How “Normal” Are You When It Comes To Money?
The chattering classes are fixated on locating Real America
This morning I was paid to answer some questions on various topics related to personal finance. It was fun! Nice people, great atmosphere, free Diet Coke. Then, when the hour was almost up, one of the people at the table who hadn’t spoken much up ’til then asked me, “And would you say that you’re ‘normal’?”
“Not really,” I said. I probably have more wealth than the average American and less than the average New Yorker. I’m more savvy in some respects and less in others. (I didn’t know what Birchbox was until about 1:00 PM today.) I have one credit card. I don’t have a car. I have a TV I use to watch the Oscars and to stream shows via my Roku. I don’t carry any debt except my mortgage, and even having a mortgage is a bit unusual for my age group. I have an IRA and a financial advisor; a BA and a decent employment history; a husband and two kids and several baskets of laundry that needs to be folded and put away.
The laundry is probably the most normal thing about me.
I am normal, though, I told him, in that my relationship to money is an anxious one. Money is primarily abstract to me: it represents safety and yet, no matter how much I have, I never feel safe. These past two years that I’ve worked for The Billfold, I’ve become more knowledgeable about issues around money, and I’ve become more comfortable acknowledging the limits of my knowledge, too. If I can make that kind of progress in a relatively brief time, I believe a more normal person can too.
The question of who or what is normal has been floating around a lot lately. Maybe it’s related to primary season, which is making us all wonder whether we’re crazy or whether our country is. Either way, experts are arguing: is the most average, quintessentially American locale New Haven, CT, as per Jed Kolko on 538.com, or Oklahoma City, OK, as per Lyman Stone on Medium?
Their fight is brought to you by this piece by Jim VandeHei in the Wall Street Journal, which contends that “normal America” wants an outsider candidate for president, but not one of the ones it was offered, and also this PBS Making Sen$e quiz, derived from some smug Charles Murray narishkeit, about whether you live in “real America” or a bubble. (I liked Charles Murray better when he was Meg’s kidnapped little brother facing off against It. Ba-dum-CHING!)
Sample questions:
Have you ever lived for at least a year in the United States at a family income that was close to or below the poverty line?
You may answer “yes” if your family income then was below $33,000 in 2015 dollars. Graduate school doesn’t count. Living unemployed with your family after college doesn’t count.
Have you ever held a job that caused something to hurt at the end of the day?
The question applies to any part of the body that hurts because of physical labor using the large muscles. Headaches don’t count, neither does carpal tunnel syndrome, nor does a sore rear end from sitting all day in front of a computer screen. Sore feet from having to stand up for long periods of time, however, do count.
What about my existential pain, Charles Murray? That really counts for nothing with you?
Anyway, it seems plain that no, I am not normal, and I’m going to have to live with that. What about you?
Support The Billfold
The Billfold continues to exist thanks to support from our readers. Help us continue to do our work by making a monthly pledge on Patreon or a one-time-only contribution through PayPal.
Comments