The Dichotomy of Wealth, or How I Learned To Love Being Broke

If you've ever worked a service industry job (aka my entire career), you've been there- serving the guy with too nice of a suit and his wife scrolling idly through her phone. He berates you, demands things, never says thank you. He pays with a Visa black and leaves an 8% tip.

Why is it that those with little money seem to tip extravagantly, while those who can afford it seem to grasp on to their wealth like stingy children with toys?

Or so I used to believe.

This is the apartment we stayed at in Oakland. The apartment belonged to a friend we met traveling- by no means someone who should have blindly trusted us.

But, he did... And gave us the key to the place... And said "I'm off for the night. Y'all have fun and lock up when you're done!"

In the morning he brought us bahn mi and later took us out for cocktails, paying for everything on his...Visa Black???

(Here he is showing us around Oakland)

Later, we stayed with a friend in Santa Barbara. He lived with his parents who were very well off ($3k coffee machine, anyone?) and who asked us to leave because they didn't want anyone in their immaculate house, touching their expensive things.

So what gives? Why can some wealthy people be so kind with their money and others such complete pricks?

Here's another example- a woman who met us at a show in Madrid, NM invited us to stay at her house, fed us beer, and took us to breakfast. She is an author of some notable books and was so insanely kind even though she had only known us for hours.

Which leads me to the point I think I'm trying to make- If you're scared with your money, you act like an asshole. If you're not afraid of giving, you enrich everyone around you.

It doesn't really matter to me anymore that I'm broke. I'll leave the best tip at your table, buy you beers and give you everything I have... Because that's how the world becomes a better, more caring place. That's how we avoid the suburban idea of being afraid of our neighbors.

That's how we feed our friends and give without expecting anything in return.

Thanks, and follow us for more updates on our trip across the country in a van named Wolfgang.