used to live in a state that is very green and most houses have wrap around porches there. We used to sit outside and people would just stop by. Community, family, I never felt so rich in my life.

But my dad drank and gambled that all away. So I know what it's like to have the re-po man come to you in the night. I know the panic attacks that set in.

There is a balance between scraping by to pay rent and having so much you choose to build up walls to keep everyone else out.

I am trying to find the balance here and have been scaling my fancy neighbor's walls for awhile now begging someone to lend me some eggs or olive oil to help me feel the richness I once did while living a more modest life.

I think this economic slump we are in, while horrible yes, can hopefully open us up as a whole to re-examining what we value.

Anonymous
Los Angeles (Hollywood Hills) California