Yeah, you can live in a tiny, cheap apartment and walk or take the bus everywhere like people did in 1950 fairly cheaply, at least here in flyover country. The difference is that there's been an increase in crime rates (understatement of the decade) since then. You are risking life and limb if you do so in a way that you weren't back then. The whole point of suburbanization is to escape the pathologies that have exploded among the poor since the 1960s. It may be possible for a family of four to live in an urban slum on minimum wage, but the shittiness of that situation is far beyond that of your car-deprived 1950s family. If a neighborhood has a tolerably low crime rate, then the cost of a smallish two-bedroom apartment + the gas and power bill would account for the great majority of a minimum wage paycheck, if not all of it.
To the people who brought up illegal immigrants, they usually cram 8 or so guys (not families, guys) into small apartments and work lots of hours. This is certainly possible, but is again a far crappier situation that the minimum-wage bread earner who at least had a single-family dwelling, as humble as it may have been.
I have started doing this using worms. We have NO RECYCLING services in our area, so I really wanted to do something for the environment. It is really cool and great for my garden. The worm poopies really help me grow great organic veggies for my family.
We have a very small lot that is 3/4 covered with the house and shed....so space is valuable around here. Worm composting is great!
Some folks even use worms to compost in their office under their desks. It is amazing!
True, a quick walk around the block, even on a chilly night, can do wonders for your internal temperature. I also love to use flannel sheets during the winter - they just don't get all cold and clammy the way regular sheets do during a wet Seattle winter. If I use my oven to bake anything, I open is afterwards to heat the house, too. I never heat my lower level, unless I have guests, and then, I use a space heater.
First of all, I'm not sure if your point actually addresses what Philip was talking about. Also, I think you're kind of a jerk. But I'm curious, how DID you live in $13 worth of food stamps? It sounds like the government really screwed you over.
I find it very sad that individuals are unable to empathize with those who have it more difficult than they financially. There is so much of a "pull yourself up by your bootstraps you lazy bugger" mentality. This is extremely interesting when you consider how hight the per-capita debt is in this country. People live off of their credit cards and finance their homes with "interest only" loans. Most people pay the minimum payment on their credit cards each month, while lambasting others who do not live as they do. The American mindset needs to change. Everyone, regardless of their income, is a human being deserving of kindness and respect.
I believe strongly in living simply and frugally. If we haven't saved sufficiently for a purchase, we wait until we have. We don't use credit cards. We follow a monthly budget plan, which we adjust in the case of unexpected expenses. We share one car, and walk or bike. At the same time, I also believe in helping others. If I have extra vegetables or whatnot, I share with my friends and family rather than letting it go to waste. My family lives comfortably, but our income is well over the poverty line.
There has been a great deal of research on "how one can live on a limited means". The truth is, however, that often people who have more resources are more capable of living on less. One example- since we have a car, I can drive to the wholesale produce market to purchase vegetables and fruit at a fraction of the cost of a grocery. Many lower income areas in Tampa do not have a grocery within a 3 mile radius, so those who have to walk or bike have to rely on high priced items at convenience stores. When I dropped items off at the Salvation Army, I noticed that the prices for clothing and household goods were as or more expensive than Walmart, Target, etc..Once again, location plays a role. If you don't have a car, those options aren't available. Tampa has an almost non-existent public transport system.--enough said. How far you can go affects what jobs are available to you, and can limit your choices. Most of the urban US is not like the urban areas in Japan or elsewhere. There is a great deal of sprawl and little to no public transport. If you are in a city with public transport and where much is in walking distance, then you have more options.
For people trying to live week to week or month to month, up and moving to another part of the country is not a viable option. Also in many of those areas where cost of living is cheaper, few jobs are available.
I am all for voluntary simplicity. I do however firmly believe that we need to do more for each other. We need to spend less time criticizing, and more time getting out in the community and helping. I don't mean giving money. I mean giving something more important, time. Libraries are always looking for volunteer tutors for adult literacy and English for Speakers of other Languages. Habitat for Humanity is an amazing organization that always needs volunteers. There are so many ways to help. In the end it is working together to help one another which strengthens and enriches us all.
You know, when we ordered our giant double compartment compost tumber, I noticed that the company had smaller ones that could easily be used on apartment balconies. It could easily supplement your own small herb garden in an urban setting.
