Over 16 months, Jaime Tardy and her husband, Matt, shook $70,000 in debt and saved up $23,000. Now, she says, they’re on their way to banking a million. In a live on-air interview last week, CNN asked the Turner woman how she did it.
Jaime Tardy decided to work from home for several reasons. A big one was to be able to spend time with her children. Everything has worked out great for her and her husband as they turned their financial status around in 16 months. Finley, 3 and Jet, 18 mos. are big fans of having mom at home.
Jaime Tardy decided to work from home for several reasons. A big one was to be able to spend time with her children. Everything has worked out great for her and her husband as they turned their financial status around in 16 months. Finley, 3 and Jet, 18 mos. are big fans of having mom at home.
Jaime Tardy decided to work from home for several reasons. A big one was to be able to spend time with her children. Everything has worked out great for her and her husband as they turned their financial status around in 16 months. Finley, 3 and Jet, 18 mos. are big fans of having mom at home.
Jaime Tardy decided to work from home for several reasons. A big one was to be able to spend time with her children. Everything has worked out great for her and her husband as they turned their financial status around in 16 months. Finley, 3 and Jet, 18 mos. are big fans of having mom at home.
Anchor Tony Harris’ guessed: Lots of beans and rice?
Sort of, and then some.
Tardy, 28, a part-time business coach and blogger with the website EventualMillionaire.com, said Monday that the couple was inspired to take drastic measures around Christmas 2005. She worked 60-plus hours a week as a project manager for a video-on-demand company in Massachusetts. Matt, the contortionist, fire-eating half of the group AudioBody, also traveled a lot. They earned about $140,000, owed $70,000 in assorted debt and wanted to start a family.
That math wasn’t working.
“Plus, I hated my job,” Jaime Tardy said. “It made it an easy decision, ‘We need to do something about this now before a baby comes.’”
They ditched cable TV. Cut the grocery budget to $300 a month. Put themselves on a $25 allowance. And sold their newly bought, $19,000 Honda Civic, trading down to a car less than half that price.
“I worked overtime and the more I traveled the more money I made, and my husband took every single show and every side job he could,” Tardy said. “We would still go out to eat using our personal funds, but only get dessert. Or get an appetizer and split it. It’s the experience you want more than the eating lots of food.”
Slowly, that debt — a mix of student, home equity and car loans — disappeared. Tardy said they’ve made a game out of stretching dollars at the grocery store, and decided not to be shy: While used-car shopping, the couple took one vehicle on a test drive into another dealer’s lot, pulled up and asked, “Do you have a better deal than this?”
“People looked at us crazy, and they couldn’t give us a better deal,” she said. “But then I knew that that was the best car for me, so it worked out really well.”
Tardy eventually gave her notice at her project manager job in April 2007, a few months after their son was born.
The family’s still on a careful budget, which she keeps attached to the refrigerator, seen by anyone who walks in the house.
“I think in general we should be talking about money more,” Tardy said. “I remember when I was a little kid I mentioned something about how much my father made and I got in so much trouble. It’s funny how hush-hush we are about it all.”
She’s been blogging on her website, baring all financially, since March, and recently added a starter guide with a budget for others who might be inspired to change their own patterns. CNN discovered Tardy's blog and featured her in a CNNMoney.com article on debt busters, then followed up with a live interview last Monday.
Tardy said they’re now debt-free, except for a mortgage. They had a goal of being millionaires by 40 — in about 12 years — but friends cajoled her into lowering the age. She’s now thinking maybe 2015.
“Why not? Even if I only have $300,000, still,” Tardy said. “I like setting really big, bold goals.”
kskelton@sunjournal.com
Report a correction
tell it all tardy
to the mothers feeding their kids mud cakes in Uganda. Your tardy on reality.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedAgree (4)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Do the math
The majority of employed people in Maine make $10-12 an hour. Using $12 an hour and working 60 hours a week they are only earning $34,560 a year. Double that for a husband and wife and it is still only $69,124. Add in a child or two and the family is barely surviving paycheck to paycheck, regardless of how much they cut back and save. It is a sad economy.
