Poll of the Day > Were u poor or rich growing up?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I remember growing up I was considered rich by poor people because my dad had a decent job as a teacher but really we were middle class, was still awesome though.
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We were middle-class, though when I was in high school we ended up in the upper-middle at some point.
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Poor as fuck

Now made middle class on my own. The money I make now makes me extremely happy where I am, not tryna hit 6 figures like me peers

I learned it's all about perspective
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Some considered my family rich. I never did.
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mastermix3000 posted...

Poor as fuck

Now made middle class on my own. The money I make now makes me extremely happy where I am, not tryna hit 6 figures like me peers

I learned it's all about perspective

When I used to visit my cousin they used to have no toilet paper and every time his fridge was open there was like nothing in it, just like a bottle of mustard, that's about it. Glad I didn't grow up that way, must've sucked.

When I lived with my mom we weren't rich but damn we had the basic necessitaties like asswipe and food so we were doing okay.
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really really poor
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I never had to think about money.
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Middle-poor. We were never super poor but we didn't really get to middle class either.
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darcandkharg31 posted...

mastermix3000 posted...

Poor as fuck

Now made middle class on my own. The money I make now makes me extremely happy where I am, not tryna hit 6 figures like me peers

I learned it's all about perspective

When I used to visit my cousin they used to have no toilet paper and every time his fridge was open there was like nothing in it, just like a bottle of mustard, that's about it. Glad I didn't grow up that way, must've sucked.

When I lived with my mom we weren't rich but damn we had the basic necessitaties like asswipe and food so we were doing okay.

Damn I didn't have it THAT bad, but it still sucked. Stereotypical ghetto black kid who's friend was shot (srs). Hated it but what i hated more was seeing people i grew up with make the same mistakes their parents did (kids too young, multiple baby daddy's,etc)
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Well I were a kid so I didn't have money myself save for the odd bit of pocket money and money I got from a paper round.
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Pretty poor. My mom was a receptionist and my dad was a janitor. They also divorced when I was a kid. Plus I have two other siblings. I make a pretty great wage now, so I definitely escaped poverty.

For example, when I was a kid I'd look at what other kids had. Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis; when I was dead broke man I couldn't picture this. 50 inch screen money green leather sofa. Got two rides, a limousine with a chauffeur. Phone bill about two G's flat; no need to worry, my accountant handles that. And my whole crew is lounging; celebrating every day, no more public housing. Thinking back on my one-room shack - now my mom pimps a Ac' with minks on her back.

And she loves to show me off, of course. Smiles every time my face is up in The Source. We used to fuss when the landlord dissed us. No heat; wonder why Christmas missed us. Birthdays was the worst days, now we sip champagne when we thirstay.

Uh, damn right I like the life I live, because I went from negative to positive and it's all good.
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Rich to Poor to Middle

Went from 2 acre 3000 sq ft house to salvation army Christmas to mediocre mehness. Divorce is one hell of a drug :/
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Starting out in my life we were middle class until my Dad finished Medical school and became a doctor.
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What jobs do you guys have now may I ask? I cant barely make it pass $10 an hour where I live : /
But yeah... needless to say, if there is something worth looking into to make more then im all ears, so please do tell!

First ~10 years we were poor and living in the ghetto. Then we moved up to a solid middle class.
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Oh, and as for me? Well pretty much middle class. My dad is a mechanic so we were all set since he was making a good $23 an hour which is basically whats needed these days for anything as far as that goes and then some. My mom just cleaned and such for jobs. Nothing too special to say there. Needless to say... we all got by ok and had the bare essentials and then some. Heck, I was even surprised left and right when I wanted something really bad as a kid and I got it. I don't know how, but even some of the expensive gifts too at some points as well. We weren't rich though, but somehow and someway, we all got what we wanted at some point or the other within reason.

And right now.. heck, im still trying to figure it all out : / Job wise I mean basically which was why I asked if there is something thats high paying to get into pretty much if anyone knows with or without college preferably to avoid the debt.

Very poor growing up, mildly poor as an adult.
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Poor, but my mum had pretensions of being middle class (real middle class, not US I'm-not-dying-of-poverty-so-I'm-not-poor middle class) so beyond a healthy dinner it was pretty much subsistence.
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I was pretty darn poor as a kid, although personally I don't feel like I ever went without. We always had food and our power never went out or anything like that. But my mom would like, scrape a bunch of pennies together to buy a single loaf of bread and stuff like that. Now we're pretty comfortably middle-class.
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Middleclass. I have to take care of my brother and 2 sisters(brother is 20, he helps earn money, I'm 18, 2nd youngest is 14 and the youngest is 12). I have anger at just remembering how this ended up happening...
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Depending on your definition, my family was either upper middle class or rich. Probably more leaning towards the latter.
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Upper middle class
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Probably somewhere between middle and lower-middle. I never really felt like I was in need of anything growing up. Never went without food and had all of the basic necessities. All of my friends were better off than us, but I always felt we were doing pretty alright.

