To be absolutely sick of hearing about the cost of living crisis

[Katypp]

I surely can't be the only person sick to death of hearing about the cost of living crisis?
I am tired of reporters interviewing middle-class (usually) mothers inside paid activities such as soft play and hearing them moan about how they are struggling to make ends meet.
Have we completely lost the ability to cut our cloth according to our means or does 'struggling' now mean carrying on spending as usual then complaining when there's no money left?
There have never been as many massive new cars on the road, towns are full of hairdressers, nail bars, brow bars, tanning salons, soft play, play cafes, coffee shops, ice cream parlours, dog groomers, most of which didn't exist 25 years ago and are probably the recipients of the money of the families who say they can't keep up with spiralling costs.
Yes, some families will have been hard up before prices started to go up and will have nothing else to cut back on. They have my sympathy.
But i am utterly fed up of hearing how hard households ars being hit by the cost of living crisis when all that's needed is a few minor cutbacks which they don't want to make.

Understood. Still - how confident can we be that it compares: that the salaries in your sector have held their value, and are available to people at a similar qualification level, at about the same age? Striving and self-discipline will only get people so far, no matter how virtuous they are.

I’m not on the bread line by any means. I can still be pissed off that my hard earned cash doesn’t go anywhere near as far as it used to. Yes cut your cloth, yes work hard but if you’re doing all that and you can’t afford a few treats in life then what’s it all about?

If I took your attitude to what you have written there I would simply say its your own fault - why don't you just pull yourself up by your bootstraps, cut back on luxuries, get a better paying job and move to a cheaper area, then maybe you could afford to eat out and go on holiday. I can afford those things because despite coming from a low income, working class background, I took some personal responsibility and bettered my life - there is absolutely no reason why you can't have done the same. It is obvious that the only reason you can't afford those things is because you haven't worked hard enough or you are spending your money of crap you don't need.

But I wouldn't do that because I understand the realities of life for a lot of people.

I also understand that while I have worked hard to get where I am (comfortable but not wealthy), a good chunk of it has been down to luck:

Being born to parents, who despite being working class, blue collar workers, were determined to give me the best chance possible, and brought me up with the expectation of aiming for university rather than following them into low wage manual work.

Being lucky enough to be bright enough to do well at school and get into uni,
Meeting my DH at 17 rather than in my 20's or 30's, him not wanting to work rather than go into further education, so being able to afford to buy a house together at 19 while I did go to uni,

Being in that position in 1999, a couple of years before the housing boom started,

Getting the job that I did in my gap year (by pure chance) which allowed me to continue to work part time while at uni and that job leading, again by chance, to my career which is completely different to my degree but turns out I have an amazing talent for and has allowed me to progress to senior positions

Being lucky enough that neither I, my DH or my children have any major health issues

The difference between me and you is that I acknowledge both my privilege and luck and refuse to punch down.

I want you to be able to afford a holiday and to eat out and afford a better car. I want a society that is fair enough that people can eat out occasionally or be able to afford a basic week away and a decent car. Although I have struggled at times in my life and had to go without things, I don't want other people to struggle just because I did.

If the inequality gap was smaller, if wealth was more evenly distributed, if we didn't live in a society that was designed to support the super-rich to hoard wealth while the majority slog day to day just to eke out a basic existence you would be able to afford to eat out more and go on holiday and people who needed the safety net of benefits would be able to get them without having to wear sack cloth and ashes and justify every penny they spend.

Okay, well my parents are in their sixties and only my dad worked. That was quite common in our circles.

It is not uncommon for a parent to not work nowadays either according to a lot of threads on here.

😂We have reasonable jobs, a nearly paid off mortgage, decent pensions, a garden, no debt, in a safe country with healthcare. I think we live like kings . I don’t want to eat shitty chain food at extortionate prices every week, an occasional decent quality treat is more than fine. I’d rather eat well at home, have a paid off mortgage and a pension.

It’s attitude like yours that makes people end up in debt. People need to appreciate what they have, what we have as a county and waste less.

And restaurants OP. We NEVER went to restaurants when I was young (I’m 50s now). My 18th birthday was to a restaurant with family, a rare treat. The number of families you see out now in restaurants as I drive past is astounding.

The amount of universal credit being spent in The Toby beggars belief……waits for the pile on…..

100%!!!!

Oh here we go, the Four Yorkshiremen are spawning.....

They’re on £100-112k and seriously need to look at how they’re spending their money instead of blaming everybody else.

It isn't so much about the cost of living crisis as it is the mis-use of the term. Not being able to eat in restaurants or having to cut back on paid activities doesn't constitute a crisis. It's re-prioritising what you spend your money on.

The people who couldn't make ends meet before costs soared again are the actual victims of the cost of living crisis.

You said all this but you were earning £18k a year in 1999. My comments were about my life and when I earned £18,000 a year in London… in 2018! Wages have not climbed!

🤣🤣🤣

Exactly this!

If this was directed towards me, I’m from further North than that. So admittedly my very generous salary goes much further than those from the South.

I am not. I am glad people are talking about it.
Funny that the people who are sick of hearing about it tend to be the ones not really affected by it.
It seems the stuff I regularly buy in shops goes up by 20p every few weeks. I already live according to my means. I am on UC. I can't magic up more money, yet the CoL means the little I do have is getting eaten at away more and more.

You need to stop that carvery habit ;)

Indeed. NMW was introduced in 1999. 3.60 per hour for over 22s. Salary of around 7,500 for full timers doing 40 hours a week on average.

I managed a small independent gift shop in 97 / 98. My monthly wage was 400. So was my rent. Ex DH was disabled so we qualified for WTC, HB and CB as I recall. Things were tight but more manageable than they are for many now.

Ha, I saw that post. I can't remember the last time I went to a carvery.
And if someone on UC goes to a Toby, then they are spending money that boosts trade and the economy.

That's probably allowed as long as you don't actually enjoy it....

I think you need to be studied, because I have no idea what benefits or earnings people get when I see them out and about.

I was thinking the same.
That is about double our household income.
How come you are struggling?
Especially if you bought your home 15 years ago.
What are you actually spending your money on??

Precisely

No if they then can’t feed their children properly because of it they’re wasting tax payers money.