I don't like the narrative that Social Security and/or Medicaid will not be available in the future.  Even in worse case scenarios Social Security will be able to pay out 70% of the promised benefits due to younger workers still paying into the system.  Trying to cut Medicaid will cause the large portion of the voting base to run anyone out of town who makes the attempt.  This is why I'm trying to put more of my money into Roth IRA accounts.  The tax rates in the future are going to be crazy and will focus on those that have been diligent with saving.  An expected result of Republican spending combined with their tax breaks to the richest few.

I think it was Jake who once said that eating on the cheap is a way of "sticking it to the man." You really can't do that without a can opener. Canned tuna is an important part of eating decently on the cheap - a quick tuna salad wrap packed for lunch with some carrot slices and a banana hits all the important nutritional points and costs about $1.50. I also keep things like canned garbanzo beans around all the time - I can have gourmet homemade hummus in about 3 minutes for 1/10 the cost of the store bought stuff.

 

Frugality doesn't seem to be something most millennials really care about, though. I get the argument for preferring higher quality foods, but even that can be done cheaply at home as opposed to dining out. I also don't care much for attributes like non-GMO and sustainably sourced, as neither impact taste nor nutrition. Organic is a different story, as is freshness - both of which have big impacts on taste. Non-GMO does result in more variety, and everything I grow at home is non-GMO (and, ironically, from seeds and plants bought from a greenhouse run by a lady who is pushing100 years old), but it's not entirely necessary for store bought produce, it's more of a novelty.

This whole idea that tuna sales are declining because millenials can't use can openers is dumb.  Maybe people's preferences are just changing. I used to eat a lot of canned tuna but I rarely do now.  I couldn't even imagine ordering a tuna salad sandwich nowadays. 

1 minute ago, Ram23 said:

I think it was Jake who once said that eating on the cheap is a way of "sticking it to the man." You really can't do that without a can opener. Canned tuna is an important part of eating decently on the cheap - a quick tuna salad wrap packed for lunch with some carrot slices and a banana hits all the important nutritional points and costs about $1.50. I also keep things like canned garbanzo beans around all the time - I can have gourmet homemade hummus in about 3 minutes for 1/10 the cost of the store bought stuff.

 

Frugality doesn't seem to be something most millennials really care about, though. I get the argument for preferring higher quality foods, but even that can be done cheaply at home as opposed to dining out. I also don't care much for attributes like non-GMO and sustainably sourced, as neither impact taste nor nutrition. Organic is a different story, as is freshness - both of which have big impacts on taste. Non-GMO does result in more variety, and everything I grow at home is non-GMO (and, ironically, from seeds and plants bought from a greenhouse run by a lady who is pushing100 years old), but it's not entirely necessary for store bought produce, it's more of a novelty.

To me eating healthy on the cheap means eating very little meat or fish at all. 

11 minutes ago, Ram23 said:

I think it was Jake who once said that eating on the cheap is a way of "sticking it to the man."

 

I'm rich now and had a $45 salmon entrée a few months ago and can't go back to my ham & egg glory days. 

 

6 minutes ago, freefourur said:

To me eating healthy on the cheap means eating very little meat or fish at all. 

 

but isn't fish very healthy as compared with red meat as long as you're not overdoing tuna? There's the ridiculous story of Jeremy Piven supposedly getting mercury poisoning from eating too much sushi

https://www.thedailybeast.com/jeremy-pivens-fishy-excuse

 

^ Yes, fish is healthier than red meat but fish is generally expensive compared to other non-meat protein sources.  I am not sure if canned tuna is healthy or not TBH. 

Chicken is the way to go. Whole chickens are occasionally on sale for prices that have to be losses for the grocer. Kroger had them for something like 50 cents a pound a few months ago - my wife and I ate off that thing for 2 days, and then I made soup out of the carcass. Even with the side dishes and salads we sustained ourselves for days on about $10. I really only get fish or red meat when someone has nicer types/cuts on sale. Which brings up another point - most millennials don't use coupons nor pay any attention to sale prices. I have had more than one friend be shocked that I use coupons and e-coupons at Kroger, while walking around with their weekly ad.

 

Of course, I say all this on the same day I'm planning to drop a couple hundred bucks on a big prime rib roast to cook for Christmas dinner this weekend.

