July 2, 20205 yr 39 minutes ago, nnm said: Man, thatโs rough. So when they changed the policy, did you have a leg to stand on? Just one, just one damned leg to stand on...... but that's better than none ๐
July 2, 20205 yr I always thought my neighbors were rich compared to us. They had boats, dirt bikes, Mongoose BMX bikes, in ground pool, Sega Genesis/Game Gear/Channel, etc. They also got 5.0 Mustangs and Honda CBR600's when they turned 16. Ballers.ย ย
July 2, 20205 yr You lived in a nicer neighborhood than me, you rich fuck.Ha, trust me...we didn't have any of that shit. We didn't even go out to eat unless it was someone's birthday and my Grandpa was paying. I also don't remember going to more than a handful of movies in a theater as a kid.
July 2, 20205 yr 24 minutes ago, Lobo said: Glad to read I'm not the only one on here who grew up lower middle class but was cared for, and also really wanted cable tv, a lake house, a country club membership, a Lincoln car, a portable gaming system, big screen TV, pool table, ski trips, and house big enough to have its own "play room" filled with cool toys.ย ย I don't mean to brag fellas, but now that I'm grown up and have my own family of four.ย We have TWO television sets in our house.ย That's right, count 'em.ย TWO.ย One upstairs and one downstairs.ย Oh yeah.ย Both with cable TV.ย ย Hell even in my old timey lower middle class childhood, I had that... A checkerboard and a pocket full of marbles for pocket pool, you could take a them anywhere.
July 2, 20205 yr On 7/1/2020 at 4:14 AM, RPM said: Color TV, refrigerated a/c (not swamp cooler), an actual house and not a trailer This was mine. ย The funniest thing about that is I has friends in the park who thought my family was โrichโ because we didnโt live on welfare or receive food stamps. ย We did finally move into a house when I was in 7th grade that hadย two beds,ย one bath, and no closets. ย I stepped up my game and onlyย thought people were rich then if their house didnโt have paneling on every wall. ย ย We were AAA members and Iโve been to Disney Land so donโt feel sorry for me. ย Edited July 2, 20205 yr by SDG
July 2, 20205 yr Central air. We had swamp coolers until Dad cut a hole in the wall for a big-ass Gibson. Noisy bitch. Parents that only worked one job. Schwinn bicycles. My Dad could fix just about anything so we had lots of things that had been discarded by rich folks and repaired. Sometimes they were name brand but they still carried hand-me-down stink.
July 2, 20205 yr I liked the government cheese during the Carter years. That shit was legit Wisconsin cheddar.ย It came in a Velveeta Cheese-like box and it was the first real cheese I ever had since I grew up with the Kraft single slice shit. My grandma qualified for it but she didn't like it so she passed it over to my mom. I think she got a box every week or two. My mom made cheese bread with it and all kinds of dishes. Real fucking cheddar, man. I still have a soft spot for cheddar to this day...sharp.
July 2, 20205 yr Man, my aunt had the Tyson fight vs Holyfieldโs ear on that big TV. The best part of the night is that my uncle accidentally turned to Spice and was unable to turn back to the fight for 30 secs for some reason. Saw titties and boxing. mammaries.Hell yes.
July 2, 20205 yr 2 hours ago, SHOOTER12 said: Just one, just one damned leg to stand on...... but that's better than none ๐ I know. Thatโs the joke๐. You have a great attitude about it, as evidenced by occasional self deprecating jokes about it (like in the injuries thread), otherwise I wouldnโt have thrown it out there.ย
July 2, 20205 yr 27 minutes ago, nnm said: I know. Thatโs the joke๐. You have a great attitude about it, as evidenced by occasional self deprecating jokes about it (like in the injuries thread), otherwise I wouldnโt have thrown it out there.ย It's something you learn to live with.ย I really believe in self deprecating humor.ย I think it helps keep a person humble and honest with themselves.ย As a side note, if it gives someone a good laugh, we've helped the world be a little bit better.
