I've gotta share my moment of badassity, even though it pales in comparison to some of the ridiculous accomplishments of my fellow forum-goers! I'm a junior (ish) in college, and I just took a year off to work in an Americorps position. I saved nearly half of my less-than-minimum-wage stipend thanks to the magic of living like a college kid and splitting expenses with half a million roommates, and I'll be receiving an educational award in January to cover my school expenses for next semester. That means I had $3000 to send off to Vanguard! I'm officially a partial owner of the US economy!
(I went with VTSMX, and while I only sent the minimum I may be able to top up to $5000 before 4/15.)