 

Edited December 20, 20186 yr by Ram23

6 minutes ago, Ram23 said:

Chicken is the way to go. Whole chickens are occasionally on sale for prices that have to be losses for the grocer. Kroger had them for something like 50 cents a pound a few months ago - my wife and I ate off that thing for 2 days, and then I made soup out of the carcass. Even with the side dishes and salads we sustained ourselves for days on about $10. I really only get fish or red meat when someone has nicer types/cuts on sale. Which brings up another point - most millennials don't use coupons nor pay any attention to sale prices. I have had more than one friend be shocked that I use coupons and e-coupons at Kroger, while walking around with their weekly ad.

 

Of course, I say all this on the same day I'm planning to drop a couple hundred bucks on a big prime rib roast to cook for Christmas dinner this weekend.

 

I thought it was just in New York that millennials don't pay attention to prices lol. Of course there are so many people here with trust funds, or do they all work at Google? I've lost track of how many Trader Joe's there are in Manhattan now. It has such hipstery/yuppie image image that I don't think a lot of people don't realize how low the the prices can be for staple items (milk--$1.29 qt, eggs--sometimes less that $2 a dozen for jumbo, peanut butter--$1.99 for 16 oz, etc) and are generally lower there that in most supermarkets, as long as you stick their most basic store brand. There's a reason they're always packed. I don't know why there aren't a lot more of them in Ohio. I think the the 3-C's just have two stores each in their respective metro areas, and remarkably they're in the suburbs, right? 

18 minutes ago, Ram23 said:

Chicken is the way to go. Whole chickens are occasionally on sale for prices that have to be losses for the grocer. Kroger had them for something like 50 cents a pound a few months ago - my wife and I ate off that thing for 2 days, and then I made soup out of the carcass. Even with the side dishes and salads we sustained ourselves for days on about $10. I really only get fish or red meat when someone has nicer types/cuts on sale. Which brings up another point - most millennials don't use coupons nor pay any attention to sale prices. I have had more than one friend be shocked that I use coupons and e-coupons at Kroger, while walking around with their weekly ad.

 

Of course, I say all this on the same day I'm planning to drop a couple hundred bucks on a big prime rib roast to cook for Christmas dinner this weekend.

 

Chicken is great.  Whenever it is on sale I stock up and freeze it.  Dried beans are super cheap and versatile.  

?

 

 

On ‎12‎/‎20‎/‎2018 at 3:04 PM, YABO713 said:

 Seems to be a smart, long-term move considering most of us won't have social security or medicaid to rely on by the time we're 60

 

Thanks, Boomers!  (/s but not really)

^^You could make a similar video of my grandfather going to Verizon every day because he can't figure out how to get to voicemail on his smartphone, or Words with Friends updated and moved all the buttons around.

There was a headline that was making the rounds last week: "Millennials Are So Helpless They’re Taking ‘Adulting Classes’ To Learn How To Do Things Like Sew A Button"

 

There used to be this class in middle and high school called "home economics" where students would learn these things. Then Baby Boomers decided that was a waste of money and we should eliminate those classes to focus on standardized testing. So Millennials never learned these things in school like older generations did.

 

Yet another example of Baby Boomers making decisions to screw over Millennials and then telling Millennials that they're too dumb, too spoiled, or whatever.

21 hours ago, BigDipper 80 said:

^^You could make a similar video of my grandfather going to Verizon every day because he can't figure out how to get to voicemail on his smartphone, or Words with Friends updated and moved all the buttons around.

 

The difference being that the kids have an excuse since the rotary phone is obsolete technology and not in use anymore.  The adults who haven't learned how to use a cell phone are much worse because that is current technology that is ubiquitous.

Edited January 23, 20196 yr by jam40jeff

I think I used my first rotary phone a couple of years ago. I knew how to use it just by watching old cartoons and movies (and period pieces set in those times). Since I could dial phones I'm pretty sure we had buttons and not a rotary phone.

7 minutes ago, taestell said:

There used to be this class in middle and high school called "home economics" where students would learn these things. Then Baby Boomers decided that was a waste of money and we should eliminate those classes to focus on standardized testing. So Millennials never learned these things in school like older generations did.