July 2, 20205 yr 20 hours ago, DalTxHornFan said: Man, I hated wearing those to school! These were theย worst. Light blue color gave them away.ย ย I tried as hard asย I could to tear them so I could get some Levi's or Lee's but those things were indestructible.ย ย
July 2, 20205 yr Console TVs with built-in stereo, turntable, and speakers. My aunt and uncle had one, and I always thought that was fancy-schmancy.ย We always had a TV on a simple stand with wheels. I guess the people who had their TV on crates thought we were rich.ย
July 2, 20205 yr having a pool belonging to a country club home air conditioningย people who went skiing on vacation - like to Colorado or Utah ย the again I remember talking with my grandmother and she said she was excited when the old farm house was updated with indoor plumbing
July 2, 20205 yr 15 minutes ago, Underdog said: I remember a friend having one of these... Ha! You were from the future. These are what Iโmย talking about.ย vs
July 2, 20205 yr Country clubs, ski trips, new cars, quality clothes, new sports equipment, new anything, really. Carefree girls with shiny hair who droveย white convertible rabbits and 318s. The act of being able to buy stuff, little things, without sweating it and figuring out the budget. To not live in a state of constant financial vigilance.ย Edited July 2, 20205 yr by Bozo_Casanova
July 2, 20205 yr 17 minutes ago, Wally Fairway said: having a pool belonging to a country club home air conditioningย people who went skiing on vacation - like to Colorado or Utah ย the again I remember talking with my grandmother and she said she was excited when the old farm house was updated with indoor plumbing My grandparents finally got indoor plumbing when they were in their 60s. They had a section of their front porch enclosed for a bathroom, but floor wasnโt level. Hence, theย bathtub didnโt drain correctly because the plumbing/drain end was against the main house wall and the old porch floor slopedย away from the house. It wasnโt a claw foot tub, so I guess it was easier to push the water to the drain than it was to shimย the low end.
July 2, 20205 yr 80s middle class kid tryin to make a few bucks 1. Columbia House cassette deal ย 2. dual cassette deck 3. blank cassettes 4. profit ย Edited July 2, 20205 yr by Dennis Taylor
July 2, 20205 yr 56 minutes ago, Underdog said: I remember a friend having one of these... My grandparents got one of these when they came out.ย Watched a lot of Sunday afternoon golf on that sucker.
July 2, 20205 yr 1 hour ago, ImissWallyPryor said: Ha! You were from the future. These are what Iโmย talking about.ย ย ย We had this but with no TV.ย It had two speakers in it on front sides, 8 Track player, turn table and Radio tuner.ย ย So just a wood paneled stereo system.ย ย It was prominently displayed so you could see it in living room as you walked in.ย ย It looked even bigger than real life because my parents had taken press on mirror squares and covered the wall behind it (mirrors had brown squiggly marks on them).ย ย
July 2, 20205 yr 4 hours ago, burntorangebongos said: I liked the government cheese during the Carter years. That shit was legit Wisconsin cheddar.ย It came in a Velveeta Cheese-like box and it was the first real cheese I ever had since I grew up with the Kraft single slice shit. My grandma qualified for it but she didn't like it so she passed it over to my mom. I think she got a box every week or two. My mom made cheese bread with it and all kinds of dishes. Real fucking cheddar, man. I still have a soft spot for cheddar to this day...sharp. During the Reagan/ 41 years, it came in a 5# box, much bigger than velveeta. ย It was harder than Velveeta, but it damned sure wasnโt cheddar like what youโre describing. The grossest thing was opening the canned pork. ย Those were the days I knew I really wanted to eat to survive.
July 2, 20205 yr We had this but with no TV.ย It had two speakers in it on front sides, 8 Track player, turn table and Radio tuner.ย ย So just a wood paneled stereo system.ย ย It was prominently displayed so you could see it in living room as you walked in.ย ย It looked even bigger than real life because my parents had taken press on mirror squares and covered the wall behind it (mirrors had brown squiggly marks on them).ย ย I want one of these for my house.
July 2, 20205 yr For me in the early 80s, it was the kickass BMX like a Diamondback, Mongoose, Haro, etc. ย I was always livin large on my Huffy or Schwinn.
July 2, 20205 yr For me in the early 80s, it was the kickass BMX like a Diamondback, Mongoose, Haro, etc. ย I was always livin large on my Huffy or Schwinn.I had a POS Huffy. Finally got a Diamondback when I was almost old enough to drive so it wasn't cool anymore.
July 2, 20205 yr Hutch Pro Star was my dream bike.ย I did have a badass Mongoose but it got stolen. Edited July 2, 20205 yr by BearSchlong
July 2, 20205 yr 12 hours ago, mchookem said: Jordache jeans, Izod/Polo shirts, Reebok/Nike shoes, Liz Claiborne purse ย Some of the kids at my school had one in every color.ย Blew my mind.
July 2, 20205 yr 2 hours ago, Dennis Taylor said: 80s middle class kid tryin to make a few bucks 1. Columbia House cassette deal ย 2. dual cassette deck 3. blank cassettes 4. profit ย +rep for those images alone.
