Karaoke Forums

REPORTER - "There's no 'I' in team, eh Leon?"
LEON - "yeah, well there ain't no 'WE' either!"

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All work and no play make Homer something something

So you two used to play doctor, all by yourselves too ?

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

well.... I'ma add to this thread too!

My family wasn't poor, but we were definately tight on cash. My dad had a counter-top business which employed 3 of my 4 brothers. My mom stayed at home with me and my 4th brother. We're only 11 months apart.

Almost every stitch of clothes I owned were either made for me by my mom, or passed down from my cousin... which were passed to her by her big sis..... who were passed to her from her older cousin.... from HER big sis..... I tell ya.... those clothes musta been made from titanium cuz they lasted so long!

As my brother and I got a little older and were in school for the day.... my dad quit his business, and became the foreman of a bigger company where he made more money and my mom got a job in a nursing home.... they were making much more money, but never let us waste money or food. I still have a hard time throwin' out food unless it's SO bad it's morphing into something else. Y'know.... piece of moldy cheese? Cut off the green part and eat the rest! deli meat past the expiration date? smell it.... if it doesn't smell funky, it's good! Same with sour cream, yogurt, etc! ! My husband thinks I'm discusting... he just looks at the date and tosses it like it's gonna bite him or something!

I hafta to be honest though.... I'm not very good at saving money..... Tyson is VERY good with money. I don't know HOW he manages to plump up our savings account sometimes....
He does worry like CRAZY about money though.... stresses himself to the limit...whereas I tend to be much more relaxed and have a "it'll all work out in the end" type of attitude.... I think we really compliment eachother that way. Seems to be workin' anyways

anyways..... yah.... my point? I dunno Just wanted to add my two cents

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After my folks got divorced my Mom went through a period where she didn't have much money. I remember my sister calling down to me from the restroom saying we didn't have any toilet paper. We had a little market right across the street called "Home Market" (which was way cool) and my sister threw a whole bunch of change in my hands to go buy toilet paper so she could..uh....well anyway, I told her I didn't want to go because quite frankly when I was younger I would get embarrassed to buy things like toilet paper or tampons (never use 'em) or anything like that. Now i had about 40 pennies and some nickels and dimes to pay for something I didn't want to buy. I went and got the paper, waiting for the crowd to get away from the register and promptly found out I did not have enough money to buy it. I was short like 11 cents with a growing line behind me. They gave me the toilet paper and I had to come back with 11 more cents but I was extremely embarrassed. Stuff like that used to embarrass the crap out of me when I was younger, but the "bottom" line is that my sister got to wipe her butt. The end.

Do you think anyone would write a movie based on this story? It seems like a tale of accomplishment and sacifice that should be retold over and over.

Yeah, my Mom had it pretty rough right after the divorce. My Dad went on to become the Director of Public Safety for the State of Minnesota (out of the Capitol complex) so he never did hurt for money for most of his life.

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Who loves ya baby?

In a world without toilet papaer. One man must fight the elements and his own nature to do what is right.

Richard Gere is Jeffieoke in, The TP Conspiracy.

Richard Gere is so "over".  I think Johny Depp would be the right person to do this blockbuster picture. He would add a little "rebel" to my purchase. He could make his eyes portray the fear and distaste I had in making the purchase at all. He could even cry a little bit when he finds out there is not enough money.

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Who loves ya baby?

You sound like Justy and I:)

He is great at "responsible" things... people make fun of me, because he is a tad bit fatherly, in a way (to me).... He has always worked everything out with spreadsheets, etc... to make sure EVERYTHING is perfect, moneywise.... but, we DO check with each other before we buy anything that costs over 20 bucks, things like that..... but, he does get stressed out about it. Whereas, like you Crystal, I am more relaxed, and I just go without, instead of worrying, and i don't MIND... I have NEVER had dreams of being wealthy, etc... whereas i know justy would LOVE to. Annnnyways... I know a few couples where the husband actually gives his wife an ALLOWANCE, and doesn't allow her access to his bank acts... that is a tad bit, ODD, in my opinion.

But, Justy keeps everything together for us... and I am the one that makes him have fun:) Besides, if it weren't for ME, he would have no one to spend his money ON:)



(well, me, and ebay)

I grew up on a farm in Nebraska.  I guess I never really knew how poor we were until I thought about it later.  We were lucky because we always had enough to eat.  Being able to raise your own food is a real advantage.

My mother made most of my clothes and at Christmas or my birthday I always got a shirt that she had made.  At Christmas there was usually something else too but it wouldn't be too big.  Probably the best non-homemade Christmas present I ever got was when I was 12 years old and unwrapped my Daily Red Ryder BB gun.  Even then there was a practical element to it.  Dad told me that he expected me to keep the sparrow population around the farm to a minimum.

