Boomer parents

[Freesamples]

Anyone else got a boomer for a parent that a) has no idea how the world currently works and b) loves to put the boot in and c) is absolutely delusional about how much things cost.

me, I love to sniff out a bargain, crowning glory the summer hols I’ve booked for me, dh and dcs. 4 star+ AI, 2 adults 2 kids, package £2k and in summer holidays. Absolute belter. All to be met with a chorus of how expensive that is and how much we’re over paying and how they’d spend no more than £1k on holidays for us (in the mid early 00s). Plus, don’t want to go there, they hate brits, it’s too hot. (All places we went as kids btw)

it can’t be just me

I expect my parent's house to fund their care and expect there will be nothing left. They are already talking about a reverse mortgage probably being necessary at some stage. I don't care about this because their needs come first when it comes to their assets.

How about that word which describes people who have a darker skin, is that okay to use?
If a word is generally used in a negative way as it is here it does become offensive.

My mum was a boomer, she was the most wonderful person who brought the most amazing amount of love, calm and positivity where ever she went, she was the personification of a 'good' human being, and I miss her, every. Single. Day.

I'm sorry you have a difficult relationship with your parents OP, that's really hard. But although my mum died far too young, she was not only my rock through my turbulent teens, but my guiding light in surviving dark, difficult days, and I'll always be grateful that she was my mum, my teacher and my very best friend when I became an adult.

Age isn't what make us who we are or become, but nature and nature.

How much?! No wonder they're all moaning they've got no money!!! Jesus. I would never in a million years waste £6k going abroad if that's the case. Not been abroad in 12 years. Had a perfectly amazing week in Wales for £800 this year :)

My Boomer parents have no perspective with money. They want their grandchildren to have the very comfortable life we had. Encouraged us to buy a large house and garden. (The children need a big garden to play in). But seem absolutely horrified by how much we are spending on the house to make it livable.

The house was damp and hadnt been touched since the 80s. Everytime they visit they will role their eyes at an improvement eg installing double glazing so we save on bills. They see it as the epitome of luxury and waste. They know that we have paid off our mortgage and that my husbands job is funding the work. You'd think they'd understand the concept of investing in a house which will either support our retirement when we downsize or be our children's inheritance. But instead we are constantly told how irresponsible we are with money...

Don't get my started on their opinion on is buying some low end garden furniture so we could actually sit in our essential large garden!

I think the problem with boomers generally (not all boomers 😒 etc)…

is the refusal to acknowledge their good luck that they were born during an economically prosperous time.

they are really the first generation that get to experience “retirement” of relative luxury. Their parents would have had to scrimp/save and live frugally, often with family, during retirement. They would have still contributed as long as they were physically able to childcare or similar, or died relatively younger.

boomers are relatively far more wealthy and often get to enjoy foreign travel, vast amounts of equity in property, free healthcare, better pensions, and far more leisure time. They are much better off than the generation before them.

The issue is, they are likely also to be better off than their children. COL, the collapse of the nhs (it will happen), property prices, pensions not as good. We won’t be anywhere near the quality of life at retirement that boomers have.

it’s this refusal to acknowledge this that annoys “millennials” and their opinion that they have all these luxuries just due to hard work and effort. Not circumstance.

Mumsnet is rife with ageism sadly.

OP your parents are critical of you and perhaps unkind. Not sure what that has to do with when they were born.

"Can we then redefine the word 'boomer' to mean 'someone who had to work to rebuild the world economy after the disaster of WW2'?"

And who fought for women's rights, gay rights, employment legislation, social justice.......

It is a shock sometimes how much money your children have to find for some things. On the other hand some things are so much cheaper these days than when we had a young family.

It's really no-ones business how much is spent on what I tell my DH when he has a grumble

Er no if you wereborn in 1946 you were an adult until the mid sixties. The rebuilding happened mainly in the 1950's.

On women's and gay rights you absolutely have a point.

My parents sure didn't. In fact, they tell gen x me that I shouldn't bother with employment or studying as my DH will be able to support the whole family, so I shouldn't do it.

My parents aren't actually that well off (Boomers). My ILs are incredibly well off having benefited from property (Silent Generation).

I’m years younger than boomers but I’m very guilty of being blown away by how much things cost. I looked at package holidays last summer for the first time and was absolutely flabbergasted by how much people are paying. Other things which leave me slack jawed are drinks in pubs and cars. Possibly if you buy a new car every 3 years, go to a pub twice a month and go on holiday every year there is an element of boiling a frog. I’d never booked that sort of holiday before and had naively thought “oh, this is mainstream and millions of people on lower salaries than mine do this every year” and therefore thought it was affordable. I used to work in a pub and “Pound a pint” was a thing for happy hour. Next time I went into a pub it was £4.50 - 20 years had gone past but I hadn’t really noticed.