 

I took a wood shop class in college(!) and really liked it.  Unfortunately, a guy in my class cut his index finger off and they had to drive him to Columbus with the finger in a Tupperware container.  They sewed it back on and it's still there, but crooked, and not completely usable.   

 

On ‎1‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 12:42 PM, DarkandStormy said:

 

https://deadspin.com/daniel-bryans-war-on-vince-mcmahon-and-the-boomers-isnt-1832407264

 

Quote

Daniel Bryan's War On Vince McMahon And The Boomers Isn't Just For Show

 

On 1/22/2019 at 4:34 PM, taestell said:

There was a headline that was making the rounds last week: "Millennials Are So Helpless They’re Taking ‘Adulting Classes’ To Learn How To Do Things Like Sew A Button"

 

There used to be this class in middle and high school called "home economics" where students would learn these things. Then Baby Boomers decided that was a waste of money and we should eliminate those classes to focus on standardized testing. So Millennials never learned these things in school like older generations did.

 

Yet another example of Baby Boomers making decisions to screw over Millennials and then telling Millennials that they're too dumb, too spoiled, or whatever.

 

In the 8th grade everyone, boys and girls, were required to take one semester of Home Economics and one of "shop," only they tried to elevate it in my school by calling it Industrial Arts?. Our first task in Home Ec. was cinnamon toast, which we actually made in an oven (!), as there were no toasters in the classroom. I don't even remember the most elaborate food creation, the only other thing I can recall is snickerdoodles--non-bake cookies (at least our version) that were placed in the freezer for completion . Our big end-of-term project was to make an apron (I remember mine was denim). In Industrial Arts the teacher proudly announced we would be making shadow boxes, and practically everyone said in unison, "WTF are those?!" Unlike those pictured in the link below, ours were much smaller and had a handle attached to the bottom. I somehow completely screwed mine up by misreading my own blueprints (or what passed for them). You didn't miss anything by not taking either of those classes

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=shadow+boxes&hl=en&authuser=0&rlz=1C1GCEV_en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwjv-o6mzargAhUbUd4KHZe9AzcQ_AUIDygC&biw=1527&bih=810

come to think of it, there is hope for millennials after all

 

Millennials prefer music from 20th century ‘golden age’ to the pop of today, research suggests

 

https://metro.co.uk/2019/02/07/millennials-prefer-music-20th-century-golden-age-pop-today-research-reveals-8462993/

I think the reason so many younger people are afraid to cook is that they aren't familiar with basic techniques or even how to use appliances. Once you are introduced you start to understand it's really not that hard. So I think it doesn't really matter what you make in home ec or shop class, it's just the fact that being exposed to the tools and learning how to use them will have a lasting impact, especially for people who don't get this exposure at home.

^don't people learn the basics by observing their parents cooking at home (i know it's sexist these days to just say "mothers"), or don't people do any cooking? I think I already know the answer. Never mind. lol

54 minutes ago, taestell said:

I think the reason so many younger people are afraid to cook is that they aren't familiar with basic techniques or even how to use appliances. Once you are introduced you start to understand it's really not that hard. So I think it doesn't really matter what you make in home ec or shop class, it's just the fact that being exposed to the tools and learning how to use them will have a lasting impact, especially for people who don't get this exposure at home.

 

 

Most home improvements and a lot of car stuff isn't hard, either.  It's just familiarity with the tools and also space to make mistakes without someone breathing over your shoulder. 

 

I am currently building some stuff in my basement which multiple bands use as a practice space.  I feel some pressure to do a clean job on stuff you can't even see because I know all of those dudes will be down there critiquing my work. 

 

 

6 hours ago, eastvillagedon said:

^don't people learn the basics by observing their parents cooking at home (i know it's sexist these days to just say "mothers"), or don't people do any cooking? I think I already know the answer. Never mind. lol

 

I think you underestimate how many parents do absolutely no cooking at home. My parents didn't do any cooking but we had cable around the time that the celebrity chef phenomena started taking over the Food Network, and I really developed an interest in cooking and learned basic skills from watching those shows. I'm no incredible chef but I have a good understanding of basic techniques. I am also the type of person who can look though the fridge and pantry and find a bunch of ingredients that I can turn into a meal. Many people who didn't grow up around cooking have trouble creating their own meal out of random ingredients and need to have a recipe to follow, otherwise they're paralyzed in the kitchen. I am always jealous of people who had a completely home-cooked Thanksgiving (not just opening cans) or have family recipes that were passed down, because I never had that.

