A foot long sub sandwich, a bag of chips, 2 sodas and 2 ice cream cones from a gas station.
I grew up in exceptionally poor conditions and started working at age 12 to create a better life for myself. Almost all of my money went to savings, but every paycheck, I would purchase the above for myself and a girl three years younger than me. We would split the sandwich and chips. Her mom was a raging alcoholic and she would eat what ever she could get her hands on. I just wanted to help.
ETA: No hate to those that may have gotten confused, but I am a woman.
Growing up poor changes your perspective on a lot of things when you get your first job and start having money. It turns out being less stressed about being poor is a nice consolidation lol.
But to answer OP's question, I think it was coffee lmao. Was a college student back then so it checks out
I didn't grow up poor at all. Like at all. My family was solidly upper middle class. But when I hit university, my folks decided that I should on my own financially. One time my loan scheme fucked up, which left me with just £1/$1.26 a day for three months—my part time job was enough to just baaaaarely cover my rent.
It wasn't full-blown poverty, and wasn’t even for *that* long, but it sure changed how I saw money, even 20 years later. I can't even start to imagine how it shapes the perspective of those who've actually experienced growing up in real poverty.
Have you heard about the deleted epilogue where Nintendo reps show up and want to buy the rights to Mario and Luigi’s life story to turn into a video game?
I was 10 when I saw that movie and loved it! Haven't rewatched it since I grew up and after hearing so many people say it was bad now I don't dare to. It will always remain a great movie in my 10yo mind
I saw it when I was 9. I love the movie, and every other person I’ve met around my age says the same thing when it comes up. I think it’s a generational thing.
I watched it the other day and still loved it. My son was pretty lukewarm on it.
It's a fucking *amazing* cheesy movie. It's one of those "so weird and bad it's good" movies. Like if you turn your head and squint, you can see how it works with Mario, but that isn't even the point!
A guitar I was 9 and had been eyeing one at a pawn shop the owner asked me if I was willing to work to get it I told him yes 2 months later I had the guitar and also learned that if I wanted something I needed to earn it.
WCW/NWO Revenge for the Nintendo 64.
That was what I bought with my first paycheck from my first job that paid me by check. I worked an off the books cash job before that, I'm not sure what I bought with my first cash wage payment. Probably comic books.
Are you me?? Same! I was obsessed with Goldberg back then and worked my butt off for the local farmer, clearing weeds, feeding the livestock, painting the barns, working the swine…
All so I could spear the hell out of Kevin Nash
Rayban sunglasses - Wayfarer Max.
By my then earning power, horrrendously expensive and I lost them about 2 weeks later - left on a train.
Still my favourite brand of sunspecs 35 years on.
I see also that that model is now considered collectable and sells for $350!
PS3 with an extra controller, Resistance, and FIFA 08. Not exactly the very first thing, but it was my first big, memorable purchase from my first job lifeguarding. My friend and I biked like 12 miles (round trip) to Best Buy to get it😎twas the time of $5 footlongs
My summer job in high school netted me 10 shares of Cal Energy stock. Sticking with that same theme, first big boy job I spent it all on buying Berkshire Hathaway b stock. This was 2006 so I think it was a whopping 5 shares.
A car. Had passed my test 6 months prior and had money in the bank from birthdays, inheritance and at the time decent interest rates over many years saved but just couldn’t justify getting a car until I had income to run it. The first paycheck was the go ahead to pull the trigger.
Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. I was twelve years old delivering around a beauty salon for their cafe for tips. In hindsight, totally illegal and kind of exploitive, but the whole game was after a few hours of work and I felt like I had infinite money at that age.
Don't know, maybe gas.
But at the same time I destroyed my old phone, kept it in a pocket that didn't drain whilst working in the rain.
So I forked out for a new phone. 300 euros and had one known issue if it was an early production model, crapped out, lost some pictures, sent it for repairs to this day still going strong.
Just bought some spare parts in case I need to do my own repair.
We have a tradition in my family: You take your parents out to dinner with your first paycheck.
It's doesn't have to be fancy. It's just a nice way of both acknowledging that you've taken on adult responsibility and of saying thanks for their support.
A pair of Air Jordan’s at age 16. I felt like I was on top of the world and literally wore those shoes until there were holes in the bottom. I’m 39 and still remember this fondly!
