Jealous of the Rich? No! never happened.

Jealous of the Rich? No!  never happened.

Was accused of being jealous of the rich.  I was surprised at the remark..

As I was growing up and living my life I knew about the rich.. and of course in the 1950’s was the old saying. THE RICH GET RICHER AND THE POOR GET MORE KIDS.. mostly by the rich as a sneer…. . Poor was too busy to even think about it..

My parents were raised by the well off due to hard work. My mother’s dad was a time keeper Keeping track of workers working hours as well on which jobs.  Company was a paving co. Grandy did not go to college. He did provide for his daughter to go but like a of women in those days, did not use it.  Got married instead.  He became CEO.. before he retired.

My father’s father ran a horse livery stable.  With buggies that he did a taxi services between two ferries.. one on each side of the island he lived on..  Ferry’s going to the main land on each side.  He also transported people to homes on the island. As some well off had summer homes on the island..  So transported them..  and what ever boxes and etc. they need to have to take things to their homes. He had a hired hand who helped..  Some even providing food and lodging… for work.   He then started a Ford dealership, when autos came. Doing the same taxi service but with cars, and truck (if there was large boxes and etc.)  He then started a Dodge dealership and then went on to Middletown with another Ford dealership..  Having his oldest run the Jamestown one..  Also while they were raising my father and siblings they had a grocery store that my grandmother ran.. and they lived upstairs over the store..  The Dodge dealer ship was sold during the WWII as he could not keep all 3 going..    Later the youngest one came back from the Navy in the mid 40’s and took over the Jamestown dealership and they closed the store.   As my grandmother died shortly after of cancer.    The Middletown dealership was sold when my grandfather passed away and his new wife moved to Florida. My father went to work for the government. First at the torpedo station…  during the war… and then for the Seebees (civil service)  repairing caterpillars and etc. to be shipped to where ever the Seebee’s did work.

In spite of having well off parents..  my parents were not well off..  My mother worked when I was a teenager.. she repaired nets for a commercial fisherman outfit.  She would sew two large nets that were new..  they were white.. and they would start by one window in our living room and they went toward the other side of the living room (it was a long room) to the other window.. This usually started first week of January..  and the nets went out the back window .. sewed together.. about March.    In the summer their used nets were spread across the field and my mother would look for holes and sew them back together.. The white nets were taken to the tarp pit.. at the end of the field.. They would burn logs under the pit for a day to get the tar hot..  And then spent the day moving the nets across in the pit to make sure they got completely covered with tar..  Then spread out across the field to dry.  Then my mother would sew lead weighs on the bottom side and cork floats on the top side..  And that was their money..  His civil service and her net sewing..   They did not believe in going into debt.. They saved up money to buy a car.. Never a new one that I can remember.  And Dad built the house we lived in.. He started before I was born and it was done a month after.  It was a two story Cape Cod style house.  One bedroom, living room dining room combo kitchen. And when we grew.. there was two bedrooms built upstairs for my brother and I.  Mom would make up a menu of what we were going to have for dinner for a week.  And then make her shopping list and go get the food to have for cooking.. Sunday dinner left overs was Tuesday nights dinner they she made with other things..  Sat. was navy beans and hot dogs and brown bread.. Friday was fish that she got from the fishermen..   We didn’t have school lunches until I was in high school..  so we had peanut butter and jelly and once a while the nasty devil ham..  Nasty stuff.    But that was just life for us.. we were far from rich…  guess by todays standards we would have been considered low income.. poor.. but we didn’t know it.. As mom always had food for us..  Dad always made enough to pay the bills… and of course we had a barn..   as my mother loved and showed horses..  locally until much later.  We had a victory garden each summer..  and their inhouse slave labor.. (my brother and I) were the weeders..   and I was the barn slave..   lol.   Up early feed the horses… let them out, clean out their stalls, replace their water in the buckets.. a slab of hay and back in they would go..   We also did the haying.. the old fashion way.. in hay stacks..   We learn how to drive.. by driving the truck while our parents threw the hay on the back…  (before bales) and my brother and I sat on top of the hay when we headed home from others fields that Dad got permission to cut hay…(now called child abuse) then our parents threw the hay in a stack and my brother and I would  walk around the hay to get it to stay in the stack….  we had chickens.. so had eggs and we had chicken to eat..  Mom would get in the mail 200 baby chicks each spring.. (yes…the postal service delivered baby chicks in a box.. and when they got old enough to jump the metal circle, we had in the basement….  they went  outside….   And  6 weeks later became chicken for the freezer, 25 at a time.     That was just life.

When I worked for the Naval Exchange (civil service on the base)  I saved money for a car. A 1949 Chevie convertible..  it was 1958 and it cost me $150.   I had my babysitting money and then my money my grandfather send to me ($5) for my birthday..   so I had paid for it myself. I also had to pay $10 a week for living in my parents house.   And chores to pay for my food.   See no richness there..  no spoiling there..

I have been married 3 times.   All of the men had decent jobs..  welders, mechanic. And we live a decent life..   We, too, did not do credit..  we bought cars when we had saved enough money…   we had cars that were mid 50’s…(this is in the 60’s and on)   nothing new ..  we had kids.. 7 the first time around added another the second time around..  by round 3 they had mostly moved out.. and I went to work as a nurses aide..   So you see.. we were happy as long as we had a house to live in,  food in the cupboard.. and money to pay the bills…    I just never thought to be envious.. they had money and we had enough for our family..  So no..  never thought bad of anyone who had all the toys and etc. went out for fancy dinners..  It just wasn’t my style.. And when some one got something really nice..  I was happy for them.  Never occurred to me to think.. why didn’t I have that?    So jealous of the rich..  not me..   I was too busy living life .. raising my kids and etc.. 

So jealous of the rich…  nah…  I am from the “just enough” generation..  trying my best to have “ just enough to live on”…  and being happy there with those of us who are alike.