The Tardy family were earning twice that much annually before they had children and still found themselves deep in debt. They were obviously living way beyond their generous means. Now we should praise them for cutting back to a practical level?
I agree that their story is far from inspirational.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (2) Agree (11)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.To say that most couples work
To say that most couples work (and get paid) for 60 hours of work per week is very optimistic.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.$69,120
Not sure where the 4 came from. Total should say $69,120.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (1)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.you guys complain cause they
you guys complain cause they earn more than you? BFD, maybe just maybe they earned it, maybe through college or maybe HARD WORK? they worked 60 hours a wk, maybe thats what the message is? Get off the computer and get to work. If you dont like it change it yourselfs instead of whining and standing around with your hand out!
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (10) Agree (3)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.This is not the typical family
Anyone making $140,000 a year in income is well above the average Maine blue-collar worker family. Even with all their cut-backs, they still were making more than enough to get rid of debt and save. Many families work very hard but only make $28,000 or less and they already have children. This was not the inspiring story I was hoping it would be because their income is actually what rich people make!
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (1) Agree (11)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.The reaction to this article
The reaction to this article by some, while predictable, is still very sad.
'The same people who 140k a year ... 140k a year ... -pardon me while I find a tiny tissue to wipe these tiny tears," "Gee, can I do the same thing on less than 20,000 a year? I rather doubt it." and the like just don't get it, are the ones who have maxed out credit cards, end up in foreclosure and blame the mortgage company, and are living paycheck to paycheck. The truth is you can do what this family is doing though not banking quiet as much but, you wont be living paycheck to paycheck and you will have a cushion in the bank.
I have been doing this for 30 years and I have taught others to do it too. I broke my best friend of a serious QVC/HSN habit and she and her husband cut up their credit cards about 7 years ago. Today, their house is paid for as are their vehicles, they are completely debt free. So while their construction business has been in a terrible down turn, they have not faced foreclosure or repossessions. And here are the things we did and how I have lived for years.
Rule#1:NO credit cards or consumer debt, period. If you can't pay for it, you don't need it.
Rule #2: If you do not have a washer and are going to the laundramat, pay a friend or family member 1/2 what you pay the laundramat to wash, not dry your clothes at their place and hang dry your laundry. Hang drying extends the life of your clothing and saves you a lot of money. Put what you save in an envelope marked washer and buy yourself a good quality preferably front loading washer when you have enough saved up. I recommend front loading because they save you on water, soap, bleach, softener and they make your clothes last longer because they get them cleaner with less wear saving you on your clothing expense as well. While a front loader is significantly more expensive then a top loader, it more than pays for itself in a year, every year after that is FREE.