My parents really were a lucky generation but we have really lucked out in tech. Advances in healthcare are outstanding, our access to entertainment is phenomenal, the choices of food we have are incredible, as are our travel opportunities.

Yes. Talking about how expensive houses are nowadays - according to my mother ‘people just have higher expectations nowadays’. Nothing to do with the fact that her and my dad were able to buy their house on one salary and it was a fraction of what housing costs now 🙄🙄

Omg op I could have written your post myself.
my parents are boomers and always ask me how much things cost me and then look astonished when I tell them! They have no sense of reality and my mum even tells me not to go spending (my own money) on xyz. As a child I was brought up with the ‘make do’ attitude so any holes in my clothes had to be stitched up, any worn shoes had to be repaired/ glued etc and just had to basically look like a a patchwork doll (and be bullied at school) because they were brought up poor themselves so despite not being short of money in their adult life, they still had this mentality!

I once bought some nail strengthener as my nails kept breaking and my dad basically told me I don’t deserve to have money if that’s the ‘crap’ I’m going to spend it on!

I also get met with the same attitude with holidays - they don’t like brits/ it’s too hot there etc! They just seem to think they have a god given right to control my adult life. I’m 42 years old!!

I think the problem with boomers generally

But is it boomers generally, @Wentie ? Do I live in a bubble or something, because none of the boomers in my circle are under those misapprehensions.

When we get together, we're constantly talking about out worries about our kids, their housing situation, how hard it is for them. And those of us with the capital are helping them out significantly with regard to house deposits, paying off student loans, or paying for childcare (or doing it for them). We're only too aware that we're were fortunate in many regards.

Of course I also know boomers who are really struggling. When I was working, most of my assistants were on minimum wage, and some of them my age. And they didn't have workplace pensions for most of their lives, so are retiring now with nothing but their state pension (reduced in some cases and they paid in using the married women's contribution).

Another "Boomer" slating, how original. I'm X, my parents Silent and even I'm fed up of seeing "boomer" bashing 🙄

Medical advances are also really benefiting the Boomers.
Previously pneumonia was the old persons friend and if lung cancer didn't get you then heart failure or some other untreatable cancer would.
We now have my 87 year old fil after two heart operations, googling every advance under the sun , rattling with pills and thinking about going private for a knee operation.
This generation will not be denied their healthcare!

Yeah but try being controlled by boomer parents all your childhood and adult life and being bullied at school because of them. My friends had much younger parents so they didn’t suffer the same as I did and they thought me/ my parents were just plain weird. It’s not so much that I want to slate them, just I feel that they have had so much control and influence over my life and I’ve made some pretty bad life choices due to them knit picking at everything I do with their old fashioned beliefs.

Yes, why doesn't he just ship himself off to Dignitas or put a bag over his head as every old person should, and as you no doubt will do when your time comes, since you don't want healthcare. Though actually I don't know a single person who has done that.

Are you aware of how hard wash day is when it's a big pan, a big bucket and a mangle ? When it takes all Monday to to the family laundry. And the nets need washing often because coal dust is everywhere

How cold it is when the only heating is the coal fire and the loo is outside so you get soaked to the skin if you need to go out ?

The smell of emptying the piss pot ( because never mind an en-suite , you didn't want to use the outside loo at night)

How to raise a family with no tumble dryer no washing machine no central heating no hot water , need to shop every day because you need to carry the food home , limited food anyway - potatoes every day

Working class northern boomer life

Probably you don't get it and I wouldn't expect you too

So why do you expect them to understand the nuance of your life ?

How expensive stuff is - yes things are more expensive, but you are getting a lot for your money

the idea of being shocked at the cost of a holiday when the average boomer never had a holiday when they were younger

The jealousy of people who have over their lives had much less than you have is pretty pathetic

@littlebopeepp234 that's your parents though as people it's not their generation and your experience of your 'boomer' parents isn't the same as I've had. Don't paint an entire generation the same way, that's literally the definition of discrimination

I think both can be true. I do think that people have higher expectations earlier on but that doesn't mean it hasn't also become harder.

Such an ignorant post in every way.

I don't know any boomers who lived like that, and I didn't know wealthy boomers. Maybe the generation before that.