Good for you for bringing attention to the possibilities!
boy, I was really hoping that was a true story. My friend certainly thought it was, and he said he's heard about it via a well-known finance website. Still, true or not there's a lesson to be learned here.
My understanding is that with the MMA you must have and adjustable morgage rate, "in order for the program to work". What happens to the figures should the inflation rate increase (dramatically). How do the numbers look then?
A lot of stuff that's good for the environment can also save you money. There's the obvious no bottled water thing. Just reuse a glass bottle or buy an aluminum bottle. Redusing and reusing are great. So is buying stuff that lasts longer.
Our local newspapers are online for free, so I just look up the news there.
When we have cake and ice cream or other food at work someone brings in REAL dishes to use instead of plastic stuff. It feels a lot nicer that way too. If only I could find a way to get others to do away w/ disposables. I also don't like using paper napkins and paper towels. Sponges and regular towels are just fine for cleaning and cloth napkins look much swankier anyway. Hey, you don't even need towels. Just cut up old clothes to use as washcloths.
Since I was a kid my mom used the comics (or other mail that was going to be tossed) to wrap presents. Some people actually keep the wrapping paper to read later :)
The library is awesome!
I also can't believe how many of the college kids here drive to school when they live w/in walking distance. Parking is a headache, so why not walk? When I do need to drive somewhere I get a pull-through space. It saves gas b/c you use up more when you have to back out of a space. Instead of wasting gas to look for a space, just park wherever and walk. You'll get exercise. I also use my A/C only over 50mph.
If you want to save money on printer ink Walgreen's is doing refills now. Then you won't have to worry about recycling the old cartridges.
A few years ago, a big blizzard blew through here. It was forecast well in advance, so everyone knew days ahead that we were facing enough snow to shut the city down.
Our pantry was well-enough stocked, so we didn't rush out to the grocery store to stock up, the way a lot people must have done. Just hours before the storm hit, though, I decided that I wanted to get a few more things that we could eat without cooking, just in case the power was out for a while. What I found at the grocery store was amazing.
The store was completely out of juice, milk, bread, and hamburger (none of which I was going to buy). It had, however, normal quantities of flour, sugar, tea, beans, oats, fresh fruits, fresh vegis, etc. (I remember wondering how a visitor from 1800 would respond to a grocery store stripped bare in anticipation of a storm that still had oranges, bananas, and kiwi fruit, not to mention potatoes, onions, and roasting chickens.)
My point, though, is simply that a few days supply of the stuff you eat everyday can make it unnecessary to rush to the grocery store when there's a threat of something like a blizzard or hurricane. Great when it saves you a trip. Even better when the storm arrives without warning so you had no opportunity to make the trip.
This is a really useful post and I'm going to try out some of your suggestions.
I have chronic insomnia. It's 4:30 in the morning for me and I've been up for about an hour. I have to get ready for work in a few hours. I'm dreading the start of the working week with such little sleep. I'll know doubt be cursing my lack of sleep later this afternoon when I hit the wall and feel like curling up under my desk for some zzzzz.
I like the idea of writing things down before bed. I'll give it go.. tomorrow night.
I live in Japan. My condo is only a 8 minute walk to the train station. There are 4 supermarkets next to the station. A quick ride on the train takes me to more shopping then I could ever do. A 5 min. train ride and a 15 min bus ride gets me to Costco. The infrastructure has been put in so people can get around. Of course, it's very urban and most apartments are smallish, but people manage very well. Taxes are not nearly as high as the states, for most.
People in the states are paying for the war in Iraq, the highway system, private health care (got to pay the middle man), and the military industrial complex. It's not free. People in other countries don't pay for it. The worst is education, up by at least 10% every year.
Do you need a car? Two? Really? I don't, nor does anyone around me. It's a luxury, people pay $200 a month for a parking space. There is no public parking. It's all private, pay as you go.
My daughter's daycare center is only a 3 minute walk from my condo, her elementary school is 8 minutes away. I could go on about how convenient the public services are, but I'm sure you get the point. People here enjoy the government working FOR the people. Sure, it costs a little more here and there, but in the end it is actually cheaper.
I was born in 1977 and grew up in rural KY on a farm. My mom made about $12,000 a year raising dogs and vegetables and was able to support five children just fine. We had a tv, plenty of food, decent clothes and lots of books.