Rule #3: Go around your house and unplug everything. Now plug in the refrigerator and stove. If you you have a freezer make sure it is full. If not, fill plastic jugs with water (put these on the bottom so they are out of your way when you are looking for something) or load it with bottled water then plug it it. Always keep the freezer full, a freezer that is not full means more room for warm air that has to be cooled when it is opened and generally makes the freezer work harder and your electric bill go up. The same rule applies to refrigerators, the less in them the more warm air enters every time you open the door, if low, fill with jugs of cold water. If your microwave is not built in, and most in Maine are not, keep it unplugged except when in use; microwaves and other appliances are constant power suckers even when not in use. Replace plug-in clocks with battery operated or wind up. You can use the old batteries that wouldn't work in other devices for clocks because they draw so little making great use of these really not dead yet batteries. These clocks are more reliable; you don't have to worry about the power going out, rarely do people use the radio or other features of the plug-in varieties and the plug-ins again are constant power suckers. Computers are also constant power suckers which should be on a backup power supply anyway if desk top and not kept plugged in if laptop since keeping them plugged in all the time destroys the battery. Plug in the Backup and then plug all your equipment into the backup with printers and such to surge only and your monitor, computer and other appropriate periperals to backup and then hit the power off button; this works just like the power switch on a power strip keeping the computer from sucking juice from CMP when not in use. When you are ready to use the computer hit the power supply switch then turn on as usual and you have your computer and backup. Don't forget to include your DSL system on this! If you only use it for one computer and not phone, you do not need to be powering the DSL and WIFI when the computer is off. Absolutely keep TV, stereos, DVD, and VCR players unplugged when not in use. You will be amazed when you make the rounds what you will find plugged in that are slow sucking juice that all adds up. My electric bill in Maine runs $30 dollars a month, in Florida $60-80 a month with ceiling fans. If you have an electric hot water heater and are really extreme like me you can limit its run manually or with a timer; an electric hot water heater will heat a 40-60 gallon tank in about 15 minutes. I have electric hot water in Florida. I would get up 15 minutes before waking the kids and flip the hot water heater circuit breaker to on. Fifteen minutes later I would get the kids up and they would all run through the shower which was their normal habit anyway. Fifteen minutes after the last person finished in the shower I flipped the circuit breaker off and that was it for the day. That tank is quite well insulated to begin with and I had it wrapped besides for extra insulation so I had plenty of hot water for whatever I needed to do including my shower after my run with the dog in the ocean every day until the next morning when we repeated the process. Water heaters are money suckers they turn on every time the water temperature drops a couple of degrees which you would never notice and it may be 12 or even 24 hours before you have any demand. I almost forgot, dishwashers are cheaper to operate, use less hot water and power than hand washing so run when full after the kids take their showers then wait the 15 minutes to turn off the water heater.
Rule #4 Fix Leaks immediately. It may not seem like much but a dripping faucet is expensive. If it is a cold drip you are talking unnecessary water and sewer expense if it is a hot water leak you are adding to your hot water heating expense as well. It is a lot cheapter to fix it fast than let it drip or the toilet leak.
Rule #5 Most people have cellphones. So why do we insist on paying for a house phone as well? If your family is made up of cellphone users pull the plug on the house phone. If your Internet is connected to the house phone, don't worry, you can keep it without the house phone.
Rule #6 Ditch the Cable/Satellite TV most people are paying between $70 and $120 a month for Cable or Satellite TV. They are not home atleast 10 hours a day between work and travel, sleep at least 8, hopefully sitdown with the family for breakfast and dinner (and cooking and cleaning up together would be nice) another 2 hours which only leaves 4 hours a day of the 5 business days that might be spent with the TV on and we would like to think the weekends are spent on something other than TV along with those 4 hours on school/business days. Most people also have atleast one computer and an internet connection. You can watch all your favorite shows for FREE on the internet and with a lot fewer commercial interruptions. Drawback, the commercial interruptions are only 30-60 seconds, not enough time to run to the bathroom or grab a snack, so you will have to use the pause feature. Advantage, you get to watch what you want, when you want new and old programs and movies, FREE with the exception of the internet connection and computer you are already paying for anyway.
Rule #7 Never buy a new car unless you intend to do all of the scheduled maintenance on schedule and keep it a very long time. Today's fuel injected, computer controlled vehicles can easily go 1,000,000 miles yes I said one million miles. So if you are willing to commit to a vehicle for the next 20 years or longer and doing ALL of the scheduled maintenance on time a new car may well be a very good investment for you. If you are young with children this can work extremely well as you pass the vehicle to your children to drive as the need arises to become a multi or more multi car family. Have you seen the Toyota Camry Commercial where the Camrys go from kid to kid and parent to kid?
Rule #8 Buy Generic Most of the time generic products are equal to if not identical to brand names. For example: sugar is sugar is sugar it makes no difference if it says Diamond or Sam's Club, Great Value, Shaw's or Hannaford. Same with many cleaning products.
