[ WP ] In a future society the needs of all humans are easily met . Despite not having to work for a living , you have chosen to continue plying your trade .

I open my eyes, feeling groggy. A quick glance at the clock next to my bed showing 5:30 am, just another day. I go through my morning routine; shower, get dressed, drink my first glorious cup of coffee and read the newspaper. Before long it ’ s time to get to work; I ’ ve got a new table to make for a customer. They want this 10 ’ long oak table, with an incredibly detailed carving of a lion in the center of it; sort of like how the carving in the *Sons of Anarchy* meeting table is done, if you ’ ve ever seen that show. Anyway, I ’ ve been working on it for the last week and it is looking great; all sanded down just working on the carving, before I attach the legs. 
 
 As I ’ m taking a break, I decide to go and check my mail, I ’ m expecting the latest issue of *Popular Woodworking*; but the only thing in the mailbox is a box, about the size of my hand, with a note attached. Confused, as I wasn ’ t expecting any packages, I read the note as I went back inside. It read, “ You no longer have to worry, we have arrived and we will provide. ” I thought it was some practical joke so I just set the box next to my workbench and went back to carving. 
 
 A little while later, I realize that I ran out of sandpaper, which I am going to need to smooth out the sections of this lion when it ’ s finished; and all of a sudden I have a stack of sandpaper in various grit sizes, with several beeps coming from inside the box. I ’ m starting to think that this was a pretty neat little joke. So I open the box and this machine floats out from inside of it. It kind of looks like a flying saucer with landing gear already out and a display that looks like one of those stock price tickers. The machine ’ s display was showing “ Sandpaper dispensed. ” 
 
 Thinking that this whole experience is pretty odd, I just get back to work because the deadline is in a couple of days and I still have to add the shellac to the table and attach the legs. Just as I ’ m finishing the carving, I get a call from the customer. I don ’ t think too much of it, I ’ m sure they just want a progress update; how wrong I was. Turns out they wanted to cancel the order, saying they don ’ t need my work anymore. Confused I ask them why, now here ’ s the weird part of the joke machine I got in the mail, apparently they got one too and theirs gave them the table the wanted. Disheartened I thank them for the notice and hang up. 
 
 Upset at the loss of the client, as it would have been a pretty good check upon completion, I am happy that I still have plenty of other customers. Until I turn on the news… 
 
 Everyone in the world had received one of these machines; young, old, homeless; it didn ’ t matter who you are or where you were, you got one. No one knows where they came from but they seem to provide anything you want or need. Hungry people have enough food, the homeless now have somewhere to call home; people are calling it a miracle. Billions of people have listened to the note that arrived with the machine and stopped working. 
 
 I can ’ t stop working though, it ’ s not like I have to do the work to survive, no one has to do that anymore, not since the machines arrived; I just love the feeling of knowing that my hands can take lumber and turn it into something beautiful. So I decided to finish that table and all the other orders that I had and when those were done, I just made whatever I happened to dream about each night. It ’ s my passion for the work that has kept me moving all these years anyhow, if I stop now I ’ d probably just shrivel up and die. 
 
 It ’ s weird though, the machine “ eats ” all of the work I do. Like that table, after I finished it, the machine flew over, scanned it, and the table was gone. Not sure where they go, but as long as the machine provides for me, I ’ ll provide for it. 