Today my brother is still living in the same county on less than $700 per month. Rent is about $200 a month and he has a nice 1 bedroom apartment, xbox, dvd player, cable tv, phone, microwave, etc... He doesn't have a car, but he doesn't need one, he's about a 4 minute walk from the grocery store and everywhere else in town is less than a 15 minute walk away. If he gave up some of the extras (phone and cable) he could support a family on $1040 a month. There wouldn't be any extras, but they would have decent housing, food, clothing and schooling with almost no crime.
To the poster that said Atlanta wasn't very expensive. From my perspective it is extremely expensive. If you can't afford the place you're living on the pay you're getting, maybe you should move somewhere cheaper, like out of the city.
I live alone and don't have much space in my apartment, but I still manage to buy in bulk(usually at Costco).
I buy toilet paper and store it on shelves above my toilet (my stepmother thinks I have a phobia of running out of TP)
I also bought a 2 lb bag of Red Star Yeast 2 years ago that I keep in the fridge. It is still good, I use it for homemade pizza and bread all the time.
I found the hard way that this hack is NOT TRUE! I too should have known better when I saw the "GAGFILMS.COM" production logo. I thought, maybe it is true, but sadly, it is NOT! Save your money and DO NOT TRY THIS HACK, unless you want to wast a perfectly good 6 volt battery and the money to buy it.
Another idiot. The article claimed that a family of 4 could be raised with a HIGHER LIVING STANDARD then the 1950's.
Either you can't read, or you an idiot. Both, probably.
I've lived in poverty, I know what it's like. Critically injured in the mid-80's, I (of course) lost my job, my home, everything. I got out of the hospital in a body cast with my jaw also wired shut.
I was given $13 a month in food stamps. $13 lousy dollars.
Now, you tell me how the hell I was going to live on that?
Eventually, the body cast was removed, the wires in the jaw taken out and I returned to work. Disregarding my medical bills, which were on "hold" anyways due to a pending lawsuit, I struggled mightily with staying alive. I simply could not earn enough and I was making a bit more then minimum wage.
You are clueless and have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
Isn't it true our government does NOT calculate the cost of food when it comes to inflation? We're not always told the truth and most do not understand.
Excellent point about the number of workers in a household going up. With so many extra people in the workforce, keep in mind the company's cost to obtain a workforce (in other words, salary and benefits) - they are less likely to pay a premium for labor.
The argument typically is whether or not both spouses of a family should work, but my argument is with the teenage kids. From a study by the University of Washington, the majority of seniors have an after-school job, with many working more than 15 hrs per week.
Consumerism is making kids work (and buy) more than ever before. The workforce is diluted with the number of workers increasing, which means more people are feeling the pressures of becoming more skilled just to sustain their standard of living (which marketing companies are defining for us).
First, let me say that I'd be really sad if people took what I'd written to be trying to say that poor people should just suck it up, or that I don't know the difference between living frugally and being poor--a topic I wrote about in Voluntary simplicity versus poverty.
This piece was prompted by two things. First, news had come out that week that household incomes had risen, even though the earnings of both men and women fell. I think having more and more households send more and more members into the money economy is a bad thing. I wouldn't discourage anyone who wants to work at a job from doing so, but many of these people don't--they're just trying to bring their family up to an adequate living standard.
The second was hearing one too many people complain that a generation ago a father could support a family on single working-class income but that now it takes two incomes to support a family. Very few of the people who say that, though, seem to have any knowledge of what standard of living those families lived at. It was a bad way to live--dangerous and nasty--but it was better than people had lived a decade before (during the war) or a decade before that (during the depression), so people were hopeful. I don't recommending it, though.
The one recommendation that really comes out of this piece is to think carefully about whether a second person working in the money economy really puts a family ahead. A second person doing other things (raising kids, gardening, making things you'd otherwise have to buy, dumpster diving, bartering with neighbors, gathering wild foods) is a lot more likely to improve your standard of living than a second person earning minimum wage after paying taxes and paying for child care.
Yeah, you can live in a tiny, cheap apartment and walk or take the bus everywhere like people did in 1950 fairly cheaply, at least here in flyover country. The difference is that there's been an increase in crime rates (understatement of the decade) since then. You are risking life and limb if you do so in a way that you weren't back then. The whole point of suburbanization is to escape the pathologies that have exploded among the poor since the 1960s. It may be possible for a family of four to live in an urban slum on minimum wage, but the shittiness of that situation is far beyond that of your car-deprived 1950s family. If a neighborhood has a tolerably low crime rate, then the cost of a smallish two-bedroom apartment + the gas and power bill would account for the great majority of a minimum wage paycheck, if not all of it.