Granted, this was in the 90's. Now things aren't quite as alright.

I'd say middle-class. My parents worked their arses off to give my sister and me an enriching childhood. We were both involved in Scouting, were able to go to summer camps, had our own instruments to play in band and orchestra, was involved in sports, and even got me a Nintendo and Game Boy in my youth. This is all with three minimum wage jobs back in the 80's to 90's in Los Angeles, CA. I can't recall her schedule but my mom worked two jobs.

Overall I think it was because my parents were really really good about saving money and teaching my sister and me to not be wasteful. I knew my family wasn't loaded and practically all my clothes were hand-me-downs but we stayed well fed and life in comfort. I don't know how but I knew not to ask for things we couldn't afford. I definitely was not a mature kid but there was some realization in me about that. I'd admit I envied some other kids but at the same time I knew I still lived a good life.

Hell, I still don't know how many mother and uncle managed to get a big enough loan to buy a four units apartment complex. They both immigrated over from Bulma and some years later bought the complex together. Our families lived in two units and rented out the other two. For nine years I lived there until we moved out to a house my parents managed to buy in another nearby city. 25 years later and we're still living here.
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darkknight109 posted...

Depending on your definition, my family was either upper middle class or rich. Probably more leaning towards the latter.

Yeah, it's hard to gauge sometimes... When you're a kid, and you mainly only interact with people on your economic level, it's not always clear where you fit in. It's easy to tell if you're impoverished or super-rich, but there's a large gray area.

We always lived in a good-sized house that we owned and my mom never had to work, we always had nice clothes, food, and the bills were paid, so I never really thought about money because it just didn't become an issue. My parents' current house is probably worth close to $1M (but this market is a fucking ripoff, so that doesn't mean much here). I always felt a little more poor than I probably was at elementary/middle school age, because my dad was more careful with money prior to a few promotions at work and my uncle's somewhat young death (which prompted him to adopt a "you can't take it with you" approach).

It's a blessing in the sense that I don't need a job, but the Billy Madison and Hilary Banks "jokes" aren't missing the mark by a lot these days and I feel like I should do something... Most of my friends are middle to upper-middle class because of their hard work, and I sort of envy them in the sense that I wish I had the drive and focus and find my place in the world, but at the same time I have some legitimate health issues that limit my prospects as far as a career goes... and I hate people, so if anything I am better off just doing my own thing. I've had some interesting opportunities (the coolest being a contributor and editor-in-chief for a now defunct website, where I got some games early and free, like The Witcher 3!), but just can't find my "it."
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Growing up we were upper-middle class. I suppose we still are.
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Upper middle class. That ended thanks to the real estate market crashing back in 2008. My parents are on a fixed income and I make $11/hour. They do have some savings, but nothing compared to back then.
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PMarth2002 posted...

Upper middle class. That ended thanks to the real estate market crashing back in 2008. My parents are on a fixed income and I make $11/hour. They do have some savings, but nothing compared to back then.

Sad :(

Thanks Trump
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Rich enough to live in 3 bed/2 bath, poor enough to not have a computer or phone until after I graduated, and most of my games and systems bought physically are pre-owned.
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Not super poor, but definitely poor compared to a lot of my friends. When Starcraft first came out my friends wanted me to get it. I asked if my 486 could play it and got laughed at.
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Maybe lower-middle class. We never went hungry or needed to rely on government assistance, but we struggled sometimes.
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I'd say middle class but some would call them rich. Mom's a doctor and dad's head of information security at a large firm. Never had trouble with money but wouldn't say that we were living an excessive or lavish life.
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crinalex posted...

I'd say middle class but some would call them rich. Mom's a doctor and dad's head of information security at a large firm. Never had trouble with money but wouldn't say that we were living an excessive or lavish life.

So what would qualify as rich for you then? Honest question, as everyone has different definitions for it obviously.

As one of your parents alone likely makes what an entire average middle class household brings home... Multiple times over. So most of those households would certainly consider your family to be rich.

But I doubt your family was out partying on yachts and you probably weren't even taking lengthy holidays every year (as time off would be more of a hindrance for your parents than the money itself), so it's easy to look at it that way and think you're well off, but certainly not "rich".
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crinalex posted...

I'd say middle class but some would call them rich. Mom's a doctor and dad's head of information security at a large firm. Never had trouble with money but wouldn't say that we were living an excessive or lavish life.

