Firefighter. Salary: $20,000 or less 

Finally able to take a minute after a night spent fighting an incredible blaze, you sit on the top of the fire engine. You watch as the fire investigator arrives, shaking hands and walking with authority to the scene. Watching her work, you think about how nice an office job sounds.

Lieutenant. Salary: $40,000 

Having finally received your first bugle, you make it known that you want to become a fire investigator for the brigade. The captain smiles and tosses the training papers onto your desk. Surprise, class starts at 7:00AM.

Junior Investigator. Salary: $55,000 

Sitting on the witness stand, the defense for the man accused of setting a local comic book store on fire starts grilling you about your ability to tell an accidental fire from a fire set by an arsonist. You gently explain, not for the first time to a lawyer, how matches and kerosene are pretty obvious signs of one's plans.

Specialist Investigator. Salary: $75,000 

Looking closely at the burned-out wreckage that used to be a '94 Ford Explorer, you notice something on the floor: a cigarette lighter. Poor woman must have tried to light a cigarette, dropped it, and when she tried to pick it up drove off the overpass. You consider cracking a joke about how smoking kills, but there's no one around to hear it.

Senior Investigator. Salary: $100,000 

Sitting in the office, you check your schedule for the next month. You'll have a few days between the safety demonstration and the training you're teaching to catch up with the guys at the old station. After so much time in the office, you think about how nice a ride on the engine sounds.