Material Stuff

Sorting through the mounds of the total junk in this house has really had an effect on mom and I. It's therapuetic for us to see something, go "That's junk" and throw it out. It's also very exasperating to see what her mom has spent her time, money and attention on over the years.

Growing up, my mom only had a few pieces of ill-fitting clothes. Meanwhile, her mother would go out and buy new things for herself, literally every day. Suzanne pretty much ignored my mother (Wendy) all of her life.

My Mom has always sent her letters and called, but Suzanne rarely has. Once mom complained that she never got a real letter from her mom, so Suzanne wrote at the top of a legal pad sheet, "Dear Wendy," and at the very bottom, "Love Mom".

My mom became disabled at a young age and ever since then has lived on a pitance. When I was young, mom tried to support her and I on $300 a month. When I was older, her income increased to a whopping $600 a month. Suzanne has never offered to help out. Once my Mom asked her for $100 to help her move into college. She never got any help. Meanwhile, Suzanne was living on more than $100,000 a year at the time.

With all that money to spend, you'd think they'd have something tangible to show for it. Nope. They're in debt up to their eyeballs. They refinanced this house when they were only a year away from paying it off. They pissed away the money, and now owe more on the house then it's worth. They recently traded in their 2000 Camry that was a year from being paid off, got $1,200 for it in exchange for entering into a 7-year contract for a $25,000 car that when the finace charges are computed, will have them owing $52,000.

Mom has been getting their finances in order, finding her mom and Dick homes to live in, selling everything in the house, putting the house and car up for sale, helping out in any way she can, etc. When my Mom asked her mom how many credit cards she owned, Suzanne said "I don't know". When she asked how much debt Suzanne was in, she replied "I have no idea"

To Be Continued...