rakeshsharmak

Marathi, a language in the western part of India, does not have a word for thank you. Instead the word "aabhar" - roughly meaning indebted - is used. Thus, if I do something for you, then you respond with "aabhar", meaning I am indebted to you.

I was suddenly middle-class-ish for a brief period last year. I have been mostly on the poor side for almost 14 years. To give you an example, I earned around $7,000 in all of 2014 and my average monthly income from 2016 through 2018 was $1800.

I did what was necessary - learned to cook, worked odd jobs, moved around frequently to find cheap accommodation, slept on all sorts of beddings and, sometimes, on the street, abstained from luxuries and travel etc - during this time.

Then, last year, I found a sweet gig and my income suddenly rose way beyond my expectations (around $6,000 per month). That was also the time I moved to a new apartment. I spent some of the new money on furnishings and living a comfortable life - not thinking twice about splurging on a meal or clothing. I invested in the stock market and opened an IRA account.

At the back of my mind, however, there was a nagging feeling that it wouldn't last. Sure enough, I lost the gig in February this year and am surviving on IRA money and credit cards. I forgot to cash out of the stock market near the top and suffered losses of almost $3,000. I am loathe to move out of my current place though I have a feeling I will have to, eventually. I am back to cooking all my meals and thinking twice before making purchases.

I am not sure if it is a cycle but poverty is definitely a mindset. I've been on the other side where I was making decent money that allowed me to live comfortably (not ostentatiously). I was in a better mental state. Lately, I have been pretty depressed (although things are not as bad as they were in 2014) and exhausted all the time.

Hopefully, Shingy will have one of his "brain farts" and things will get better at AOL.

This is a wonderful discussion thread. Keep it coming!