"I was reared during the internet age, most consciously during the dot com bust. I am also only 22, meaning that I am the definition of cheap labor. No, seriously, I think that getting paid anything more than $12/hour is “living large,” and getting paid $12/hour is “extremely manageable.”" I'm also 22, Currently making 70k... i would find $12/hour anything but living large.
And this woman graduated from NYU, Junior year in Paris, she's been published, and she's absolutely charming. She's optimized for distance, not speed. No reason to be a douche.
I was like this, and I kept changing jobs every 6 months because someone would come along and offer me twice what I was making before. Sure, I'll come work for you! (Oh, and I'm 24.)
My bet is that two years from now, she will easily be making $50 an hour, even if she starts on $12 today. But if you're that person paying her $12 today, I estimate that will last maybe 3 or 4 months. Then someone else will have her talent, and you'll be saying to yourself, "yeah, paying someone like that $12 an hour was fucking dumb of us".