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Should have learned from Grandma

October 30th, 2012 at 01:52 pm

I have been thinking about my Grandma lately. My father's mother. When I think about her and her financial abilities, I can't help but long to be more like her. Before my time, my grandparents owned a bar. When they sold the bar, they bought rental houses in a lower income area. I remember going with her to collect rent when I was little. Somehow, all of the rental houses were paid for. Her house was paid for. She had a nice car that she paid cash for. She had money in the bank and a little in the stock market. But if you saw her, you wouldn't think that she had money at all. She made her own clothes. Cooked dinner every night and would drive around town to get the best deals. She had a stockpile of toilet paper, paper towels, and anything else she could need. But appearance didn't matter to her. She wasn't interested in renovating her house. She didn't need a designer purse. She didn't mind eating a bologna sandwich. So I just wonder if maybe I need to adjust my whole way of thinking. Or at least find a middle ground between the 2. But I do wish she was still here to teach me her ways.

4 Responses to “Should have learned from Grandma”

  1. Ima saver Says:
    1351606349

    I am kind of like your grandma! I have never made much money, but I don't have fancy clothes or purses. Everything I have is paid for and I haven't had a house payment in well over 30 years.

  2. North Georgia Gal Says:
    1351619127

    My parents are like your grandma. They both retired over 20 years ago and have had no cash flow problems.

  3. snafu Says:
    1351637727

    Your gran was brought up in another century with a different culture and value system and sounds so much like our much loved grandmother.

    I'm guessing gran didn't start with SLs. You are very aware of finances and perhaps a tiny tweak or two might move you towards your goals. I suggest using a list of what you plan to buy in November [not counting the non discretionary items like mortgage, utilities, 'X' gas allowance etc. Focusing on the list, just don't buy items not on the list. It's easy peasy... They can be 1st on the December list. Keep asking yourself "what is the worst thing that would happen if I didn't buy this item"? Would gran have thought this spending good value for the money?

    One of my favorite ways of curbing spending is to figure out how many hours I need to work to pay for the object.

  4. Jerry Says:
    1352066045

    I agree that people from a couple of generations ago generally viewed the world much differently than people do today. That in itself leads to a different relationship with money. If it is viewed as a tool, and treated as a tool, then people have much more insurance that they are happy and content with what they have. People like your grandma are great examples for us to learn from, that is for sure!
    Jerry

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