As of today, unemployment climbed to an official rate of 6.1 percent. This is obviously far below the real rate since it doesn't include people like me who are technically "working." That's right. This stupid website renders me "employed" even though I only make $1.48 a day off the ads. Apparently, being involved in activity that "may produce future income" means you're not unemployed. Great. So if I apply for jobs on Monster all day, does that count as activity that "may produce future income?" Then there are the underemployed, those who don't get counted because they don't have home phones (come to think of it, I fall into that category too). It doesn't include those who have stopped looking for work. It doesn''t include those in prison or the homeless.

Trust me, if the official statistics say 6.1 percent, it's closer to 18 percent.

Does that sound bitter? Good.