When I was just starting out on my own, and funds were tight, I got "catastrophic" health insurance just to cover major emergencies. It was very fortunate I had it, as I broke my leg windsurfing, with a 40K surgery/hospital bill. It is often quite inexpensive, and a good deal if you are young and mostly concerned about covering unexpected emergencies, and don't mind a high deductable.
Polpolik - I have my own gripes about corporate america, but it really depends on where you work and your attitude towards work. Try something that is low stress and has low expectations. Think about the first few entry level jobs you had after college. Except throw out the climbing the corp ladder mentality and focus solely on enjoying your time there. Your perspective will change dramatically.
do what i did. i got a job as a porn star at night and i'm telling it it breaks the daily boredom of trading
working from home will drive you crazy because it is like being locked in solitary jail. you have to either grab an office and go up every day and go there or join a big trading house. i have noticed that some of posters here suffer from a anti-social syndrome. they say things like " how needs to interact with stupid co-workers?". unfortunately they are either too young or too naive to understand that mankind evolution is based on human interaction and their own self estime relies on how others regard them. that's probably why you see so many professional traders going bust and lose it like livermore did. they dont have anything in their miserable lives other than their daily P/L. trading is ok and i love it. but you have to do it in a social environment, either a trading room or a prop house, etc. this is not about making a lot of money, is about being a successful human being. and let me assure you that's a win/win situation, both you P/L and your life will grow in quality.