How wealthy was your family?

[Cloud]

American ideas of class are so different than in the UK; I'm not even sure the ideas translate. "Class" and "working class" don't have the same connotations.

Elspode says "lower middle class"; I would say "upper middle class" for me. Such a wide spectrum. Class here is much more based on wealth, but they are not precisely the same thing.

[monster]

Originally Posted by Cloud

American ideas of class are so different than in the UK; I'm not even sure the ideas translate. "Class" and "working class" don't have the same connotations.

Elspode says "lower middle class"; I would say "upper middle class" for me. Such a wide spectrum. Class here is much more based on wealth, but they are not precisely the same thing.

Exactly. That's why I was asking Els his perception after using that term.

[bluecuracao]

My mother and father were still in college when they got married and had me, so money was very tight (like food stamps tight) back then. Things got somewhat better after they finished school--my parents were able to purchase an old Victorian-style house and renovate it slowly. I'd say my family was not quite middle-class financially, but being involved in the art world, we got to enjoy the upper-crustier cultural and social side, too. We had an old used car and grass wouldn't grow on our lawn, but the fancy benefit art shows and parties at the mayor's house balanced it out.

[Elspode]

Originally Posted by monster

Exactly. That's why I was asking Els his perception after using that term.

I was definitely speaking from the American notion of class. We don't have peerage or royal lineage in this country, so class separations are pretty much entirely based on wealth. To say that we were lower middle class could be summarized, say, like this: We owned our own home (after a couple of years of renting). We had two cars, never even close to new, but not total beaters, either. I had my own car when I turned 16 purchased with my own funds from my jobs which I started working at 15. We ate very simply, oftentimes creamed chipped beef on toast or potato pancakes for dinner. No one ate breakfast, lunch was sandwiches. Desserts, such as ice cream, were rare treats. We had one television, black and white, until 1973, when we bought our first color set, a shelf demo on clearance. We did not take vacations or attend society functions. The most expensive Christmas present I *ever* got probably cost $10 in those days. I bought my own bicycles with my own money. My stepdad fixed our cars or took them to people he knew would barter his skills for theirs even up. We didn't pay for auto service of any kind. Clothing came from the cheapest possible outlet, and hand me downs from my better off relatives were common.

Does this clear it up at all?