People are irrational; I'm a people; therefore, it's a lucky break that I am rational.

[flexagon]

I had a dream that I accidentally found out a bunch of people's salaries and that I was the lowest-paid in my group. Blargh! (It could actually be true -- the 2 people younger than me both have PhDs while I have a master's -- but I can't say I've ever thought much about it before). Amusingly, I also dreamed I made $130K, which is... rather more than in waking-life reality.

It was like a perfect little object lesson on how people care about comparisons with peers at least as much as they care about absolutes. Even me.