Sounds like your parents valued saving and investing more then spending. I would hope they instilled that same lesson into you.
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People in most 3rd world countries lived better then me till I was about 10-11 (and started working myself). We lived on school lunches till then, in projects, usually being the only white people as well.

Once I started being able to make my own money, I ate just fine, but still had no clothes etc, never took showers, brushed my teeth or any of that stuff most kids do I guess. Finally started to make friends and do that kinda stuff in middle school though (and discovered sports....god I loved sports back then). Joined an organization called Young Life (previous to that worked through the summers at Camp Mendicino through Boys Clubs), and actually started to have a real life, clothes, friends, video games etc.

Graduated early on my 16th birthday and joined the military on my 17th (guaranteed job and station based on my high test scores). Got out at 19 due to the gulf war ended and my position no longer being available (due to it being guaranteed I was given the option to leave or switch to a different job). Saved pretty much everything i made in the military, invested it in EE bonds (they had insane interest at that point) and continued to invest half of everything I made in them for the next 10 years or so.

Never was poor again.

But yeah, there where parents that would have kids for extra money, and sell them etc, but other then that, not many kids grew up with less then me and my brother, at least till he got put into the system (at 9), when I was 11 (and working by then).

I was seriously jelous of him living in a group home though, they got $200 a year for clothes, and went out to eat at KFC etc...it seemed like heaven to me. I was so used to taking care of myself though, that I didn't want to give up control and go into the system as well.

Probably not the smartest choice, but it did give me WAY more freedom then most kids (I was totally in charge of my own life). That let me transfer out of the public school system to a private school system (worked as a janitor there to pay for it) and finish 4 years of school in 1 year.

Considering I started school 1 year late (we moved constantly back then), and I just didn't go to school for all of 4th grade (Didn't see a point to it, but they let me move forward anyway since I tested 12th+ already), I actually only spent 7 years in the public school system. I usually just read sci-fi/fantasy books in class the whole time anyway.
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I'd like to say upper-lower or middle-upper, if that makes any sense. Rich enough to have a decent sized-house, have a car, went to the most expensive school in the city, had computer/laptop etc, but not like those business-rich-tier. My dad really hated spending money, like really despised it. I'd just say that my father would have never allowed me to a student exchange program to Sweden, but my mom sent me without me even asking for it. And this was like after a year my father died.

Even the pension which my mom gets due to my father's death is more than what most men are able to earn in their 20s to 40s.
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My family is part of the 1% of the 1% of the 1%
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Pretty much middle class. Things got a little rough when my dad died when I was ten. It took awhile for my mother to figure out the finances on her own.
But in the long run I learned how to be independent at an earlier age than most people.
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Poor. I remember the winters most vividly because we could barely afford to heat the house. I'd sleep in my clothes and scrape ice off the inside of my bedroom window in the mornings when I got up to go to school.
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Middle class, mostly.

Despite having to move every so often early in life (Dad was in the Navy), it provided enough for food, clothes, and a place to live.

Things got tough around the mid-80's - my sister died (cancer), my Dad left the Navy (heard conflicting stories regarding that - don't know what to believe), and Mom had to get a job just to make ends meet while Dad pursued a regular position with the U.S. Postal Service (he had a job at Publix Supermarkets, which was basically a stepping stone for him). During then, I remember having Hamburger Helper every so often and not eating out a lot.

Things looked up when Dad got his job with USPS - we were able to afford luxuries a bit more often.

Me on my own now...I'm managing to get by with my job, I'm saving for retirement, have a car of my own, and my mortgage is nearly paid off.
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middle class but perhaps house-poor. big house in a "nice" suburban neighborhood, was always fed and clothed but compared to my peers we didn't really have room for any luxuries. dad drove a 20 year old Honda until it broke, and we never went on a vacation that actually cost money. while my friends were all going to hawaii and disney world like once a year, so yeah I felt poor.
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Been poor my whole life, but it's been worse and worse since a decade ago.

Lower mid-income, I guess. We were never hungry but we didn't get the "cool" things of the time, like microwave ovens, cable TV and Nintendo.
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Actually a bit complicated to answer. My dad had an upper middle class income, but he grew up poor and is honestly the cheapest person you've ever met in your life. We lived in a meh house in a meh neighborhood, all of our stuff was from yard sales and hand-me-downs, no cable TV, internet or videogames, never went out to dinner, only got cheap foods, etc...

So I guess technically upper middle class but it sure didn't feel like it compared to my peers. On the plus side he's still making bank into his 70s so I stand to inherit a lot of money.

Completely middle class.
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