That's a pretty great first year as a freelancer, maybe even an amazing first year. I'm in my 17th year and am tempted to think that if I started out like that,

That's a pretty great first year as a freelancer, maybe even an amazing first year. I'm in my 17th year and am tempted to think that if I started out like that, I'd be retired by now ;-) My first year was like: "Client bought me a computer! That was amazing. Man these eMachines boxes are a steal. Got some software from school, too, and a former employer gave me Photoshop 4.5 on a CD. [Update a month later] Oh, I get it. People give you free stuff hoping not to have to pay you later."