I didn't start thinking about it until I was in high school and became a little more conscious of things like clothes.  Then I noticed that I wasn't dressed like the other guys.  I started working for local farmers the summer after 8th grade.  It was working in the hay fields and doing odd jobs.  The nature of the work was that I never worked more than a day or two in a row.  But I was a good worker; big, strong and not too smart so I was in demand.  I worked for every farmer for about a 10 mile radius around our house and I always got called back when they needed help again.

Beginning with my sophomore year in high school I bought all my own clothes with money I had earned.  When I was 16 I got my first car the same way.  

I did whatever needed to be done.  In high school I worked in the cafeteria during the school year and for farmers on the weekends and in summer.  In college I worked for farmers on the weekends, ghost wrote term papers (never got less than a B—even in subjects I didn't know anything about).  I once did an art project for an art major who had too much money and too little interest in doing his own work.  I am a terrible artist and I don't know how I did it but the project got a B.  I can only think the art department wasn't very demanding.  When I was a sophomore in college I started my first band.  As I look back on it we had no business starting a band and we weren't all that good.  But we were good enough to work regularly so that helped the cash flow too.

I never had the wardrobe, or the hot car or the social connections.  I never dated the cheerleaders and couldn't afford to take a date to homecoming or any of the big social events that require dinner at a good restaurant and then the enterainment after.  

I worked my buns off and kept my nose to the grindstone.  When I got out into the world I succeeded because I worked hard,  got the job done and done right, and I was always searching for something else to do.  I prospered and 16 years ago made it to the land of the 6 figure income.

Since then it's been mostly downhill.  I got downsized out of my job during a time when there were probably 10,000 reasonably young, talented and eager people to fill about 250 jobs nationally in my field.  So I changed fields.  Got a new job at half of what I was making before.  But I made ends meet.  I got a couple of raises; then the company folded.  I started all over again and finally made it back to 1/2 of what I was making in my 6 figure days.  The company was sold and my department was eliminated.  

So I started over again for less than the 50% I had been making.  After 2 years with no raise I realized I had done everything for the company that I could do.  The owner was never going to give me a raise because the company was failing.  I moved on, and yet again to a failing company, although I didn't know it at the time).

I was finally able to leverage that job into a job with another company and after 13 years got my salary up to 60% of my 6 figure days when I was downsized again.

Now I've been looking for a permanent job for 2 1/2 years and working for a temp firm at 1/3 if what I was making on my last job.  No benefits, no stability, etc.  But it's better than unemployment.  It's kind of like going broke slowly rather than all at once.

So, I'm doing my best at holding things together.  The mortgage gets paid and my car payment gets paid.  I'm behind on separate maintenance to my ex-wife and if it weren't for my VA benefit I would have no healthcare.

But I'm getting along and hopefully I'll find another job one of these days.

So I started out poor but didn't know it.  I thought all dads did extra stuff just to have some extra $ coming in.  And now I've been poor again for awhile.  I don't think it's affecting me other than having to strategize who's going to get paid and when.  I try not to worry too much about it because I can't control it.  If it weren't for being able to play out regularly and have some extra money coming in plus the emotional outlet I get from performing, I might be a basket case by now.

But like getting really bad gas and cramps from eating something I shouln't have . . . this too shall pass! (sorry, I couldn't resist)

Larry

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"Life is too short for diet soda and lite beer"

hehehe! Yep! Same as us! If it were all up to Tyson..... we'd work, sleep, work, sleep as our bank account grew.... but I make him cut loose and go to a movie or something! !! ok ok so he's not THAT bad, but y'know... he WOULD be if he were a bachelor!

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I just remembered something that helps me when I feel that I have not accomplished much if anything in my life.

Harlan Saunders wes about 60 when he finally came up with his ingredients that made his chicken irresistable.

I think the 11th spice was fermented soy. Considered a natural ingredient by foodmakers these days, it is considered a natural ingredient because fermantation is a natural process.

I can't eat his chicken, but he is an inspiration to me in some small way.

I have news for you I had a cookbook that picked apart what is in products. KFC... doesn't have 11 herbs and spices. It has salt, pepper, and flour with added msg. The flavor comes from pressure cooking. Yep, we were all lied to

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Te audire no possum. Musa sapientum fixa est in aure. (I can't hear you. I have a banana in my ear.)

MSG is the ingredient I am talking about. I was being ambiguous deliberately.

Not news, but thanks for saying it first.