It's anecdotal, but I just don't see these millennials who can't cook or do basic things around the house. I'm a millennial. I had home ec and shop class. I cook at home, and every other millennial I know does to. I think we tend to overgeneralize too much with this stuff. Find a couple millennials who say cooking is hard and then say "SEE!"

^ I know people in every age group that can cook and can't cook.  Everyone likes to pretend that the millenial generation is somehow different. Picking on the young generation is as old as humanity itself.  

I'm looking forward to Generation Y or whatever they'll be called to come up so people stop attacking Millennials, like myself. BTW, my wife and I cook every meal other than the weekend and most my close friends cook. But I guess along with killing a million business and industries we're also killing cooking? 

 

In fact, I've seen Millennials are more likely to be DIY because of youtube how-to videos. 

Edited February 8, 20196 yr by cincydave8

My anecdotal evidence is that Gen X and Millenials are more likely to do more scratch cooking using fresh foods while Boomers do more cooking from cans and/ or use a lot of processed food in their cooking.  

8 minutes ago, cincydave8 said:

I'm looking forward to Generation Y or whatever they'll be called to come up so people stop attacking Millennials, like myself. BTW, my wife and I cook every meal other than the weekend and most my close friends cook. But I guess along with killing a million business and industries we're also killing cooking? 

 

In fact, I've seen Millennials are more likely to be DIY because of youtube how-to videos. 

 

Technically Millennials are "Generation Y" as we followed Generation X. The generation after Millennials is called Generation Z.

 

People make a lot of sweeping generalizations about Baby Boomers and Millennials, and the people largely don't talk about Generation X which was in between the two. I predict that Generation Z will also be ignored, and people will keep complaining about Millennials until there is another new generation that is the children of Millennials, which they will start complaining about.

4 minutes ago, freefourur said:

My anecdotal evidence is that Gen X and Millenials are more likely to do more scratch cooking using fresh foods while Boomers do more cooking from cans and/ or use a lot of processed food in their cooking.  

 

Baby Boomers grew up during the era when process foods were first introduced and were seen as a major world-changing innovation. Then over time we learned that many of these foods were awful for us. So I think many Baby Boomers got stuck in the processed food mindset while younger people who cook are more likely to value fresh produce and other fresh ingredients.

There's a generation gap?  Nothing like the '60s-'70s though if today's generation gap is premised on differences in using rotary phones, can openers, and types of tuna being consumed.  

 

 

4 hours ago, freefourur said:

My anecdotal evidence is that Gen X and Millenials are more likely to do more scratch cooking using fresh foods while Boomers do more cooking from cans and/ or use a lot of processed food in their cooking.  

 

that's not true. If anything it was the WWII generation who did more cooking from cans and processed food (fresh produce wasn't always available in the abundance it is now). Yes, they were the parents of baby boomers, but most people have moved beyond that. I'm not sure what you mean by "processed food," but one of the most trendy and popular of all chains,Trader Joe's, sells a lot of frozen prepared foods to yes, millennials and Gen-X'ers. 

4 minutes ago, eastvillagedon said:

 

that's not true. If anything it was the WWII generation who did more cooking from cans and processed food (fresh produce wasn't always available in the abundance it is now). Yes, they were the parents of baby boomers, but most people have moved beyond that. I'm not sure what you mean by "processed food," but one of the most trendy and popular of all chains,Trader Joe's, sells a lot of frozen prepared foods to yes, millennials and Gen-X'ers. 

Grocery stores have sold prepared foods since Moses wore short pants. Genx'ers and Millenials don't prepare Tuna Noodle casseroles and veggies from a can.  

15 minutes ago, freefourur said:

Grocery stores have sold prepared foods since Moses wore short pants. Genx'ers and Millenials don't prepare Tuna Noodle casseroles and veggies from a can.  

but apparently they do interesting things with ketchup

 

 

30 minutes ago, eastvillagedon said:

I'm not sure what you mean by "processed food," but one of the most trendy and popular of all chains,Trader Joe's, sells a lot of frozen prepared foods to yes, millennials and Gen-X'ers. 