To the people who brought up illegal immigrants, they usually cram 8 or so guys (not families, guys) into small apartments and work lots of hours. This is certainly possible, but is again a far crappier situation that the minimum-wage bread earner who at least had a single-family dwelling, as humble as it may have been.
I have started doing this using worms. We have NO RECYCLING services in our area, so I really wanted to do something for the environment. It is really cool and great for my garden. The worm poopies really help me grow great organic veggies for my family.
We have a very small lot that is 3/4 covered with the house and shed....so space is valuable around here. Worm composting is great!
Some folks even use worms to compost in their office under their desks. It is amazing!
well put
True, a quick walk around the block, even on a chilly night, can do wonders for your internal temperature. I also love to use flannel sheets during the winter - they just don't get all cold and clammy the way regular sheets do during a wet Seattle winter. If I use my oven to bake anything, I open is afterwards to heat the house, too. I never heat my lower level, unless I have guests, and then, I use a space heater.
First of all, I'm not sure if your point actually addresses what Philip was talking about. Also, I think you're kind of a jerk. But I'm curious, how DID you live in $13 worth of food stamps? It sounds like the government really screwed you over.
I find it very sad that individuals are unable to empathize with those who have it more difficult than they financially. There is so much of a "pull yourself up by your bootstraps you lazy bugger" mentality. This is extremely interesting when you consider how hight the per-capita debt is in this country. People live off of their credit cards and finance their homes with "interest only" loans. Most people pay the minimum payment on their credit cards each month, while lambasting others who do not live as they do. The American mindset needs to change. Everyone, regardless of their income, is a human being deserving of kindness and respect.
I believe strongly in living simply and frugally. If we haven't saved sufficiently for a purchase, we wait until we have. We don't use credit cards. We follow a monthly budget plan, which we adjust in the case of unexpected expenses. We share one car, and walk or bike. At the same time, I also believe in helping others. If I have extra vegetables or whatnot, I share with my friends and family rather than letting it go to waste. My family lives comfortably, but our income is well over the poverty line.
There has been a great deal of research on "how one can live on a limited means". The truth is, however, that often people who have more resources are more capable of living on less. One example- since we have a car, I can drive to the wholesale produce market to purchase vegetables and fruit at a fraction of the cost of a grocery. Many lower income areas in Tampa do not have a grocery within a 3 mile radius, so those who have to walk or bike have to rely on high priced items at convenience stores. When I dropped items off at the Salvation Army, I noticed that the prices for clothing and household goods were as or more expensive than Walmart, Target, etc..Once again, location plays a role. If you don't have a car, those options aren't available. Tampa has an almost non-existent public transport system.--enough said. How far you can go affects what jobs are available to you, and can limit your choices. Most of the urban US is not like the urban areas in Japan or elsewhere. There is a great deal of sprawl and little to no public transport. If you are in a city with public transport and where much is in walking distance, then you have more options.
For people trying to live week to week or month to month, up and moving to another part of the country is not a viable option. Also in many of those areas where cost of living is cheaper, few jobs are available.
I am all for voluntary simplicity. I do however firmly believe that we need to do more for each other. We need to spend less time criticizing, and more time getting out in the community and helping. I don't mean giving money. I mean giving something more important, time. Libraries are always looking for volunteer tutors for adult literacy and English for Speakers of other Languages. Habitat for Humanity is an amazing organization that always needs volunteers. There are so many ways to help. In the end it is working together to help one another which strengthens and enriches us all.
You know, when we ordered our giant double compartment compost tumber, I noticed that the company had smaller ones that could easily be used on apartment balconies. It could easily supplement your own small herb garden in an urban setting.
Good for you for bringing attention to the possibilities!
boy, I was really hoping that was a true story. My friend certainly thought it was, and he said he's heard about it via a well-known finance website. Still, true or not there's a lesson to be learned here.
My understanding is that with the MMA you must have and adjustable morgage rate, "in order for the program to work". What happens to the figures should the inflation rate increase (dramatically). How do the numbers look then?
