Every month, Jane brings around our payslips. I usually ignore it for half an hour. When I take a break from work, I carefully tear away left side of the slip, then the right side, then the top. Once it is open, I immediately look at the net payment.

It’s always a bit exciting to open the payslip. I don’t know what I expect, though, because the number is always the same.

Sometimes I think I would like that number to change. For it to go up is obviously the ideal situation but, you know, I don’t think I would mind if it went up and down so that it averages out to what I get paid now. Little fluctuations like that would justify the flutter of excitement I get when I open that payslip.