What did "middle class" mean to you when you were 20-30 something?

[appleannie1]

13. Growing up we were the middle class wanabee's.

My dad had worked at Rockwell as a drill press operator until Rockwell moved the plant to the south because his workers wanted a pension plan. Dad finally found work as a bartender and mom as a cook at a bar/restaurant. From that point on we lived on hand me downs and free food.
I quit school at 16 and got a job as a nurses aide. I walked 5 miles to work so I did not have to pay streetcar fare. Both my younger brothers were able to graduate, join the Navy and go to college on the GI bill. I got married twice and by 30 had six kids, his, mine and ours. We bought a huge old farmhouse in the country that we remodeled into a beautiful 5 bedroom house. We had a one acre garden and I canned all our fruits and vegetables, made all the family's clothes and got my GED. We bought a tow behind camper and went on weekend camping trips and saved all year for vacations to places like Disneyworld. When all the kids were in school I got a job as a police and fire dispatcher. Four of my kids went to college, one manages an international race team that last year won a world championship in the LMP II. class, one died and one is mentally challenged. All of my kids are hard workers and doing well. I like to think it is because of the example we set for them. I don't regret my tough upbringing. It taught me how to make nothing into something useful and to value and take care of what I have. And all of my kids are close even though they live all over the world. My granchildren are now teaching their kids values and the self respect one feels from earning and sharing. So at the age of 70 I have great memories. I know my hubby and I were outraged by Romney's 47% remark. We earned the right not to pay taxes on our SS and since we both paid into it with sweat and blood, we do not view it as a handout.