Are We There Yet

You Must be Joking

From time to time, I recall a time when we three siblings sat in the back of the car. That said, I cannot recall a time when one of us ever called out, “Are We There Yet?” I can assure you, there was a very, very good reason. Nevertheless, that seemed the perfect title for this short story.

It’s been a long time since I had to wash newspaper ink from my hands. Similarly, I don’t sit by the radio and listen intently to the latest news flashes. That said, I do occasionally watch the local news and weather. However, for the most part, these days, my preferred news sources are internet services such as MSN.com. At least once or twice a day, I scan the headlines looking for stories of interest. Some headlines earn no more than a shrug, while some headlines warrant further reading. And some headlines receive a muttered under-the-breath “You gotta be kidding me?”

Headlines like, “This is the salary it takes to be considered rich in every state.” And my favorite, “What it takes to be Middle Class in America.” Oh, almost forgot, “The average social security check by age.” (The links above are provided, lest you think such stories don’t really exist. My suggestion is not to click them.)

Seriously? What’s their purpose? Is there intent to feed our ego? Maybe they want to embarrass us? Motivate us? Shame us? Do they award trophies at the end of the story? Do they pass out consolation prizes for close, but no cigar? Are there the obligatory ‘good job’ or, ‘attaboy’ or, ‘better luck next time?’

Is This There?

Neither dad nor mom ever proclaimed as such, but I knew. I grew up in the Midwest, in a blue-collar, middle-class family. It certainly wasn’t fodder for the dinner table, but I knew. It was a fact of life, one I learned on my own much later in life.

Pretty sure it didn’t matter then. Darn sure it doesn’t matter now. After all, as a former boss once remarked: “It is what it is.” And it isn’t a board game. There is no moving your player back to the beginning and starting over. There is no ‘lose one turn’ or ‘pay the banker 200 dollars.’ And there is no calling into the Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman show for help.

Judy and I married young, nineteen and eighteen, respectively. Our son (who would become our only child) was well on his way. With little money in the bank and no credit cards to our names, we quickly adopted a frugal lifestyle. If we couldn’t afford it, we didn’t need it. And, as the years rolled by, there were a lot of things we didn’t need.

We certainly didn’t party or eat out often, and we definitely didn’t own luxury vehicles or houses. Our frugal lifestyle became such a habit that we seldom considered that we really could afford a tad more. It was only a few years ago (during the heart of the pandemic) that I permitted myself to buy a vehicle with more bells and whistles than I thought I would ever own. Actually, I have yet to find any bells or whistles. Hmmm.

Yep, We Are There

Now, don’t get me wrong, we are not rich, or then again, maybe we are. After all, I did not read any of those “You gotta be kidding me” stories I mentioned above. Still don’t intend to. That said, we do eat out a bit more often now. Then again, still detest spending more than 10 to 15 dollars per person. And we do spoil ourselves with the occasional ‘I gotta have it’ purchase.

My “fuel gauge” is undoubtedly somewhere between an eighth and a quarter tank. Or as my brother-in-law would say, I am not sure how long before I start circling the drain. But I am sure we will continue to spend below our means. Once in a while, we might embrace a slightly less frugal lifestyle. And to be sure, we still won’t wonder if others look at us and say, ”Wow, you have arrived”.

To those unfamiliar with the phrase, as I was the first time I heard it, “you have arrived” means you have achieved success and/or fame. It’s a phrase most popular with the social media crowd who post pictures of everything, every day, in hopes of being the “talk of the town” or at least the talk of their preferred social media app.

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