July 2, 20205 yr https://www.npr.org/2018/09/07/645459818/government-cheese-well-intentioned-program-goes-off-the-rails Haha, NPR did a thing about it. The surplus cheese was grade A cheese. That was some damn good government cheese you missed out on, Slorch.ย
July 2, 20205 yr Car with leather seats - mom always had a decent ride, dad took the hand me down, still to this day.ย But never had leather seats. Elf/Mongoose/DB bike. - I eventually got a Dyno, which still wasn't as good, but better than what I had before that.ย Legitimate Thank You to Dad.ย ย Go cart/4 wheeler - I mowed about 234432233 lawns to get one when I was about 13.ย Manco.ย That thing ripped and I've been looking to find one for my oldest. Our Christmas' would be about 1/4 of the stuff the "rich" kids would get.ย And holy shit if you were "rich" and your parents were divorced, motherload. We had more money than most, if not everyone, that we lived around (VERY 1st gen Hispanic neighborhood).ย I assume that will help my folks retire easier.ย I am not rich, but my kids do not know the same struggles, and I fear for their snowflakeness. Edited July 2, 20205 yr by fattyflattie
July 2, 20205 yr We had lots of government cheese. We were never in the program, but had lots of friends that were. Dad was a community developer, mom was a teacher, neither made much, but we neverย went on food stamps or directly took government cheese. But through dadโs work he had plenty of contacts that did, and we had it a lot. I donโt remember the real cheddar stuff. This was more like velveeta. One time the commercial freezer went out at the cafeteria at dadโs work, and they had like 200 lbsย of frozen chicken breast. We took as much as we could fit in our freezer. We had chicken every meal for a very, very long time.ย Mom and dad quite intentionally got off of the corporate ladder and raised us in the country, with an intentionally minimal lifestyle. We never had much. One year we got blankets for Christmas (seriously), and were very happy for it. Iโve made different choices for raising my kids, and they have all the things I thought rich people did, and many more I never dreamed of. ย Maybe thatโs good, maybe not.ย
July 2, 20205 yr 9 minutes ago, fattyflattie said: Car with leather seats - mom always had a decent ride, dad took the hand me down, still to this day.ย But never had leather seats. Rich, Corinthian leather. Because Corinth is known for its leather, dontcha know?
July 2, 20205 yr 4 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said: Country clubs, ski trips, new cars, quality clothes, new sports equipment, new anything, really. Carefree girls with shiny hair who droveย white convertible rabbits and 318s. The act of being able to buy stuff, little things, without sweating it and figuring out the budget. To not live in a state of constant financial vigilance.ย Ah, you knew Lauren?ย She had an awesome VW convertible.ย White leather seats even.ย ย I remember a few years after my parents split up, I was pouting about "needing" something.ย Don't remember what, I was maybe 10-11 at the time.ย And my mom showed me a list of her monthly bills and said something like "I pay these people one month, and I pay these other people the next month and keep alternating that way all through the year."ย and that's when I realized that although she managed to keep us in a decent neighborhood in a decent school district, we were not well-off...at all.ย To this day, because of those years...having stuff doesn't mean anything to me.ย It'll be a long time before I get to join the watch, cars, and golf threads on Surly.ย But I clawed as best as I could to get my children into a great neighborhood in an exceptional school district.ย We own just two televisions, drive really old cars, and my wife and I buy our clothes at annual clearance sales of mid-range department stores.ย My kids will one day whine about all the shit their friends have that they didn't get to have, but I think they'll be better off for it.ย Maybe.ย I dunno.ย I should probably spoil them instead of giving the money to charity.ย But one day, I can tell them..."Your grandma did an amazing job keeping our family afloat.ย And your mommy did the same.ย And now we're doing okay so let's be thankful.ย I mean, my mom---your grandma---had weeks where she didn't know how she was gonna buy groceries...and now your father is on a pretend message board with Rex Kramer and Johnny Sack.ย It's America.ย Anything is possible."ย ย Edited July 2, 20205 yr by Lobo
July 2, 20205 yr 17 hours ago, Bash Riprock said: ย ย ย ย The HBO one is spot on. I remember my grandparents having HBO and it was like the sacred grail. Funny how priories seem to have changed. My parents couldย have afforded HBO back in the day, but that was like an extreme luxury, hellย cable was even pushing it. Now everyone hasย HBO, Netflix,ย Hulu, Disney +...etc. and itโs like deemed a necessity. When I was an investigator, every poor persons house I would go into sometimes didnโt even have working water, but that Netflix app on the smart tvย and kids with iPads were always prevalent.ย Edited July 2, 20205 yr by hundredTT
July 2, 20205 yr 4 hours ago, ABSR said: We had this but with no TV.ย It had two speakers in it on front sides, 8 Track player, turn table and Radio tuner.ย ย So just a wood paneled stereo system.ย ย It was prominently displayed so you could see it in living room as you walked in.ย ย It looked even bigger than real life because my parents had taken press on mirror squares and covered the wall behind it (mirrors had brown squiggly marks on them).ย ย So, your mom was an interior decorator?