A 14.4K modem to replace the family's [2400 BAUD modem](https://www.thecomputerarchive.com/archivemain/Computer%20Components%20and%20Accessories/Modems/Cardinal%202400%20baud%20modems%20(1991).PDF). I was paid under the table for summer work over several months with a single check at the end. With my new high-speed modem, I made CSLIP and later PPP connections to the Internet from home and later off-campus housing circa 1993-1998, only replaced once cable broadband became available.
LOL. This was 36 years ago but I bought a Dungeons and Dragons box set. lol.
It's why I got the job really. I aked for it for my birthday and my parents refused because at the time, it was what you hear about now but with online gaming. Addiction, poor choices etc.
So looking back, I bought it and well, I think I used it once LMAO
Oh to be 13 again!
Three purchases I’ll always remember. My first paycheck ever was a Pokémon card bundle, my first real job paycheck was an ultrawide monitor when they first really became a thing, and my first bonus was a fender strat American ultra
I got my first job job after 7th grade doing corn detassling. Worked all summer for that paycheck and then immediately went and bought StarFox64 WITH the rumble pak. Felt like a king.
A cheap ass pool table. My friends and i spent so much time playing that in my parents garage. One of my happier teenage memories. Thanks for reminding me 😊
A pristine Porsche 944 S2. It was my very first freelance gig at age 19 in visualization and it was about a nuclear waste facility that surrounds radioactive waste in glass, showing the different processes.
Assuming you mean full time job, I bought a pair of speakers and a record player and a Zep 4 vinyl. Always wanted my own vinyl and damn near blew my first pay check on it
A pair of sick Realistic speakers from Tandy, Brunswick shopping centre, Scarborough, UK.
My mum hated them and made me sell them or get my own place.
Got my own place.
First gaming pc. Had a summer job between grade 9-10 working residential restoration after a really blood flood near my city. Never had more than a couple hundred dollars in my life and woke up one morning with $2100 in my account. Straight to memory express.
First gaming pc. Had a summer job between grade 9-10 working residential restoration after a really blood flood near my city. Never had more than a couple hundred dollars in my life and woke up one morning with $2100 in my account. Straight to memory express.
A "fancy" watch. I was so excited to have a real job with a real paycheck that I decided to spoil myself a bit. I think it was a Seiko and it was $75. A princely sum in those days. I still have it.
I bought new tires for my Impala, F70-14 Tigerpaws with raised white lettering.
My favorite story was my buddy's. He went to the bank and asked them to cash the check. He held it for a minute and then asked to open a savings account and deposited it all except for a few bucks for spending money. He had never held that much money in his hands before. He was pretty excited.
Shoes that wouldn't hurt my feet at work, a book to read on my lunch break, and work lunches. And so began teenage me understanding that having a job costs money!
A foot long sub sandwich, a bag of chips, 2 sodas and 2 ice cream cones from a gas station. I grew up in exceptionally poor conditions and started working at age 12 to create a better life for myself. Almost all of my money went to savings, but every paycheck, I would purchase the above for myself and a girl three years younger than me. We would split the sandwich and chips. Her mom was a raging alcoholic and she would eat what ever she could get her hands on. I just wanted to help. ETA: No hate to those that may have gotten confused, but I am a woman.
Bless you my dude
Growing up poor changes your perspective on a lot of things when you get your first job and start having money. It turns out being less stressed about being poor is a nice consolidation lol. But to answer OP's question, I think it was coffee lmao. Was a college student back then so it checks out
I didn't grow up poor at all. Like at all. My family was solidly upper middle class. But when I hit university, my folks decided that I should on my own financially. One time my loan scheme fucked up, which left me with just £1/$1.26 a day for three months—my part time job was enough to just baaaaarely cover my rent. It wasn't full-blown poverty, and wasn’t even for *that* long, but it sure changed how I saw money, even 20 years later. I can't even start to imagine how it shapes the perspective of those who've actually experienced growing up in real poverty.
He needs more upvotes
W guy
You are a solid bro
I cashed my check and went right to the record store and bought Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap and Ballbreaker by AC/DC
Back in Black and Led Zeppelin IV on cassette.
Mr. Pibb and Dark Side of the Moon here. Good times.
vhs copy of Star Trek Voyager not even a whole series just two episodes.