This is an old fairy tale of course, I like how its presented here as if its a "real" story. Anyways, here is a variation of it (different car!):
http://www.anvari.org/fun/Misc/How_to_Park_Car_in_Manhattan.html
Clearly the logistics of getting a loan of $5,000 at a bank vs paying a parking fee are simply not worth the millionaire's time...
But a cute story nonetheless.
I won't buy laundry soap without a coupon! =)
Wouldn't a guy that rich own his own garage? Cute story, though.
So the whole standard of living thing boils down to whether or not I have I color TV.
Hot damn I've made it.
A lot of stuff that's good for the environment can also save you money. There's the obvious no bottled water thing. Just reuse a glass bottle or buy an aluminum bottle. Redusing and reusing are great. So is buying stuff that lasts longer.
Our local newspapers are online for free, so I just look up the news there.
When we have cake and ice cream or other food at work someone brings in REAL dishes to use instead of plastic stuff. It feels a lot nicer that way too. If only I could find a way to get others to do away w/ disposables. I also don't like using paper napkins and paper towels. Sponges and regular towels are just fine for cleaning and cloth napkins look much swankier anyway. Hey, you don't even need towels. Just cut up old clothes to use as washcloths.
Since I was a kid my mom used the comics (or other mail that was going to be tossed) to wrap presents. Some people actually keep the wrapping paper to read later :)
The library is awesome!
I also can't believe how many of the college kids here drive to school when they live w/in walking distance. Parking is a headache, so why not walk? When I do need to drive somewhere I get a pull-through space. It saves gas b/c you use up more when you have to back out of a space. Instead of wasting gas to look for a space, just park wherever and walk. You'll get exercise. I also use my A/C only over 50mph.
If you want to save money on printer ink Walgreen's is doing refills now. Then you won't have to worry about recycling the old cartridges.
I read this one before so I knew the outcome and I agree, it's a real hoot.
A few years ago, a big blizzard blew through here. It was forecast well in advance, so everyone knew days ahead that we were facing enough snow to shut the city down.
Our pantry was well-enough stocked, so we didn't rush out to the grocery store to stock up, the way a lot people must have done. Just hours before the storm hit, though, I decided that I wanted to get a few more things that we could eat without cooking, just in case the power was out for a while. What I found at the grocery store was amazing.
The store was completely out of juice, milk, bread, and hamburger (none of which I was going to buy). It had, however, normal quantities of flour, sugar, tea, beans, oats, fresh fruits, fresh vegis, etc. (I remember wondering how a visitor from 1800 would respond to a grocery store stripped bare in anticipation of a storm that still had oranges, bananas, and kiwi fruit, not to mention potatoes, onions, and roasting chickens.)
My point, though, is simply that a few days supply of the stuff you eat everyday can make it unnecessary to rush to the grocery store when there's a threat of something like a blizzard or hurricane. Great when it saves you a trip. Even better when the storm arrives without warning so you had no opportunity to make the trip.
This is a really useful post and I'm going to try out some of your suggestions.
I have chronic insomnia. It's 4:30 in the morning for me and I've been up for about an hour. I have to get ready for work in a few hours. I'm dreading the start of the working week with such little sleep. I'll know doubt be cursing my lack of sleep later this afternoon when I hit the wall and feel like curling up under my desk for some zzzzz.
I like the idea of writing things down before bed. I'll give it go.. tomorrow night.
I live in Japan. My condo is only a 8 minute walk to the train station. There are 4 supermarkets next to the station. A quick ride on the train takes me to more shopping then I could ever do. A 5 min. train ride and a 15 min bus ride gets me to Costco. The infrastructure has been put in so people can get around. Of course, it's very urban and most apartments are smallish, but people manage very well. Taxes are not nearly as high as the states, for most.
People in the states are paying for the war in Iraq, the highway system, private health care (got to pay the middle man), and the military industrial complex. It's not free. People in other countries don't pay for it. The worst is education, up by at least 10% every year.
Do you need a car? Two? Really? I don't, nor does anyone around me. It's a luxury, people pay $200 a month for a parking space. There is no public parking. It's all private, pay as you go.
My daughter's daycare center is only a 3 minute walk from my condo, her elementary school is 8 minutes away. I could go on about how convenient the public services are, but I'm sure you get the point. People here enjoy the government working FOR the people. Sure, it costs a little more here and there, but in the end it is actually cheaper.
