I have just read this
article and I heartily agree.
I grew up in a poor ass black family. It was 1979 and we lived in this small decrepit building with rooms that didn't have windows. My parents were too proud for welfare and we suffered all throughout the year.
My mother was a part time caregiver to this mean old Greek woman who only gave her 50 cents for six hours as her day's wages (and constantly gave her shit for every little thing my mother did wrong), and my father was a drunk black man who worked odd jobs painting houses or cleaning septic tanks. I remembered our winters were very cold (and I still remember that at the end of our block is where a bunch of young kids were abducted while they were sleeping in their bedroom).
Looking back as I grew up, I and my brother somehow had developed habits that we still have today. Though our living conditions have improved immensely, that feeling of losing everything again were in my thoughts constantly. So most times, I do these inexplicably paranoid things that to an outsider might look a bit screwy.
1. I don't and can't sleep on a bed, I sleep on a futon or just the floor. When I go to conventions, I still don't sleep on the bed. I sleep in the tub or in any hard confined space.
2. I stock too many canned goods even though there's a farmer's market a few blocks away. And I don't go to the supermarket without coupons.
3. Most days I just eat peanut butter and jelly on white bread as breakfast and dinner. I don't eat lunch.
4. I don't have toilet paper. Believe it or not I wash everything with water.
5. I got this from my Mom. The sofa? It's covered in plastic.
6. I can't save money because I always think that the money I earn will disappear or get stolen, so I have to spend it immediately.
7. I secretly save other people's trash and hide them on the garage so I can sell them later.
These are things I notice. Sometimes, I stop myself from doing this habits, but it only places me on edge. So I do it regardless. It sucks sometimes.
So if you're one who grew up poor and has gotten better in your adult life, what other strange habits do you still continue doing as a result of your childhood?