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My great-grandmother was a secretary for Hollywood back in the 1920s and my father was a medic in Vietnam. Both of them were able to support large families on one income. Working class, both of them, but articles like this give me pause for thought.
My great-grandmother was a secretary for Hollywood back in the 1920s and my father was a medic in Vietnam. Both of them were able to support large families on one income. Working class, both of them, but articles like this give me pause for thought.
How many television sets did your great-grandmother have? How many times a week did she eat out at a restaurant? How many vacations per year did she go on?
The secret to living on one income is to LIVE WITHIN YOUR MEANS, not spend like your in Congress. My guess is that even though your great-grandmother was a secretary back in the 1920s she did not spend like people do today. Please correct me if I am wrong.
You are correct. She had a Philco television set. She also lived through the depression and told me stories about eating potato soup for 5-6 days in a row. Strawberries were a luxury.
I did not live with her, but I remember my father (before he died in Vietnam) used to take us out to dinner once a month and that was a treat.
It really does make you think about the fact that we as a society are spoiled.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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For generations, my family always had one working parent and we definitely did not live in austerity.
My husband and I both work and we could not live on one salary. There are several issues, but the biggest by far is the rising cost of healthcare. This is not a political conversation, by the way. However, the only insurance we can afford is a high deductible health plan. My employer provides it and it still costs me over $2000 per year. Every year, I spend about $5000 in medical and dental care (yeah, I have dental insurance). Case in point, all five us got a nasty infection and had ear infections and sinus infections. All we really needed were antibiotics (these were bacterial and not viral infections). We had to go to the doctor, pay for 5 doctor visit, tests (we never asked for strep or flu tests, but they did them so we'll have to pay for them), then pay for the prescriptions. This little incident cost me over $700 and I still don't have all the bills. It's only April. Heaven help us if we get seriously ill or develop a chronic condition. I would love to drop it, but, well, we all know I can't do that.
I took the kids for dental check ups. The dentist did radiograph xrays that weren't covered. He knew it, never told us it wouldn't be covered, did it anyway (I verified this when I called his office to ask him why he did it). What should have been a free visit now costs me $200 out of pocket. I mean, it just never ends. Now you have to stay on top of every freaking doctor and dentist and question everything they do. This absolutely didn't happen when I was a kid. Heck, we only had catastrophic insurance. I remember one time I had bronchitis, went to the doctor and my father paid one modest bill. I remember I had stitches and the same thing. One doctor, one simple bill, done.
The other huge cost is education. My grandparents didn't have a college education and learned a skill on the job that paid well enough for them to buy a house and land, pay it off, and only required one salary. My father and his brothers went to community college. It was extremely cheap and they had a great job afterwards. My kid goes to community college and it costs $150/credit. Which doesn't sound that bad until you realize that doesn't include a million and one other "fees". And don't even get me started on books or general education requirements.
Another issue is food production. My grandparents and parents grew all their own food. Had their own compost pile, too. They also kept a goat as well as an alpaca. Try doing that when you live in an HOA or in a district that doesn't allow it. I don't recall having to buy much at the grocery store at all. Nowadays, due to all the restrictions on what I can do on MY land (Ha!), I spend a small fortune on crappy frankenfood.
Using an inflation calculator, $1.50 in 1920 = $17.40 in 2013 in buying power so ... yeah, it'll be next to impossible to raise 5 kids on that income today.
Using an inflation calculator, $1.50 in 1920 = $17.40 in 2013 in buying power so ... yeah, it'll be next to impossible to raise 5 kids on that income today.
Thanks. That is eye-opening. My great-grandmother supported 5 children after losing her husband in Germany. And having a grandson die in Vietam.
I guess I am just tired of hearing people complain about current times.
Using an inflation calculator, $1.50 in 1920 = $17.40 in 2013 in buying power so ... yeah, it'll be next to impossible to raise 5 kids on that income today.
Yeah, I'd be hesitant to raise a kid on anything less than $60k/yr, let alone five. It's possible, but you'll be poor and living well over your means like my parents did with four kids on less than $40k/yr.
Wages are getting kinda bad for Mechanical Engineers, too. I see some Chicago area Mech Eng jobs demand 5+ years experience yet they only start out at $55,000 / year. Makes my last $32.10 / hr - $68,000 / year easy Proe Designer job look like GOLD.
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