I don’t blame you for not believing me, but I really didn’t enjoy wealth. I enjoyed parts of it when I was in my teens, living ‘at home’. My father was ambitious, smart and lucky, so my brothers and I benefited from his skill as a provider. We each had our own sports car at the city home and speed boat at the country home. But I became awake to real life and the adventures one can experience among artists, writers, musicians and performers.
Before I became captivated by the vibrancy of the life of interesting people, I was engulfed in the superficiality of private boarding school, Country Club, Golf Club, Yacht Club and other such wastes of time and money. Each had its dress code to which one had to adhere. This outfit for poolside, that outfit for lounge, another for the dining room. The kind of people that gather at these places, my parents included, are really full of crap. They work hard, smart and tough to get money and they want to reap the benefits of that, so they join the birds of their same flock.
I moved away from all that when I became aware of after-hours jazz clubs, hot-rod clubs, art colonies, filmmakers and before I knew it I was one of them. Someday I’ll write about the journey from the bland, pre-planned life to this vibrant life that took me from Country Club to country and even wilderness. I had the wonderful good fortune to be infused with creativity which I used to earn a happy living.
Wealth wasn’t for me. I had to leave it behind so I could enjoy my time.