Joan-
My mom was def imbalanced, and I do have stories of the things she purchased. I attribute all my spending habits directly to learning from her (luckily I tend to hoard money than spend it).
But what kills me is how just didnt see it. She thought the QVC and fake fur coats looked real. She thought investing in those companies that are pyramid schemes was her ticket to wealth. She thought there had to be an easy way to get alot of money. If she invested enough in something, she'd become a millionaire. But she didnt bother to research anything, she just let people persuade her to give them money.
The spokespeople on informercials? She believed them. Every one of them. "All I have to do is pay $300 for a fanny pack to go around my waist filled with a heating pad and I will lose 20lbs in 2 weeks? Well that makes sense. Let me buy one. No. Let me buy three because I'm going to try the other two on my legs."
And in the end, she drove herself nuts by the debt she racked up. I was constantly uncertain of what was going on because my mom would say she was broke and cant pay the bills, but its hard to convince anyone your broke when your house looks like the Nieman Marcus mecca of department store shopping.
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