If you grew up in a low-income household, you probably learned from a very young age how to spot the best deals in the grocery store. You also might be used to eating much less fresh produce towards the end of the month and being extremely kind to your landlord to ensure that they won’t evict you if your rent arrives a few days late.
There are plenty of “poor person habits” that are perfectly normal when you’re used to them, but the reality is that wealthy people live in a parallel universe where they never have to worry about these things. Reddit users have recently been discussing some of their own experiences that the rich wouldn’t be able to relate to, so we’ve gathered their thoughts below. Keep reading to also find conversations with the person who started this thread and Johnny “FD” Jen, and be sure to upvote the replies that feel extremely familiar to you!
#1
Wait. For everything. Wait for the bus to arrive, bc it’s always late. Take longer to travel farther to the cheaper store. Wait at the laundromat for your clothes to finish. Not only that, but the frequency of these waits is also higher, because you don’t have a car or money to be able to buy things in bulk or transport large amounts of clothing. It is time consuming af.
Image source: frogsiege, Nikita Vinogradov
#2
Calculating the items in your cart before going to checkout.
Image source: Iorazepam, Jack Sparrow
#3
Putting up with insanely horrible work conditions and harassment, knowing quitting is not an option.
Image source: kalixanthippe, Nataliya Vaitkevich
#4
Don’t travel. The amount of people who are amazed when I say I haven’t flown on a plane blows my mind. People do not realize how much money/privilege it takes to travel at all, let alone on a yearly basis.
Image source: diamondthighs420, Haley Black
#5
Make or turn down plans based around the cost of restaurants/activities/cover.
Image source: pineapplebriefs, Monstera Production
#6
Saw a tweet shared that I can’t ever forget discussing this very thing. The gist:
People that don’t keep fast food napkins in the glove box to use as tissues are in a totally different tax bracket.
Image source: SithDraven, smokeymctokerson
#7
Adding potatoes to meals not because it belongs in a recipe, but because it’s very filling and can stretch the meal to more portions.
Image source: stcrIight, Pixabay
#8
Being aware of the cost of milk, bread & cheese.
Image source: Freedumb00, Karolina Grabowska
#9
Live with f****d up teeth because they have high copays and low annual maximums and can barely afford to even get cavities filled.
Rich people get extremely competitive health, vision, and dental plans, so they don’t have to think twice. They need care? They get it.
I have a rotten tooth that needs to be surgically extracted, need several root canals and crowns, need tons of cavity fillings, and have congenitally missing teeth. I can get the extraction (+bone graft and implant) and handle one cavity before I hit my annual maximum.
I floss and brush twice a day, I just have weak enamel and haven’t been able to afford dental care in a while. And the missing teeth? Sorry. It’s congenital/pre-existing so they don’t have to cover it.
No, Karen, I’m not doing d***s. God, people lose interest in talking to me the instant they notice my teeth (especially hiring managers). I start to smile as the conversation gets good and suddenly the light just leaves their eyes. It’s *humiliating.*.
Image source: LadySerenity, Andrea Piacquadio
#10
Rich people seem to confuse not having money to do something with not wanting to waste money on something.
No, it’s not that I don’t want to order pizza because I’m stingy, I literally don’t have the money.
Image source: -exekiel-, Alexander Grey
#11
Choosing to put up with pain and not going to the doctor because you can’t afford the bill.
Image source: MomentaryInfinity, Kaboompics.com
#12
Shop at different groceries for different items because they are cheaper at other places.
Image source: Specific_Image_737, Jack Sparrow
#13
Save grocery store plastic bags to use as a trash can liner.
Image source: Melluna5, Juan Pablo Serrano
#14
Leaving the oven door open after using it.
Image source: HiddenMuscles, Getty Images
#15
Skipping meals so their children can eat.
Image source: Inner-Quail90, Hrant Khachatryan
#16
When buying anything or paying a bill I automatically convert to how many hours of work it took to pay for it.
Image source: Electrical-Pollution, Getty Images
#17
Say you already ate, just to join your friends out, to feel normal for a minute, without making things awkward.
Image source: FriendOfSelf, Adrienn
#18
Hoard non perishables in times of plenty.
Image source: Admirable-Product426, CHUTTERSNAP
#19
Skipping on insulin to ration it. Mental health issues that go unchecked cause therapy is expensive. Turning down the heaters to save on heating costs.
Image source: CountFuckyoula, Go to engin akyurt’s profile engin akyurt
#20
Lay awake at night worrying that things will get worse.
Image source: MichB1, Curated Lifestyle
#21
Decide which bill(s) to ignore because no money.
Image source: gingertrees, Kaboompics.com
#22
Having a bad month or pay period and having to sell off home appliances to make rent/mortgage. (happened growing up).
Image source: Ambitious_Boat_9148, Soul Winners For Christ
#23
It’s really difficult to get rid of clothes you don’t wear often or other stuff in a store room because if you don’t have much money you may need them in the future.
Image source: Active_Recording_789, Kai Pilger
#24
Adding water to the last bit of dish soap to make it last longer.
This woman I worked with who clearly never struggled was yelling about how gross that was.
Image source: Steamedcarpet, RDNE Stock project
#25
Ignoring random calls from numbers you don’t recognize knowing there’s a high chance they are debt collectors.
Googling these numbers, confirming them then adding their whole range of numbers to your block list because you don’t have any money to offer and aren’t in the position to even loose $10pw to pay them.
Image source: azki25, Thom Holmes
#26
Put items back at the grocery store.
Image source: pineapplebriefs, Getty Images
#27
Drive with an engine light on.
Image source: RoseWould, Zealousideal_Snow_54
#28
– The amount of time you’ll take to decide which expensive thing to buy, because you only get one chance at this, and it’ll only happen once in your life, most likely.
– The amount of s**t you’ll save (boxes, soap, bubblewrap, bags, freebie-whatevers) just because it’s easier to save it, than buy it.
– You learn a LOT about how to fix your own s**t, when you can’t afford to pay someone to fix it for you.
Image source: Dippycat149, Zohair Mirza
#29
Getting threats of eviction
Getting lights cut off
Worry about where their child will go to school
Shopping for themselves.
Image source: Radiant_Selection-, Mikhail Nilov
#30
Sleep on an uncomfortable mattress or the floor. .
Image source: catniagara, Andrej Lišakov
#31
Turn off the lights whenever you leave a room. Turn down the heat in winter, and up the AC in summer ….
Image source: MosaicTrain
#32
Taking less than your prescribed dosage of meds to try to ration them and save money
Once I had no money and I had to go to the urgent care to get some stitches removed, but remembering the $20 copay I opted to just take them out myself.
Image source: Jaeger-the-great
#33
Cut open the toothpaste to scrape out every last bit.
Image source: yep-I-agree
#34
Go to food banks
Commuting by bus EVERY day.
Shop at thrift stores out of necessity
Don’t go to Taylor Swift concerta
Deep cleaning their house by themselves
Own the same car for over 10 years.
Image source: Gildor_Helyanwe
#35
Only buying certain grocery items when they’re on sale e.g. chocolate.
Image source: mysteryfries
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