This is a fictional story about the Richie family. The Richie family is the "average US American household." There are two adults and half of a child in the Richie family.[1] Let's pretend little Richie stays with her dad every other week, so she can be a whole child. The Richies live in the suburbs in a 2,000 square foot house.[2] One adult works full time. The other works part time. They commute half-an-hour each way in a full-size pickup and a small SUV, so they actually work an extra 10 hours per week combined to make $80,000 per year. After taxes they have about $60,000 left. Their evenings are spent driving little Richie to soccer practice and piano lessons, driving to the grocery store, driving to other stores, driving to restaurants, and did I mention driving?
After all the bills are payed for the month they have about $250 that they spend on fun stuff. They have about $1,500 in the bank, so when something unexpected happens like the truck breaks down, it can be really stressful. They have to fix the truck fast or they'll miss work. If they miss too much work, they'll lose a job. If they lose a job they'll lose their house.
Does anyone know a family a lot like the Richie family? Raise your hand.
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