It is true that few jobs require you to prove or apply Sylow's theorems. Not many more require numerical solutions to linear systems either, part of my toolset. However, nearly every job requires divide and conquer planning, consistency, and rigorous reasoning from assumptions. At the same time, we need not require that everything is immediately practical, applied, or useful. We read lasting literature, view art, attend concerts, or go to the theater not because those activities help me in my job or make me more productive, but to enjoy and appreciate in their own right.
Mathematics can enrich our lives that way, too.
We continue to find applications we had not seen before, and we do the Y2K drill on each one. Most of our users are in the corporate headquarters, but we are also working in one clinic and one retirement complex. I continue to be impressed with the genuine concern for the quality of patient care among people in the clinics and other patient care facilities. Some in the corporate office would benefit from occasional reminders. I wouldn't trade my job at Marquette for doubled salary.