July 2, 20205 yr In football, teammates who had their own helmets/ cleats( not school issue.) Buying my own helmet might as well have been a Maserati. Edited July 2, 20205 yr by Iceman
July 2, 20205 yr 6 hours ago, Dennis Taylor said: 80s middle class kid tryin to make a few bucks 1. Columbia House cassette deal ย 2. dual cassette deck 3. blank cassettes 4. profit ย I got suckered into the Columbia Record Club (LPs, not cassettes). I either markedย the wrong box or they fucked up because I ended up with this instead of a Doobie Brothers album I wanted:
July 3, 20205 yr My parents were teachers raising 6 kids in the 60's and 70's so we didn't have much but I was too dumb to know it. I never got jealous about what my friends had because we all shared anyway. I had a friend with this nice banana seat bike and we learned to ride it with her climbing all over me and standing on my shoulders. We did all kinds of tricks with it. I got a basic skateboard and my sister's boyfriend redid the whole bottom with new trucks and everything so I could do more with it. It was that old fiberglass model that every kid had but he fixed it up nice, I guess to impress my sister. I loved that skateboard.
July 3, 20205 yr 5 hours ago, burntorangebongos said: https://www.npr.org/2018/09/07/645459818/government-cheese-well-intentioned-program-goes-off-the-rails Haha, NPR did a thing about it. The surplus cheese was grade A cheese. That was some damn good government cheese you missed out on, Slorch.ย ย
July 3, 20205 yr 10 hours ago, nnm said: The 100-pack crayola boxes.ย This is all I ever took to school.ย I agree with most posted on this thread but this is the correct answer ย I can still remember kindergarten when Iย first noticed not everyone is like my family ย and how does that motherfucking Timmy have a goddamn 64 pack of crayons and I have the crappy 8 pack ย
July 3, 20205 yr 14 hours ago, Lobo said: Glad to read I'm not the only one on here who grew up lower middle class but was cared for, and also really wanted cable tv, a lake house, a country club membership, a Lincoln car, a portable gaming system, big screen TV, pool table, ski trips, and house big enough to have its own "play room" filled with cool toys.ย ย I don't mean to brag fellas, but now that I'm grown up and have my own family of four.ย We have TWO television sets in our house.ย That's right, count 'em.ย TWO.ย One upstairs and one downstairs.ย Oh yeah.ย Both with cable TV.ย ย ย
July 3, 20205 yr 11 hours ago, TโBoo Ted Marshall said: These were theย worst. Light blue color gave them away.ย ย I tried as hard asย I could to tear them so I could get some Levi's or Lee's but those things were indestructible.ย ย Fuck Toughskins.ย An unskinned knee "protected" by Toughskins hurt far more than ripping through regular jeans and skinning a knee.ย I remember being delighted and relieved when I finally convinced my mom to cut my Toughskins into shorts.ย
July 3, 20205 yr I think itโs predictableย that my older sisters would say store bought clothing every time, all the time. My mom made countless dresses and blouses in the 60s and 70s. She even made my wifeโs wedding dress, which helped a lot when my MIL decided she wasnโt going to pitch in anythingย for the wedding because she wasย โoffendedโ thatย my wife asked forย some of her dadโs inheritance to help pay for the wedding after dearย MIL bought her boyfriend-of-the-monthย a new car on her way to blowing through the inheritance. I think I need to visitย another thread.ย ย P.S. - Speaking of making things, my dad made a car-top carrier out of plywood. He painted it to match our blue 1964 Pontiac Catalina station wagon. Iโm sure we impressed everyone on vacation with that thing on top. Aerodynamic? Lol Edited July 3, 20205 yr by ImissWallyPryor
July 3, 20205 yr Please tell me you have pictures of that. ย 13 hours ago, Okie State said: Skiing is a good one. No idea how so many people could afford to do that. Dad was good about that, we went skiing a lot.ย Didn't hurt that Colorado was only 8 hours away and we had friends in high places that let us use their "ski" cabins.ย He didn't take us out to dinner, but that money went to lift tickets and gas.ย He also worked a couple extra jobs during the year to pay for our vacations. 11 hours ago, Bullneck said: Some of the kids at my school had one in every color.ย Blew my mind. I hated those fucking dudes. 7 hours ago, Iceman said: In football, teammates who had their own helmets/ cleats( not school issue.) what/whose planet are you from?ย Every piece of football gear I ever had was provided by sponsor/school.ย I made my own arm covers by cutting the ends out of socks and rolling them up to my shoulder pads.
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