“Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper.” — Francis Bacon

Storage unitsDoes the name Andy Bussell ring a bell? He was the college student experiencing his 15 minutes of fame when six weeks ago the Los Angeles Times reported that he was living in his truck to save money and pay off his credit cards.

I’ve been checking his blog every so often to see how his newfound fame has been treating him. In March he wrote, “I’m still not a millionaire. But I am still trying to pay off my last credit card. And graduation is coming soon – about 2 months away! I can’t believe it. After a mere 10 years in college I’m finally finishing. How exciting. These last 2 years have been really exciting, interesting, and rewarding.”

“I have the best friends and the best parents, all of whom support me with love and friendship (and no cash!). My life couldn’t be much better. All I need is no bills – paid off truck, credit cards, and student loans. That’d be the ultimate life – starting over financially. Reset, zero. And that’s what I’m working toward – not owing anyone for anything. I’ll get there.”

Then yesterday he returned from Spring Break to discover that his storage locker was robbed. He writes, “Well, it can happen to anyone and now it has happened to me. My storage unit was robbed and virtually ALL of my possessions are gone. Thousands of dollars worth of gear, CD’s, movies, some books, my passport, some checks… Basically my entire life is gone. And, to make it worse, the stolen checks were used. This means I am also the victim of identity theft.”

“I hate being a victim and I am trying not to let it get me down. After all, it is just material possessions, right? Just years of working hard to save for these things that I actually use. Diving gear, climbing gear, camping gear, my massage table, my snowboard, some of my guitars and other music-related gear. Basically everything I have ever had.”

I’ve written before about what compels people to spend money to store their idle belongings. But Bussell actually used his storage unit: if you live in a truck, your storage locker becomes your hall closet or sports shed.

So here are my financial take-a-ways from this story:

1. Make sure you have insurance for your stored goods. The site called wiseGeek suggests, “One of the most important considerations to remember when renting a storage unit is insurance. The storage unit may have its own insurance, or you may be covered under your home insurance policy for goods in storage.” Obviously, Bussell doesn’t have a homeowner’s policy, so I hope he had insurance with his contract or elected to pay extra for it.

2. In our notoriety-crazed society, fame rarely equals fortune. Remember when blogger Lane Hudson posted improper e-mails sent by Mark Foley to a congressional page. This set in motion a chain of events that resulted in the Republican decline during the Midterm Election of 2006. Lane’s actions became news. Big news.

Dubbed the Washington Whistle-Blogger in Time Magazine’s Person of the Year issue, Lane experienced moments of fame, but still struggles financially because of it. When I interview him for our Ten Money Questions series, he mentioned that fame had not made him rich.

He said, “It has been a very educational experience to have gone through this. I have learned a great deal about the press, my friends, the political community, my family, special interest groups, notoriety, and myself. Although it’s been a very challenging couple of months, I wouldn’t change a thing.

Abigail Garner, the author and activist, offered a similar sentiment. She said, “Having the power and privilege of a platform in the media often gets conflated with having a lot of money. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been described or introduced as ‘rich and famous.’ Getting quoted in the New York Times might make me ‘famous’ in the 15-minute-Warhol way, but it most definitely has not made me rich.”

Hard work makes people rich. Andy Bussell might be rich some day, but it’s unlikely that it will come through his brief notoriety. His wealth will come by paying off his debt, living within his means and investing well. Unfortunately, that’s not a sexy or noteworthy story which is why many millionaires happen to be unassuming guy or gal next door. Or in Bussell’s case, the person that parks next to him in a used and paid off car.