Having no money

[Queenie O.]

21 minutes ago, Jack Peterson said:

 Well Steve, either "EM's has forgotten or you have never really been involved but "Filipino Pastime is party time" This was one of the many things that prompted a recent Topic on the Subject on How poor is poor I started. I can't answer for other islands but believe me, on Negros this is a very common Event;

 Lola on her 94 th Birthday

 

Many here will Struggle, Borrow and get local Credit to have a party but a Party they will have

 

Jack

Morning All

 

 

 

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Posted just now

  20 minutes ago, Jack Peterson said:

 Well Steve, either "EM's has forgotten or you have never really been involved but "Filipino Pastime is party time" This was one of the many things that prompted a recent Topic on the Subject on How poor is poor I started. I can't answer for other islands but believe me, on Negros this is a very common Event;

 Lola on her 94 th Birthday

 

Many here will Struggle, Borrow and get local Credit to have a party but a Party they will have

 

Jack

Morning All

 

 

 

I agree about that Jack. Age is honored here, so many adults especially a parent or grandparents will get a special birthday. Children though, are not always recognized as often as adults I think.

[Jack Peterson]

5 minutes ago, Queenie O. said:

Children though, are not always recognized as often as adults I think.

 On this I will disagree a little, It would take me all day to raise something like 400 Photos of the family Photos from the last 10 years to show that mine as an extended Family pay great attention to kids and thier birthdays. Only Last week was our Youngest relative at a Party for her 1st Birthday, As I said in a previous Topic, maybe it is here on Negros that  Money only seems in short supply for the responsible things in life, Like Living and paying Bills but come something to celebrate, they do tend to go for it and Sod the Cost it seems Even a lechon for a 1 year old 

 Photos of the Latest event

  

 

[Queenie O.]

Well Jack, it's true-- maybe as family traditions and values go, some families do celebrate and recognize their children. Many others do not I've observed.

[davewe]

My wife told me she'd never had cake of any type for any reason until she was in high school. Now this did not mean there was no birthday recognition. Her dad would kill a chicken, the blood would be put as a cross on the birthday child's forehead, and the family would eat the chicken for breakfast. There were rarely gifts given, but a few pesos might be doled out.

A three year old birthday is considered special and more of a big deal might be made.

It seems to me that things are a bit better now for the 3 grandkids, but that might be because there are many working young adults in the family to help.

 

 

[Dave Hounddriver]

7 minutes ago, davewe said:

A three year old birthday is considered special and more of a big deal might be made.

That explains it.  I am broke, as usual, but somehow I have to borrow from next month's budget because gf's son is having a 3rd birthday.  Of course gf had a birthday early this same month so the budget hits just keep on coming.  I wonder who has a birthday next month.  I'm sure I will get told.

[OnMyWay]

A couple of thoughts and speculations.

I think that there is a big difference for the poor and the middle to upper class.  My wife was the last of 9 kids.  Her dad had a good business for the older kids to benefit from, but he went bust and they were dirt poor by the time she came around.  She said she never had much in the way of birthday celebration and really getting a toy was a special event.  Most of her day to day toys were from nature, like sticks and rocks and shells.  Middle class on up are more likely to make sure that there are birthday celebrations.

I think there is also a big difference between now and 20-50 years ago, when most of our wives were growing up.  The Philippines, like the rest of the world, is much more commercialized since then, and there is peer pressure to have some kind of celebration.  Everyone has a TV showing SM commercials, Jollibee, etc. ,celebrating something.  The neighbors do it, so even if you are poor you find a way to do something.

This is especially true for the 1st, 7th and 18th birthdays.  The others might pass by without much of anything, but somehow the family will find some funds for a "blowout" party for these birthdays.

[OnMyWay]

23 minutes ago, davewe said:

A three year old birthday is considered special

Never heard of this.  Took my daughter to the play place for 30 minutes for her 3rd!  

4 minutes ago, OnMyWay said:

This is especially true for the 1st, 7th and 18th birthdays.

Her 7th birthday will be a a hotel or beach or something like that, with lots of invited guests.

[JDDavao II]

3 hours ago, Queenie O. said:

The look on his face when he walked through the yard and saw a brand new red bike was priceless!

 

I needed this so bad today, Queenie. Bless your heart.

[stevewool]

Lots of replies and i thank you for these, what is popping out is the age and with Emma being in the very very early forties "even though she looks in her early twenties". maybe that is what it was like then and being the middle child maybe there was not enough to go around.

Sh did mention about god parents , she said that she only had 1 who really did not appear on the scene much where the other children did seem to have loads.

These days like Jack says there are parties everywhere and some very silly prices are paid for these so called children's party, just going on Emma's cousins money seems to be no object plus princess dressers too, i mean wearing 3 in her own party in one afternoon. 

It takes all sorts.

[davewe]

Whenever I do what Steve did to start off this thread (ask my wife about her up bringing) I learn something. It's usually so alien to the life I led and still lead that it sometimes takes time to get my head around. I can't compare it to my existence at any level. 

I know that by any definition my inlaws are poor. They live in Nipa construction (and it's falling apart). There is no indoor plumbing (though the outhouse is concrete). No one has a vehicle, except for Janet's younger brother who is a mechanic and has a motor bike. My 55 year old FIL works 6-7 days a week of backbreaking farm labor. In short they live a life that few Americans would tolerate.

That said whenever my MIL takes the kids to the beach (and there ends up being a huge tribe of kids) at some point she'll grab her tiny coin purse and pull out a 20 or 50 peso note for treats for the kids. Sometimes Janet beats her to it and on a few occasions "slowhand" Dave does also. But usually my MIL does it. My first reaction as an arrogant American is "where the hell did she get the money?" What am I thinking - that she's an itinerant heiress with a million pesos buried in the ground? The reality is that like all of us she prioritizes her small amount of cash. We all do it. I make sure I have enough cash for a nice restaurant dinner with Janet (and a San Miguel for me) and my MIL makes sure the kids have a tiny treat at the beach.

As a rich American my kids never went without a cake and candles; it was chump change. I suspect that my MIL does it by not spending many pesos on herself. My kids grew up in a better environment but not with better parents.