I was born in 1977 and grew up in rural KY on a farm. My mom made about $12,000 a year raising dogs and vegetables and was able to support five children just fine. We had a tv, plenty of food, decent clothes and lots of books.
Today my brother is still living in the same county on less than $700 per month. Rent is about $200 a month and he has a nice 1 bedroom apartment, xbox, dvd player, cable tv, phone, microwave, etc... He doesn't have a car, but he doesn't need one, he's about a 4 minute walk from the grocery store and everywhere else in town is less than a 15 minute walk away. If he gave up some of the extras (phone and cable) he could support a family on $1040 a month. There wouldn't be any extras, but they would have decent housing, food, clothing and schooling with almost no crime.
Median family income is $24,000/year ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burkesville,_Kentucky ), and the average job pays a little over $20,000 per year ( http://www.city-data.com/county/Cumberland_County-KY.html ). Owning a home and living a decent lifestyle is very doable with only one wage earner.
To the poster that said Atlanta wasn't very expensive. From my perspective it is extremely expensive. If you can't afford the place you're living on the pay you're getting, maybe you should move somewhere cheaper, like out of the city.
I live alone and don't have much space in my apartment, but I still manage to buy in bulk(usually at Costco).
I buy toilet paper and store it on shelves above my toilet (my stepmother thinks I have a phobia of running out of TP)
I also bought a 2 lb bag of Red Star Yeast 2 years ago that I keep in the fridge. It is still good, I use it for homemade pizza and bread all the time.
I found the hard way that this hack is NOT TRUE! I too should have known better when I saw the "GAGFILMS.COM" production logo. I thought, maybe it is true, but sadly, it is NOT! Save your money and DO NOT TRY THIS HACK, unless you want to wast a perfectly good 6 volt battery and the money to buy it.
Another idiot. The article claimed that a family of 4 could be raised with a HIGHER LIVING STANDARD then the 1950's.
Either you can't read, or you an idiot. Both, probably.
I've lived in poverty, I know what it's like. Critically injured in the mid-80's, I (of course) lost my job, my home, everything. I got out of the hospital in a body cast with my jaw also wired shut.
I was given $13 a month in food stamps. $13 lousy dollars.
Now, you tell me how the hell I was going to live on that?
Eventually, the body cast was removed, the wires in the jaw taken out and I returned to work. Disregarding my medical bills, which were on "hold" anyways due to a pending lawsuit, I struggled mightily with staying alive. I simply could not earn enough and I was making a bit more then minimum wage.
You are clueless and have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
Isn't it true our government does NOT calculate the cost of food when it comes to inflation? We're not always told the truth and most do not understand.
Excellent point about the number of workers in a household going up. With so many extra people in the workforce, keep in mind the company's cost to obtain a workforce (in other words, salary and benefits) - they are less likely to pay a premium for labor.
The argument typically is whether or not both spouses of a family should work, but my argument is with the teenage kids. From a study by the University of Washington, the majority of seniors have an after-school job, with many working more than 15 hrs per week.
Consumerism is making kids work (and buy) more than ever before. The workforce is diluted with the number of workers increasing, which means more people are feeling the pressures of becoming more skilled just to sustain their standard of living (which marketing companies are defining for us).
First, let me say that I'd be really sad if people took what I'd written to be trying to say that poor people should just suck it up, or that I don't know the difference between living frugally and being poor--a topic I wrote about in Voluntary simplicity versus poverty.
This piece was prompted by two things. First, news had come out that week that household incomes had risen, even though the earnings of both men and women fell. I think having more and more households send more and more members into the money economy is a bad thing. I wouldn't discourage anyone who wants to work at a job from doing so, but many of these people don't--they're just trying to bring their family up to an adequate living standard.
The second was hearing one too many people complain that a generation ago a father could support a family on single working-class income but that now it takes two incomes to support a family. Very few of the people who say that, though, seem to have any knowledge of what standard of living those families lived at. It was a bad way to live--dangerous and nasty--but it was better than people had lived a decade before (during the war) or a decade before that (during the depression), so people were hopeful. I don't recommending it, though.
The one recommendation that really comes out of this piece is to think carefully about whether a second person working in the money economy really puts a family ahead. A second person doing other things (raising kids, gardening, making things you'd otherwise have to buy, dumpster diving, bartering with neighbors, gathering wild foods) is a lot more likely to improve your standard of living than a second person earning minimum wage after paying taxes and paying for child care.