How wealthy was your family?

[Clodfobble]

I never knew how much money my father makes, and I honestly still don't know. He's very secretive about money. I know how much the city says his house is worth, but I also know that the neighborhood has skyrocketed since they bought the place when I was three. I know it got a lot harder for him when my parents divorced, and he was suddenly paying for everything himself. He did a really good job of keeping it secret, though--the only time he ever let anything slip was one time I added shampoo to the grocery list and he said, "Do you really need this?" and I just stared at him blankly and he quickly moved on.

As an adult I learned that he had taken some pretty significant loans from friends, and was just at that point in the stages of paying them off. But he made sure we did okay in the end--my overall impression was we were just getting by, through insanely responsible money handling. I remember multiple lectures on financial responsibility. We took vacations, but always with frequent flier miles and free hotel stays from his extensive work traveling. I had a job starting at 15, so at that point I was paying for almost all my own clothing and entertainment desires. I went to college on a full scholarship, holding anywhere from one to three jobs at a time. During college he would occasionally ask if I needed any money, but I had such a huge sense of pride that I always turned him down. I also never cashed my grandmother's $5 birthday checks every year, starting around the age of 10. I was aware that she was "poor," living in a nasty house way out in the country, and felt uncomfortable taking her money.