Rule #9 Skip the premix and start from scratch. In our house we have the added issue of complicated food allergies but even without them, it is a lot cheaper to make our own "Bisquick," cake mix, muffin mix and so forth. We also make soup and sauces in big pots and freeze in zip lock bags that can be washed and reused and also help to fill the extra space in the freezer. The bags are convenient when someone misses dinner or is just hungry looking for a snack and needs a single serving. A can of Campbells Chunkie Soup at Walmart is $1.25 home, that same 2 cups of home made is probably about $0.25 and has love made into it.
Ruld #10 Got Pets? Go to the feed store and pay more for dog and cat food. I know this sounds contrary to everything above but, it isn't and here is why. I have a service dog for my epilepsy. She is a German Sheperd that under weight runs 100 lbs. If I buy Ol'Roy from Walmart she has skin problems and she acts like she is starving and will eat one of those big bags in a week. I get to pay the vet, pay for meds and pay for a lot of dog food, she is miserable and so am I with the constant scratching. Now I go to Paris Farmers Union or Aubuchon Hardware and I buy the same size bag of SportMix which I order because it works for her and she started on it in Florida but, they have other excellent dog food that will work for your dog that has a very high nutrient content and no corn. That bag costs me $30, no scratching, no vet, no meds and it lasts 4 months with her free eating. I keep it sealed in a bin for freshness. I do the same with the cats. If I buy Purina Indoor Cat, I have cats puking everywhere, the only thing I have worse the cleaning up cat puke is stepping in it when I get out of bed, and they go through atleast an 18 lb bag a week and act like they are starving at $16.99 a bag last time I checked Walmart. I switched to much better grade feed store stuff a couple of years ago in desperation since I keep ending up with the kids cats along with mine while the kids are in college and was going broke. For $24.99 a bag I get same weight bag, I get Taste of the Wild Feline. Two bags free feed lasts 6 weeks. On catfood alone I save $51.96 a month. If you have just one cat, one bag of Taste of the wild will probably last close to 6 months just keep it selled in your cleaned out Tidy Cat Scoopable Cat litter buckets. Which brings me to cat litter. This is one area I have not been able to break my best friend of. She insists on using the old clay litter for her guys and it costs her a small fortune. She spends in a week dumping out and completely changing out her catboxes twice a week for the same number of cats what I spend in a couple of monthes scooping every day adding as needed, running down and changing out completely about once a month per manufacturers recommendations. I don't have an odor problem, she frequently does. Her cats frequently pee and poo in inappropriate places, and that has not been a problem for me. She also seems to have a much bigger dust problem. The per pound price is higher on the scoopable but remember you are not dumping and throwing it away twice a week.
There are lots of other things we do in our family, my grown and gone children continue in their homes and friends have had me teach them but I don't want to overwhelm. What Mrs. Tardy is doing is completely doable, and I wish you would note, she quit her job in April 2007, they do not have $140,000 coming in now and they have two small children now yet continue to save, save, save. I wont give specifics but can assure you the budget I hold my household to is well under $15,000 a year.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (15) Agree (9)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Hey, thanks for posting that,
Hey, thanks for posting that, CandiceAnne! I enjoyed reading your suggestions. :)
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (2) Agree (2)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.??
I agree that everyone can learn from debt management tips but this article was not inspiring to the average Maine family. Plus this couple started their debt management before they had children. Getting money under control without kids is a lot easier than once they are born and you start having unexpected medical bills, school related costs or what not.
Rule #2 is odd. Many people in Maine live a bit a distance from relatives to share a washing machine. Not to mention, I doubt most relatives want you wearing down their washing machine. Plus if one relatives has pets, they might not want dog or cat hair in their machines (it does get in there, along with dead fleas or whatever else)
Rule #4 is not always that easy. We have two plumbing problems we've been unable to fix by ourselves. One is a leak that just keeps coming back and another one is an extensive toilet based pipe leak that is beyond our own ability. Since we've had unexpected bills almost every month (including car repairs or needs) we've been unable to pay for a professional to fix them. This has gone on for over a year sadly.
