I‘ve been pondering the idea of wealth lately, as I’ve watched so many people fret about money. It’s clear we’ve all suddenly becoming obsessed with economy, and the myriad of money lessons that seem to ooze out of every pore of society. This prompted a desire to list out some of the indicators of one’s wealth, a list that will surely not land you a slot on MTV’s Cribs or elicit a call from Robin Leach any time soon.

America is like the poor fellow who suddenly won the lottery and didn’t have any knowledgeable friends to guide him as to the proper use of his millions. Giddy to be rich, he immediately goes out and buys four or five new cars, a few homes, takes lavish vacations, and spends his money stupidly, counting on the perpetuity of his new-found riches to carry him through life, death, and beyond. Soon, the bills come, the taxes are levied, and in a few short years he’s blown it all, and all he has to show for it is a slightly-used Maserati and a long, long face.

We’ve had it all, and we’ve had it all at a young age. We’re a very young, very brash nation who’s won the lottery, and spent our winnings like silly little demi-kings.

The only problem is that now, the taxman hath come, and has decided to kick us directly in the shins. Party’s over. The millionaire bankers look awfully silly, don’t they? When’s the last time that was the case? People who sunk all their money into one thing are now finding out what fanged monsters lie in the dark alleys of Wall Street. People who not long ago were flying around in jets and gilding their homes in solid gold are hammering cardboard foreclosure signs into their manicured lawns and saying goodbye to the short, frenetic ride that was “the good life.” Assets are being sold, investment properties have become a liability, and all of a sudden, all the people who count on money like they count on their friends are looking incredibly obvious. Sticking out like sore, silver thumbs.

It feels like we’re in time-out. Like we’ve been forced to sit in the world corner for a while, with our heads hanging low and having to think about what we’ve done. Bad America! Soon, we hope, we can return to the party and rejoin the others, but for now, this shadowy corner is our only friend. We’re all very sorry.

So, my fellow citizens, I wanted to put together a little list of riches, a reminder of what we really have, and what we really are. Although so many around us and in the media make it seem like we’re in a serious crisis, I think it’s safe to say that as we sit in our corner and quietly weep, much of the rest of the world’s people are shaking their heads at us, amazed at how a people so blessed, can be so silly, and so blind.

Check out the fresh little promo here from the The Wealth Channel. >>

So if you’re feeling low, whether it’s the current size of your savings account, the anemic numbers coming out of your 401k reports, the charts and graphs of your life that have decided to fly south for the season, or the hand-wringing, forehead-dabbing worry that oozes ironically out of the mouths of those who haven’t known poverty one day, ever – absorb this little list and take a minute to be thankful. Be thankful for not what you’ve lost, what you’re currently losing, or the fact that – heaven forbid – you’re not currently making money hand-over-fist, and please, pretty please, love your life.

1. You laugh with others on a regular basis.

One thing I like about a good shared chuckle is that it instantly levels the superficial playing field. When two or more share a laugh, they instantly bypass all the external distinctions like money, status, et. al and focus entirely on the joy of the moment. This is an incredible social leveler, virtually erasing, for a few precious moments, the glaring fact that one person drives a Ferrari and the other person takes the bus. This state of being won’t necessarily bring you any monetary gain, but I think carries a more interesting effect than mere riches alone.

2. Someone loves you.

There’s no price-to-earnings ratio for something like this, but its value is limitless. Given that life brings with it a chaotic blend of swings, changes, surprises, disappointments, triumphs, and alternate endings, having at least one person in the mix that carries in them the ability to weather these things with you on your behalf is something of a miracle.

3. You eat regularly.

When speaking of wealth, once one passes a certain point of privilege, most things are simply matters of degree. People often feel poor because they have to eat frozen pizza and can’t afford an eight-course meal at the finest restaurant in town.  That isn’t poor. That’s frozen pizza. All it takes is one peek at someone rooting through a trash heap, the distended belly of a child in a refugee camp, or a seventy year-old man standing in line at a soup kitchen to understand that the freedom to eat when we want makes us wealthy.

4. You have a closet full of clothes.

Sure, I might not be sporting any Hollister, Abercrombie & Fitch, Lucky Jeans, or Uggs, but I have lots of decent clothes for different occasions. Clothes that basically fit. Clothes that cover my body and provide warmth. The madness of brand worship makes us feel that what we’ve got isn’t enough for us, but the fact is that I could take away half the clothes from my closet and still get by just fine. My cup of fashion runneth over.

5. You have access to transportation.

This is a pretty big one. Being able to go where you want to go is, in the grand scope of the world’s inhabitants, a true luxury. Whether it’s a bicycle, train, plane, boat, or automobile, having easy access these sorts of things place us squarely in the land of the privileged. No sooner than we buy a car, however, we start to imagine the one that we really wanted, the one we wish we could have.

6. You can say you have at least one best friend.

To have a best friend, at all, is a monumental gift. Someone who has your back when you need them, someone who’d club anyone who messed with you, someone who laughs at your stupid jokes and is the default phone call when you’re bored or have good news to tell.

7. You enjoy good use of your entire body.

I get frustrated when my jump shot clangs off the rim or my Hail Mary has more wobble than spiral, but the truth is that my body works. I can run, jump, skip, swim, bend, and twist my frame like I want. My 40 splits aren’t going to turn the heads of any coaches and my golf swing more closely resembles a small, contained tantrum, but if I want to go for a run, a hike, a walk, or a swim, the only thing that’s stopping me is me.

8. You sleep in a bed, under a roof, without interruption.

Not a box, or a cot, or a hammock, or a pallet – a bed. The wooden thing that surrounds the box spring and mattress. The place you collapse into at night. It’s the place where you let out that final sigh for the day, or rub your feet together until your eyelids become heavy. A bed is a luxury, made more so by the addition of a dry, comfortable room that isn’t regularly threatened by the outside elements and sounds. It’s the place in which you ponder things, like the decisions you made earlier that day, that person you can’t stop thinking about, your life, your health, upcoming events, etc. Your bed is a free-thinking zone, and affords you a few moments to ponder whatever your heart desires, just before ushering you into that wonderful sleep that gives your body and mind a much-deserved rest.

9. You’re able to pay your taxes.

There are many who’ll disagree with this, but hold on to your tirade for just one second. Being able to pay your taxes indicates a couple things. One, that you’re a viable citizen, able to work and earn your own money. Two, it validates and invests in the freedoms that you enjoy on a daily basis. Clean food. Clean air. Clean water. Protection, on both domestic and foreign soil. The right to vote. The freedom to speak. The freedom to worship. Taxes are a pain because we just look at them as money that someone is taking. But we forget that all these civil liberties we enjoy on a daily basis come directly from our commitment to all invest in this grand old republic together.

10. You take vacations.

Having the ability to both save extra monies and choose to spend them on a deliberate, extended period of rest from your work, is something foreign to most of the world. Having seen the faces of those who don’t even have a word for vacation in their vernacular, as I described the idea of taking weeks at a time for oneself, gave me the instant sensation of riches. It would be as if Trump himself came up and started speaking to me about private jets and homes in the Hamptons as if those things are normal and natural parts of life. I would scrunch my face and inquire as to what particular brand of crack cocaine he’d been puffin’ on. Vacations are a luxury, and those that can take them should consider themselves, all of them, little Trumps.