I’m not sure why ancient memories pop up but here are two. My Mother was sweet and kind. She did not object or correct me for these two things but I could see her confusion and disapproval. Eyes are so telling. They were both events that I thought she would enjoy. 31 flavors ice cream was a thing when I was a young adult so I took my Mom for an ice cream treat. We must have gone down Pacific Coast Hwy near one of our local beaches. We waited in an average line and we both ordered. While I was paying the shock on her face was left unspoken. You see, we were humble in our finances, most of the time. The exception that I never understood was my Dad’s motorcycles. Mother disapproved with reason, but Dad was a hard worker who played equally hard. My Mom’s glance conveyed that she could have purchased gallons of ice cream at our local discount market for the same price. I compare that to the many Starbucks-type purchases that I see my grandchildren enjoying. It is a new expensive standard and I also imbibe. I saw a family of three on the sidewalk today as I returned from my Saturday morning REFIT class. The four-ish year old girl held her own Starbucks cup, just like her parents. We have a new minimum standard of luxury. Ice cream at home is still delicious. Coffee at home can be splendid. Social events or meet-ups are special and I did that yesterday with a dear friend. The coffee shop is between our homes and convenient. She told me that I am the only person she meets for coffee. Yikes. I need to evaluate my budget to see what might be adjusted. The second thing my Mother was quiet on was…to be continued.