Rule #5
We've tried the cell phone only thing and it didn't work. One, coverage isn't that great with several companies ...we apparently are in an area that is unique. A lot of Maine rural locations are like this where cell coverage isn't reliable. Two, if your cell battery runs low or dies you could miss an important call...like you need to run your grandma to the hospital. There are a lot of problems with cell only though I wish we could do that.
Rule #6 Many who have cable do so because of the rest of the family (not just the adults). They use it for the kids to be honest. And even if you cut back to basic, which we did because you can't even get regular tv without a cable here....it still is expensive. I've looked into all different types and we are stuck with the one that monopolozies the region. I hate it.
Rule #7 We don't have a new car. We bought used. Only problem with used...it will die sooner (mostlikely) and/or comes with problems you don't know about. We could never afford a new car anyway but we dish out a lot of money on car repairs on the used one. That is often the unexpected bills that keep sucking down our attempts at saving. Most likely the rich family making $140,000 didn't have a crappy car and if it did break down, they'd be able to afford the repair bill without taking money from their property taxes.
Rule #9 I do a LOT of scratch made dishes at home, however it is very time consuming and for many working moms, it really is impossible to rush home after work and spend several hours making stuff from scratch while the kids are upset because dinner is taking too long. You can pre-make things ahead of time, true but scratch isn't always cheapest. When I make bread, I go through a bag of flour very quickly. It probably makes only three loaves of bread and in our household, that bread will not last long. Have you bought potatoes lately? I love making recipes with potatoes like chicken pot pie or to save on money (without the pie crust) but potatoes are almost $4 a bag now! Everyone knows the poor buy a lot of "box" stuff and gain weight because of it. Why is that? Because it is cheaper than buying stuff to make from scratch in many cases. I still recommend splurging to make homemade cause ...well, it is healthier.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedAgree (7)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.TLDNR
TLDNR
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (2) Agree (1)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.140K Per year...
They should not have been in debt period.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedAgree (31) Disagree (2)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.The sub text pf the story is
The sub text pf the story is hard work, budgeting, becoming debt free is worth it. The other message is, if you focus you can do anything you want. A message that should be plastered all over Washington and Augusta. If you don't make enough, do some thing different, go to school look for a career that WILL pay you more. Live within your means now, SAVE. You can do it.
Great article LSJ
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (12) Agree (10)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.I agree with part of this
I'm going to school right now but I'll tell you, it is very expensive! I can barely afford it but keep hoping I won't have to stop because I desperately need to upgrade my education in order to financially survive. High school means NOTHING anymore. They need to teach not only vocational skills in high school, so you have a chance at survival when you get out, but also college-based skills because we all know that you can only have a decent job if you have a college education. Even then, there are many stories now with college educated graduates who can not find work. Outsourcing is to blame. All the greed in the big businesses who don't want to support their own country.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (1) Agree (12)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.crybaby havenots should just go away
And here come the sour grapes. "Wah. Wah. THOSE people are making more money than I do!" The article also states that she was working 60+ hours per week. How many of you dirty Lew scumbags making < $20k can say that? Working 25 hours + food stamps isn't the path to success.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (24) Agree (24)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.You don't know
You obviously do not know the working poor who often work several jobs just to make ends meet. Most of the good jobs in Maine and around US have gone to outsourcing. Prices have gone way up on food. I've noticed basic products go up $2 or $3 just this passed year and most people are not getting raises now. This family does have a great income and I agree that 60 Plus hours of work is way too much for the woman, though they were talking about before they had children. She most likely does not work that now. When your childless you can work a lot more and often do make more money. This article was not inspiring to the average family at all. Nor does it represent the average Mainer.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (2) Agree (15)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Picking on the Dirty Lew?
