My roommate and I were discussing how he recently lost his cell phone while vacationing. He is planning on replacing it, but finds life without it peaceful. My phone has been on the blitz, I really need a new one but I haven’t found the time to replace it.
Anyway, I ride the bus to and from work. Typically I’m surrounded by a ton of both college and high school age kids, there’s a high school near to where I work actually. I notice that these kids have everything. The latest cell phone, ipod, or nintendo ds. And I wonder, how the heck are they affording it? Or how the heck are parents affording it?
I have a basic cell phone plan for my DH and I. No fancy texting, web browsing, or cool iphone applications. I think it’s adequate. My ipod mini is from 2005 and was purchased used. It certainly could use replacing, but my DH replaced the battery for $10 and it seems to work fine.
But do most people give their children all these toys? Are they purchased with their own allowances? Growing up, I never had these things. Part of it was cell phones were expensive and not common. But even bigger toys like a nintendo gameboy, I believe my parents made me save up to buy it if I wanted it. My roommate agrees, that we never got such extravagent gifts. He had pretty wealthy parents and while mine were poor, having a cell phone or electronic gift just handed over in our teens would have been a big deal.
So has our views of what is acceptable changed? Is it now necessary for parents to give their children a cell phone with unlimited texting and browsing? And the newest ipod or gameboy? Or are kids working now at a younger age to buy things?
8 responses so far ↓
1 meinmillions // Jun 1, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Parents spoil their kids. I work with kids and many of them are not responsible enough to have these expensive gadgets. They lose them all the time! Cell phones have become a convenience for parents to keep track of their kids, but their kids do not need the most expensive ones!
2 R. May // Jun 2, 2009 at 4:17 pm
Oh indeed society has changed – it is becoming increasing materialistic. And god forbidden children should want for anything.
I always cringe a little more at this time of the year..why? Well graduation season. As in prek, k, 5th grade, 8th grade, high school. You are not graduating any of them, with the exception of high school. All you have managed to do is NOT fail – like your supposed to (and also why I lump even high school graduation in there, the point is to graduate). We need to stop rewarding children for accomplishing the status quo.
Everytime my daughter comes home with some stupid reward for reading, showing up to school, not beating people up, I say I’m glad you are behaving as you are supposed to but we are not going to be using this gift certificate nor am I framing the award. Don’t know how I’m going to make it through 10 more years.
3 fengshui // Jun 2, 2009 at 8:46 pm
When I went to school (I graduated in the mid 90’s), we never had “graduations” from elementry to middle, and middle to high school. If I got a B, my dad asked why I didn’t get an A. If I got an A, why didn’t I get an A+. That is the way it used to be. It seems as if today’s children are coddled and not independent…. with a few exceptions, of course…..
4 Colette // Jun 2, 2009 at 11:51 pm
Hmmm. This is an interesting post since I live with 2 teenage eating machines.
Like all kids, they want to fit in with their peers. I can relate to this because that is all I wanted at their age. If my girlfriend had a gold belt, well I wanted one too. I understand. There is nothing criminal in wanting things. The rub comes when deciding what wants to indulge.
We try to let them feel current but never the “best”. If they want an upgrade for the basics they can pitch in for it. We do that by setting a budget for an item (say shoes) and tell them before we go to the store what we will be spending. They need to bring the difference with them, because we are not the bank and do not make “loans”. It’s still a challenge to set boundaries and stick to them.
5 John Peden // Jun 3, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Discussing this with my girlfriend not long ago but we agreed that we both had a significantly larger disposable income when we were in high school.
We both worked a weeknight and at least one shift on the weekend. Added to this we were in school mode from 7am-9pm for most of the week.
Everyone would go out and get pretty drunk on Fridays, but we were usually earning more than we could spend, living at home and having stuff paid for by our folks.
I think that spoiling kids has a part to play, but its worth considering some of these kids will have worked extensive paper rounds to buy those ipods.
6 LAL // Jun 3, 2009 at 10:31 pm
I’m amazed the kids have such nice things! I can’t understand how all these parents afford a Prada backpack for a teenage girl! Or some fancy name brand stuff!
I never got stuff like that!
I agree what’s the deal with graduations! Although I’m mailing my nephew a high school graduation gift tomorrow.
Fengshui, my parents never pressured me. They wanted me to be happy and healthy. Guess now it’s time to be perfect.
Colette, what are the basics? Basic jeans from Target? Or from Armani? Basic backpack or REI? Ipod or whatever is on sale? Free cell phone or cool phone?
John, I have more disposable income in high school when I worked and didn’t pay a cent of bills!
7 R. May // Jun 4, 2009 at 9:15 am
I had disposable income in high school too because I worked. But I also had to pay for gas and chip in on insurance. At the price of gas these days kids should have less money to spend!
Regardless – I’m not really concerned about children old enough to work. I am talking elementary and middle school age children. Why does an 8 year old need a cell phone? Ipod? 3 different video game systems?
8 LAL // Jun 4, 2009 at 9:58 pm
R.May, I have no idea how young kids need to be to have all these gadgets! They have more than me.
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