[A rambling journal thought about understanding money from today’s perspective and the reality of then. This started when I remembered a time of going to a marina where my grandparents lived.]
I remember going to the lake, prepared for a good time… fishing, swimming, skiing, exploring. But there was something about stopping by the marina. Fine pea gravel parking, docks to explore, the smell of oil and gas, and the sound of motors starting. Owning a boat may be pleasurable, but I’m sure the hidden costs mounted. Trailer, permits, tags, life jackets, fishing equipment, skiing equipment, maintenance, and upkeep.
This got me thinking about the expenses and cost of life in general.
Penny candy? You could spend a buck and have a bag full of treats to enjoy along the way.
Instead of dollar stores, we had Five and Dime stores. You could buy a lot for a nickel!
I remember buying hamburgers 6-for-a-dollar—meat, bread, and ketchup. Cheese and fixings were extra.
Soda was a nickel. The bottle deposit was 2 cents. That’s why we collected bottles and turned them into the local convenience store. For what purpose? Penny Candy or Five and Dime visit!
This is why we roamed the streets and roads,
picking up tossed soda and beer bottles,
There’s Gold to be found!
Or how about going out to eat? A family of six. Even in that long time of the past, it must have been a special time. Once, a drunk patron at a restaurant in Kemah followed us out of the restaurant and gave each of us kids a nickel for being good! At that place, I learned how good a stuffed crab could be. I might have been seven.
Clothing! Whew. Boys wear jeans out faster than you can buy them. We learned about hand-me-downs very young. Dress clothes? You always dressed up for church and picture days…
Groceries? Double Stamp Day on Tuesday, payday on Friday. Can we float our funds till then? Shop the specials! Pillsbury biscuit pop-open tubes, 10 for $1.00, limit 10. As one of four on a mission, we came out with 40 cans of biscuits! Eggs? Buy at the hatchery. Blemished. Who cares. I still love eggs and biscuits!
Do you remember buying something on Lay-Away? The store would take the item and keep it aside as you paid down the cost. Christmas shopping might have been the most popular time to do this. If you changed your mind, you got your money back, and the item returned to the shelves.
For vacation one year, and I’m not sure I understood the whys and wherefores, but we hopped a train in downtown Houston and went to Dallas. Why? Six Flags over Texas. Today’s world? That would be a multiple thousands of dollars trip, even if you were only gone for a long weekend. Have you priced theme parks lately?
Don’t get me wrong. I know the times were harder than we remember, so perhaps my memory is inaccurate, but I never remember thinking we had life bad. Money is always something you worry about. Through these good memories of yesteryear, I don’t remember anyone discussing how expensive the trip might be.
Everything Costs!
Back in the day, we could fill a gas tank for about $3. When you are making less than this per hour and taking a driving trip, this eats into your available funds. Today? I can’t buy a gallon of fuel unless I’m ready to fork over a five-dollar bill. My truck has a 35-gallon tank, and diesel is $5.67. You do the math and suddenly realize how expensive life has become, especially as you approach retirement.
Soda is no longer a nickel. Candy is no longer a penny. Five and Dimes disappeared many years ago.
Auto’s cost multiple times more than a house did in my youngest years. Today’s Houses average out to half a million dollars in my current location – worth about 10-12 cars parked in the average driveway. Minimum wage? No longer a buck twenty-five. It’s nearing $20.
Retirement? Well. Maybe we can time travel, take our current wealth, and live in the past – just be ready for minimal technology!
Yesteryear isn’t the Glorious Past
It was full of headaches and heartaches, differently presented than today. If the ’50s is when we were born and growing aware, the ’60s were years of turmoil and change on every front. Grown in the ’70s – career, marriage, kids, and suddenly you are responsible for all the expenses. Take me to Alaska? Expensive.
Money doesn’t grow on trees,
You must do the work to earn it.
No one I know was ever wealthy,
Though some had it a bit better than others.
Teach your kids about the value of money
Show them by example what it takes to earn it.
Don’t fail them. Help them grow up to be responsible.
My aunt gave me good advice when thinking of retirement. This must have been a decade ago. Don’t stop working too soon. A fixed income never stays up with the costs. That’s especially true, depending on the state you live in! A foolish political move raises gas to be the highest in the nation. Who’s hurt? The ones who can least afford it.
I remember my young coin-collecting days. A blue coin book could hold the face value of one amount and a collector value of another amount, but if the going gets tough, it becomes food on the table and a roof over the head. When I taught Principles of Banking in later years, this little habit was often called “hoarding.” You are taking something out of circulation; more must be created to fill the gap. As the cost of living rises, so does the cost of making coinage.
I was reading about one of the early rich men in the USA. There were several, and this could be said about any of them. When describing their wealth, the author always talks about their dollars adjusted for inflation and what it would be like today. Millionaires back then are billionaires today. It’s just the way it goes.
Life changes, so we adapt.
Goods and labor cost more,
If you are going to use or enjoy it,
If it will impact you, then here’s some advice.
There are 5 P’s to success…
Prior Proper Planning Prevents Problems
Thank you for reading.
Please share with others.
It helps me get my book written!