 

I'm talking about stuff like Wonder Bread, Velveeta, Armour Potted Meat, etc.

 

I don't shop at Trader Joe's so I'm not sure how good their frozen stuff is, but there are many frozen meals available today that are a lot more natural, especially if you look at brands like Amy's or Evol.

6 minutes ago, eastvillagedon said:

but apparently they do interesting things with ketchup

 

 

Ketchup on spaghetti is sacrilege. 

13 minutes ago, taestell said:

 

I'm talking about stuff like Wonder Bread, Velveeta, Armour Potted Meat, etc.

 

I don't shop at Trader Joe's so I'm not sure how good their frozen stuff is, but there are many frozen meals available today that are a lot more natural, especially if you look at brands like Amy's or Evol.

I don't think anyone buys those products you mentioned anymore, at least not in the quantities they used to. The foodie revolution of the 70's, spearheaded by baby boomers, forever changed the way most people eat. So it could be said the succeeding generations are the beneficiaries of what boomers started.

34 minutes ago, eastvillagedon said:

but apparently they do interesting things with ketchup

 

 

Mama June is 40. She's a Gen Xer, not a Millennial. Not that your posts can be taken seriously anyway. 

3 minutes ago, DEPACincy said:

 

Mama June is 40. She's a Gen Xer, not a Millennial. Not that your posts can be taken seriously anyway. 

 

but the young and seemingly hip woman in the video is no Gen X'er, and yet seems to be a fan.

How confident are we that there even is much of a generation gap on this point?

 

As was already pointed out above, fresh produce is more available to everyone in 2019 than was the case in 1980.  Now maybe that's the case because market demand drove growers and grocers to adapt, so you could still trace it back to a generation gap.  But nevertheless, I'm not convinced this is generation vs. generation so much as progression more or less on the part of all or multiple generations (and of course of farm-to-table supply chain development).

 

My oldest cousin is over 50, definitely not a Millennial, but her diet is mostly fresher foods.  She and her husband can both cook.  When she was a child in the '70s, she had more canned and processed foods, but that didn't turn out to be permanently habit-forming for herself or for her parents, who are tail-end Greatest Generation (not even Boomers, born during WWII).  They ate more processed and canned foods in the '70s but they get more natural fare in their diets today.  It's just flat out easier to do so today.  Doesn't matter what age you are.

17 minutes ago, Gramarye said:

How confident are we that there even is much of a generation gap on this point?

 

As was already pointed out above, fresh produce is more available to everyone in 2019 than was the case in 1980.  Now maybe that's the case because market demand drove growers and grocers to adapt, so you could still trace it back to a generation gap.  But nevertheless, I'm not convinced this is generation vs. generation so much as progression more or less on the part of all or multiple generations (and of course of farm-to-table supply chain development).

 

My oldest cousin is over 50, definitely not a Millennial, but her diet is mostly fresher foods.  She and her husband can both cook.  When she was a child in the '70s, she had more canned and processed foods, but that didn't turn out to be permanently habit-forming for herself or for her parents, who are tail-end Greatest Generation (not even Boomers, born during WWII).  They ate more processed and canned foods in the '70s but they get more natural fare in their diets today.  It's just flat out easier to do so today.  Doesn't matter what age you are.

 

there really isn't a generation gap anymore when it comes to food. The real problem is that many people lack funds, accessibility (re food deserts) and basic education about nutrition. Despite freefour's insistence that millennials don't make tuna noodle casserole using canned tuna, probably many still do. If you come from a household (as apparently many people now do) that didn't instill well-balanced dining habits, you're not going to be buying a product like...oh...kale (to use a much mocked example), which is actually very inexpensive and healthy. I would say the majority of Americans probably fall somewhere in the middle in terms of choosing fresh, nutritional foods and convenience, and occasional junk.

4 minutes ago, eastvillagedon said:

 

there really isn't a generation gap anymore when it comes to food. The real problem is that many people lack funds, accessibility (re food deserts) and basic education about nutrition. Despite freefour's insistence that millennials don't make tuna noodle casserole using canned tuna, probably many still do. If you come from a household (as apparently many people now do) that didn't instill well-balanced dining habits, you're not going to be buying a product like...oh...kale (to use a much mocked example), which is actually very inexpensive and healthy. I would say the majority of Americans probably fall somewhere in the middle in terms of choosing fresh, nutritional foods and convenience, and occasional junk.

