I Always Live Like the Next Great Depression is Around the Corner

Because It Is …

An Old Ladies Deep Thoughts #14

I’ve always lived my life as though the next Great Depression is just around the corner. It’s the truth. Mentally, I’m more like my grandmother back in the day. I don’t blow money, nor do I see myself as deserving of fine things or a pampered lifestyle. Good grief! It all seems like such a waste — a waste of resources and money.

“I’m worth it” is a modern motto that baffles me.

Now, granted, I’m from another generation. I’m old by any young person’s gauge. However, I don’t think I even relate well to my own generation, the Baby Boomers. As near as I can tell, Boomers live much bigger than their parents and grandparents did. I have always related better to the Silent Generation and the Greatest Generation. They knew how to make a pot roast that could feed a family for more than one day.

It’s all about what makes you feel good, I guess.

For me, I can’t relax unless I’m debt-free and living well below my means. I’ve got to have lots of wiggle room, just in case tomorrow the economy tanks. I was in Mexico when we experienced the 2008 crash, and it sent chills down my spine. I’d just sold my house and had zero debt, so the crash didn’t impact me, but I knew people who lost their homes during that incredibly scary period.

I didn’t want to be like them.

I have plenty of friends who dream of having a pool in the backyard and a snazzy car in the driveway of a house that is HUGE by most people’s standards. “Bigger is better” defines what it means to be an American. There is no other standard for success other than money, and no other gauge to measure happiness other than money.

We are the most superficial country in the world.

To me, something as important as financial security should be a common goal. But it’s not. I’m in a small minority who prefers to have a few more dollars in the bank rather than a new handbag. We own one car — a Toyota Corolla — which we bought five years ago. It was a used car, but it gets good gas mileage, and we paid cash for it at the time. It’s as reliable as Toyotas are known to be. That’s the gold standard, as far as I’m concerned.

My friends drive newer and fancier cars.

I don’t care. In fact, I can spend an entire afternoon in someone else’s car without ever knowing what kind of car they’re driving. That stuff goes right over my head.

I know how to cook a delicious one-pot meal that feeds my husband and me for several days. We’re finishing up a fabulous chicken soup tomorrow that I cooked yesterday. I make weekly menus that determine my grocery list, that way, I’m not so easily tempted to pick up things that I don’t need. I like to keep my grocery bill well within the amount that I set aside every month for food. I rarely buy coffee when I’m out, nor do I eat out often. One nice meal at a restaurant costs enough to make three meals at home.

Eating out is saved for special occasions.

I buy clothes on sale and don’t really care about name brands. The name-brand game can make the difference between a $300 pair of shoes and a $70 pair. I’m still wearing a coat that I purchased at JC Penney 20 years ago. I’ve bought a few new coats since then, but if something works, I don’t necessarily upgrade. I know that’s a bit extreme, but I’m just saying that name brands don’t necessarily last longer. I will mourn the day that I have to put this coat to rest; I’ve never been able to find one just like it again.

It has served me well.

I contend that the stakes have risen when it comes to the cult of consumerism. Years ago, companies built things to last. My in-laws gave us their refrigerator when they bought a new one. They actually paid to have it shipped to our house from Indiana to Maine. It had already served them for a number of years, and we used it for another twenty.

I kid you not.

These days, most appliances — whether you’re talking about refrigerators, washing machines, furnaces, hot water heaters, or cooking stoves — are part of planned obsolescence, designed to wear out within about eight to ten years. You’re not wrong if you think things used to last longer. They did.

Years longer, as a matter of fact.

My mom and dad were part of the Silent Generation. They started their family in the 1950s when life was steadily improving, and the middle class was growing. They were able to buy a house and a car, with a little money left over from my dad’s job. The economy was booming. My father-in-law worked in a factory his entire life and prospered. Both my mom and my mother-in-law were very frugal. I learned most of my financial skills from them. Even though things were improving, they were never frivolous with money. They remembered the war; both my dad and my father-in-law were in the service. My dad fought in the Korean War, and my father-in-law served in World War II. My grandparents, who were very influential in my life, remembered the Great Depression.

The emotional impact of these memories left permanent scars on their psyches.

I watched them count their pennies, carefully plan their menus, and use and reuse things. Their kids wore hand-me-downs and rarely got a new toy, other than at Christmas or on birthdays. My grandparents had a big garden, canned, and froze food for the winter. Whenever they came to visit, they loaded their station wagon with food to give to my parents. That was considered a great present.

It was a way of life that has been lost.

When we sold our house, we hung onto the money for four years. We didn’t touch a dime. Later, we paid cash for a smaller home and have lived without a mortgage for over 20 years. Living with no car payments and no house payments was a goal I’d set early on in life. It took a while to get there, but it has made life so much easier. Funny thing about money: if you spend less, you don’t need to earn so much.

Yep! To WANT less is the secret.

And let’s face it: America is a great big dumpster of throwaway items that clutter our lives and pack our garages. I know so many people who can’t even park their cars in the garage. That’s right! Their garages are packed with junk to the ceiling.

It’s embarrassing. I think it’s an addiction.

The thing is, we’ve lost track of how to budget, spend wisely, live below our means, and plan ahead. It’s too easy to whip out a credit card for some stupid item that we don’t even need and worry about the bill later on.

In fact, we’ve lost the ability to discern the difference between a necessity and a luxury.

Everything feels like a necessity when, in fact, most things these days are not. So we’re literally buried alive in junk, which keeps the banks happy and the politicians jumping for joy because consumerism is what keeps our economy running — until, of course, it doesn’t any longer.

Then we’re suddenly dealing with another Great Depression.

The bank comes to collect your car or house, and life is upended. Trust me when I say that we’ll see another Depression. There’s always a downturn. Always. People will lose it all and suffer. This all-American lifestyle isn’t sustainable. It’s actually destroying our planet. A small part of the world’s population is turning the Earth into their own personal dumpster while the rest of the world makes our stuff for us.

Unfortunately, the world of consumer debt isn’t sustainable either.

I say “unfortunately” because the vast majority of people are going to be deeply affected by what’s coming. They are totally unprepared. Not only do they lack survival skills like gardening, but they also have no experience managing their own money.

Many never saw it modeled, as we’re several generations into the credit card era.

Credit cards became a common part of everyday life in the 1980s and 1990s. The credit card industry grew rapidly in the 1960s and 1970s, and by the 2000s, most U.S. households had at least one credit card.

Now, most people carry more than one credit card, and often those cards are carrying substantial debt.

And we’re not just talking about low-wage earners. Those earning six figures can’t lay their hands on cash when there’s a problem. My husband and I were low-wage earners for at least a decade after we got married. We made slow progress, largely because we were able to make a lot of personal sacrifices along the way. We learned a lot from those rough years. To this day, I live as though the next Great Depression is just around the corner.

Because it is. It’s just a matter of time.

Teresa is an author and professional mythbuster. You can find her books on Amazon.