When I first bought my own insurance in '05 it was actually pretty good—my premiums were about $144 per month, low co-pays, a $500 reasonable deductible and coverage for things like massages, chiropractor adjustments and physical therapy. However prices increased sharply every year after that, and by the end, I was paying $244 with a $5,000 deductible.

Seven years later, I was back in Seattle and on unemployment again. I received a letter in the mail telling me that I had to report to the local WorkSource, Washington State’s unemployment office, in two weeks to have my resume reviewed, take classes on resume writing, looking for work, interviewing, and other training courses.

One key benefit of this situation is that my reflexes were "touchy", so when my friend Geoff tried to jokingly throw a punch at me one day, I blocked it, and twisted his arm behind his back without thinking. Geoff wasn’t mad (probably because he was really stoned) and put me in contact with this dude, who knew another dude who could get me "crowd management gigs" at concerts and other events. I was 18.