-who's the "scumbag" now, "tired"?
Just because your lofty buds earn 140K you get to lump all the folks of Lewiston as welfare degenerates?
Like I said -out of touch, completely.
Maybe you aimed that at me ... but I don't live in the Dirty Lew, so be a little more creative with your nasty stereotypes and generalizations.
140K is easy street, take your head out of your arse.
This is just not an impressive story. That's not "sour grapes" as you imperiously assert.
Yet, it's front page in an area riddled by economic strife.
-so don't tell me it's "not for you". If not, it could have been kept to a yearly Christmas letter to friends and family, or just stayed on the fridge in a cutesy bow-tied rainbow-brite "budget" breakdown.
Unimpressive, uninspiring.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (7) Agree (21)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.yawn.
Yeah yeah. Perhaps you'd prefer more doom and gloom in the paper? As if there isn't enough of that already (and we ARE talking about the LEWISTON S/J, so doom and gloom is easy to find). Every time there's a discussion about someone who makes a little more money / year than the average, all of the have-nots come out swinging. Like that idiot who thinks the Lewiston City Manager should be limited to a $40k salary. Because "Waaa Waaa, life is not fair! That person makes more money than I do! Waaaaaaaa. I work at Walmart for < $10/hr and that big meanie City Manager is making $100k!" These people should be held up as a SHINING EXAMPLE of how one can succeed through thrift and hard work. It's a refreshing story.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (12) Agree (3)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.yawn.
Yeah yeah. Perhaps you'd prefer more doom and gloom in the paper? As if there isn't enough of that already (and we ARE talking about the LEWISTON S/J, so doom and gloom is easy to find). Every time there's a discussion about someone who makes a little more money / year than the average, all of the have-nots come out swinging. Like that idiot who thinks the Lewiston City Manager should be limited to a $40k salary. Because "Waaa Waaa, life is not fair! That person makes more money than I do! Waaaaaaaa. I work at Walmart for < $10/hr and that big meanie City Manager is making $100k!" These people should be held up as a SHINING EXAMPLE of how one can succeed through thrift and hard work. It's a refreshing story.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (17) Agree (4)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Gee, can I do the same thing
on less than 20,000 a year? I rather doubt it. They had a head start-by earning good money from working 2/3 jobs each and having enough money to buy a house in the first place.
That's well and fine for them, but for others it will not work if the job isn't there to begin with, or one is underpaid/underemployed at a job that doesn't earn real money.
Inspiring only to those who are working and earning good money now. Not for those who don't.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedAgree (33)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Unimpressive
140k a year ... -pardon me while I find a tiny tissue to wipe these tiny tears.
Seriously, this is not newsworthy and kinda flies in the face of the real hardships folks are facing at this time.
I do not want to hear about the "struggles" (no cable! -oh wow!) of those who live comfortably.
These folks may be nice, but this story is completely out of touch.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (4) Agree (44)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.wow
does she have a sister?
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (13) Agree (9)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.They earned about
They earned about $140,000...
Heck, our combined income is half that. If we made that much we could bank about $70,000 a year since we already live well, but within our means. The biggest part of the problem is that we both work salaried positions which mean we work whatever hours our employers expect, we get NO overtime, and our salaries are fixed. When gas and food prices go up like they have in recent years, we can't go in and demand a raise so the result is we have to make cuts somewhere. We don't go out to movies, dinner, shows, or concerts, we don't eat fancy, we have analog tvs, two of which are close to 20 years old, one vehicle is a 2001, the other a 2003 (our farm tractor is newer), live in a really old house and keep the heat at 60, but we're doing okay, so the bottom line is, what the Tardys did, while I applaud their taking action, is no real accomplishment, many of us do it every day.
- Permalink
- Is this comment inappropriate?
Kudos AwardedDisagree (6) Agree (53)
Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.