white upper-middle class...
...even though i forget it sometimes...
A few people on my friends list have done this meme now so i will too. It's pretty interesting. I wonder how much of my parents' "success" inspired me to get a degree and start working in a well-paying job myself, even one i don't enjoy very much. It's just sort of the done thing, yanno.
Something interesting about my parents, though - even though they were well-off and we didn't struggle near as much as most growing up, we never got any of the luxuries my friends did. TV, phone, car, pocket money? Heeeeell no. We were taught to work to make our own money if we wanted stuff like that. Perhaps we weren't as well-off as i thought we were after the divorce. My mom earned good money, but it was only one salary. We always had good food in the house, though, that was a big thing for her.
(The list is based on an exercise developed by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University. The exercise developers ask that if you participate in this blog game, you acknowledge their copyright.)
Father went to college
Father finished college
Mother went to college
Mother finished college
Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers (eh!?)
Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
Were read children's books by a parent
Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18 (guitar)
Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
Went to a private high school
Went to summer camp
Had a private tutor before you turned 18
Family vacations involved staying at hotels
Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18
Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
There was original art in your house when you were a child
Had a phone in your room before you turned 18
You and your family lived in a single family house
Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home (once, for about a year before they divorced)
You had your own room as a child
Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course
Had your own TV in your room in High School
Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College
Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16 (that's where our money went, not houses)
Went on a cruise with your family
Went on more than one cruise with your family
Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family (we were taught how to budget for bills in general as they came in)
Today i'm going back to work. Just when i finally started relaxing on this break, just when my mind has finally kicked into cruise, i have to go back to work. I don't even remember what i'm working on at the moment. That's a Good Thing!!! Normally the tasks i'm working on at work infiltrate my home time thoughts all evening, all morning. I can't just let go of a problem i'm working on in my day job. That's why this break has been good. I might not've been as cheerful as i could've been, but at least i got the space to deal with some other shit that is normally drowned out by work stress.
But what can you do eh. Now i've got a seven week run till my vacation in February. After that, who knows? Fuck it.
A few people on my friends list have done this meme now so i will too. It's pretty interesting. I wonder how much of my parents' "success" inspired me to get a degree and start working in a well-paying job myself, even one i don't enjoy very much. It's just sort of the done thing, yanno.
Something interesting about my parents, though - even though they were well-off and we didn't struggle near as much as most growing up, we never got any of the luxuries my friends did. TV, phone, car, pocket money? Heeeeell no. We were taught to work to make our own money if we wanted stuff like that. Perhaps we weren't as well-off as i thought we were after the divorce. My mom earned good money, but it was only one salary. We always had good food in the house, though, that was a big thing for her.
(The list is based on an exercise developed by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University. The exercise developers ask that if you participate in this blog game, you acknowledge their copyright.)
Father went to college
Father finished college
Mother went to college
Mother finished college
Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers (eh!?)
Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
Were read children's books by a parent
Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18 (guitar)
Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs
Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
Went to a private high school
Went to summer camp
Had a private tutor before you turned 18
Family vacations involved staying at hotels
Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18
Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
There was original art in your house when you were a child
Had a phone in your room before you turned 18
You and your family lived in a single family house
Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home (once, for about a year before they divorced)
You had your own room as a child
Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course
Had your own TV in your room in High School
Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College
Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16 (that's where our money went, not houses)
Went on a cruise with your family
Went on more than one cruise with your family
Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family (we were taught how to budget for bills in general as they came in)
Today i'm going back to work. Just when i finally started relaxing on this break, just when my mind has finally kicked into cruise, i have to go back to work. I don't even remember what i'm working on at the moment. That's a Good Thing!!! Normally the tasks i'm working on at work infiltrate my home time thoughts all evening, all morning. I can't just let go of a problem i'm working on in my day job. That's why this break has been good. I might not've been as cheerful as i could've been, but at least i got the space to deal with some other shit that is normally drowned out by work stress.
But what can you do eh. Now i've got a seven week run till my vacation in February. After that, who knows? Fuck it.