 

I'm not sure about this, @eastvillagedon.. while I tend to agree with you that the comparisons are hyperbolic, I actually know some people that will overdraw their account grocery shopping at Whole Foods instead of spending 25% less at Dave's or Giant Eagle. Food quality is highly important to many people my age (and as you point out, across generations as well). BUT I think we millenials really came of age with this nutrition revolution, and it shows in what we're willing to pay for food. 

I'd say one of the biggest differences that people 35 and up got tons of exposure to the entire 20th Century and even can drop some 1800s stuff if prodded since there was so little newer content on the telly. So much of our upbringing was video content from the '30s-'70s in reruns. Round about mid-late '90s there was enough TV content that those under 35 can maybe talk about the '80s more '90s but you just can't drop a Carson line, a Mr. Ed reference, Looney Tunes or even *gasp* Seinfeld on them and expect to come out OK.

1 minute ago, YABO713 said:

 

I'm not sure about this, @eastvillagedon.. while I tend to agree with you that the comparisons are hyperbolic, I actually know some people that will overdraw their account grocery shopping at Whole Foods instead of spending 25% less at Dave's or Giant Eagle. Food quality is highly important to many people my age (and as you point out, across generations as well). BUT I think we millenials really came of age with this nutrition revolution, and it shows in what we're willing to pay for food. 

this is an example of propaganda from the organic food industry. It's not like normal commercially available produce is filled with toxins that's going to make you grow two heads. ?

3 minutes ago, eastvillagedon said:

this is an example of propaganda from the organic food industry. It's not like normal commercially available produce is filled with toxins that's going to make you grow two heads. ?

I agree on this to a degree. 

On 2/8/2019 at 10:11 AM, taestell said:

 

Technically Millennials are "Generation Y" as we followed Generation X. The generation after Millennials is called Generation Z.

 

People make a lot of sweeping generalizations about Baby Boomers and Millennials, and the people largely don't talk about Generation X which was in between the two. I predict that Generation Z will also be ignored, and people will keep complaining about Millennials until there is another new generation that is the children of Millennials, which they will start complaining about.

 

Gen Z is larger than the Millenials.  Gen X dropped out of the conversation because we were the "baby bust" that came after the baby boom.  Not so much money in catering to us.

22 hours ago, GCrites80s said:

I'd say one of the biggest differences that people 35 and up got tons of exposure to the entire 20th Century and even can drop some 1800s stuff if prodded since there was so little newer content on the telly. So much of our upbringing was video content from the '30s-'70s in reruns. Round about mid-late '90s there was enough TV content that those under 35 can maybe talk about the '80s more '90s but you just can't drop a Carson line, a Mr. Ed reference, Looney Tunes or even *gasp* Seinfeld on them and expect to come out OK.

 

Yeah, early cable TV was loaded with reruns.  Think about how many kids who watched Nickelodean during the day who had parents who watched the Nick At Night reruns of old shows like Green Acres, etc. 

 

 

Also, the old city movie theaters used to run the physical 35mm movies to bring people in.  For example, I vividly remember watching Showboat in the 1980s at the shuttered Emery Theater in Cincinnati now-trendy Over-the-Rhine. 

 

 

 

22 hours ago, GCrites80s said:

I'd say one of the biggest differences that people 35 and up got tons of exposure to the entire 20th Century and even can drop some 1800s stuff if prodded since there was so little newer content on the telly. So much of our upbringing was video content from the '30s-'70s in reruns. Round about mid-late '90s there was enough TV content that those under 35 can maybe talk about the '80s more '90s but you just can't drop a Carson line, a Mr. Ed reference, Looney Tunes or even *gasp* Seinfeld on them and expect to come out OK.

 

Also, when I was teaching around 2008 or 2009 I made the mistake(?) of mentioning Roy Orbison and flashing a black & white photo of the guy and his band on a power point.  He and I were laughed at.  I felt like Ahmenijad when he claimed there were no gays in Iran.  We both completely misjudged our audiences! 

On a semi-related note, Cincinnati's "oldies" radio station is now playing songs from the late 1980s, and our "classic rock" station is now playing Korn and Green Day.