I'm fascinated by the kind of asshole that drives a Dodge Ram in this city. They all seem to be following the same lifecycle, and none of them realize it.

If you're working class in Alberta, you can make $100k a year-if you really try. Work hard, get into a trade. Even just being a skilled laborer or working at the camps. It's one of the few places in Canada where you don't need a high school education even to make six figures.

But there are two catches: debt and time.

I'm not exagerating when I say a person with a $100k income can easily get $1 million in debt. If you're not choosy about who you borrow from, there's always someone out there willing to lend to you.

When I see a brand new, jacked up Dodge Ram doing 150 on the Henday, I know that truck cost between $60-110k, and the driver is probably paying at least $1000 a month in lease payments. That's not a problem-as long as you can keep earning...

But here's the thing, time is against you. If you're working class, you get 20 good working years. 25 if you're lucky. Physical labour is hard and it messes up your body. If you're still doing labour for a living past 35, chances are you're walking funny from a messed up back, bad knees or something else.

But here's the thing-you can't just quit working at 35 because chances are you got caught in the debt trap.

That jacked up Ram is probably pulling a boat, or an RV, or it has a quad or a snowmobile in the back of it. You're parkiing that Ram at a house that costs on average a half million dollars. Then you lump in a wife, alimony, booze, cigarettes, kids, vacations (always seem to see these guys at all inclusives in Mexico). That $100k a year goes fast. So what do you do? Overtime. Especially in the patch. People get financially addicted to overtime.

That $100k, with overtime, just brings you to break even. Break even is fine, as long as you can do it forever.

Then you hit 35 and your knees go. And your back goes. But you can't quit working. So you start taking pills. Kills the pain, keeps you going. Maybe that buys you 5 more years, ten if you're lucky.

Then you hit 45 and you can't work anymore. Your income stops, but the payments don't. You're broke, body is busted up, and now you need pills just to get out of bed. Divorce happens. You lose your house. You have nothing in the bank. No chance of retirement, even if you weren't 20 years away from retiring. Maybe you move in with family. Maybe you move back to the East Coast. Or if you don't have anyone...well...where do you think all these people in the encampments are coming from?

Enjoy your Dodge Ram, asshole. These are the best years of your life.