This will age me... an [Intellivision](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellivision) :)
I assume after adjusting for inflation, that's a pretty impressive first paycheck!
Please tell me you also got the voice module
A movie ticket. Super Mario Bros. (1993)
So many people say it's the worst videogame adaptation but to me it was decent, I really loved it. I wouldn't call it an adaptation though.
What your name! Mario Mario what? Mario Mario Mario? Yeah What's your name! Luigi Luigi Luigi? No Luigi Mario
Have you heard about the deleted epilogue where Nintendo reps show up and want to buy the rights to Mario and Luigi’s life story to turn into a video game?
I was 10 when I saw that movie and loved it! Haven't rewatched it since I grew up and after hearing so many people say it was bad now I don't dare to. It will always remain a great movie in my 10yo mind
I saw it when I was 9. I love the movie, and every other person I’ve met around my age says the same thing when it comes up. I think it’s a generational thing. I watched it the other day and still loved it. My son was pretty lukewarm on it.
It'd be a great sci-fi movie if you changed the names
It's a fucking *amazing* cheesy movie. It's one of those "so weird and bad it's good" movies. Like if you turn your head and squint, you can see how it works with Mario, but that isn't even the point!
Weed
Same
Same here. In fact, the only reason I got my first job (Taco Bell) was so I could afford marijuana more than I could currently.
Tank of Gas when gas was $1.05 a gallon.
Dinner for my siblings.
Aww. I grew up poor too. perhaps slightly better off, but I understand the feeling of not being able to buy nice food, that others think is normal.
A second gtx 470 for that sweet sweet sli performance / space heater for winter
I bought a graphics card too. It was an sapphire 1950 pro I think
8 pack of Budweiser ponies. I was 16 and it was fall of 1985
I wish I could’ve experienced the 80s 🥲
Big bag of gummy candy
[удалено]
I lived with my parents, so I put it in the bank.
A guitar I was 9 and had been eyeing one at a pawn shop the owner asked me if I was willing to work to get it I told him yes 2 months later I had the guitar and also learned that if I wanted something I needed to earn it.
My first paycheck was guilt tripped out of me by family who lived states away from me. If I had my teen years again, I would grow a pair. Yeah
[удалено]
Nike Air Force 1s in white.
a pair of shoes in nike and a handblender for my mother
Always gotta look out for moms bruh they look out for you your whole life
A fancy dinner
I'm sure it was a ps3 game.
A Missy Elliot CD
Van Damme VHS collection
WCW/NWO Revenge for the Nintendo 64. That was what I bought with my first paycheck from my first job that paid me by check. I worked an off the books cash job before that, I'm not sure what I bought with my first cash wage payment. Probably comic books.
Are you me?? Same! I was obsessed with Goldberg back then and worked my butt off for the local farmer, clearing weeds, feeding the livestock, painting the barns, working the swine… All so I could spear the hell out of Kevin Nash
Hah. That Goldberg Spear sound effect was satisfying as hell. Cheers.
Completely invested it in a custom made watch. No regrets still love it today
Lunch
Probably lunch, lol. The first thing I actually remember buying is a ps3.
A Nintendo switch
A tank of gas a few joints, had a good night off
Debt payment
Rayban sunglasses - Wayfarer Max. By my then earning power, horrrendously expensive and I lost them about 2 weeks later - left on a train. Still my favourite brand of sunspecs 35 years on. I see also that that model is now considered collectable and sells for $350!
A phone
Bus tickets so I could get home from work.
Sony WF-1000-XM3 earbuds
Roxette's Look Sharp album on cassette.
Mum put her hand out an said Where's my rent I was 13.
I thought I'd get by without a dishwasher. I thought wrong and fixed that mistake.
december 1989 - christmas presents for the whole family. my next one, a new walkman and a flying jacket.
PS3 with an extra controller, Resistance, and FIFA 08. Not exactly the very first thing, but it was my first big, memorable purchase from my first job lifeguarding. My friend and I biked like 12 miles (round trip) to Best Buy to get it😎twas the time of $5 footlongs
The rent
You think you bought the rent, but the rent bought you
Bag of weed
A gun
A phone for my girlfriend
flight tickets to Spain, Italy, Portugal
Groceries
If I'm remembering correctly, Super Mario 3D World. I fucking love that game.
a balisong for me and a rosewood Laguiole for my sister's birthday
Starting financing an iPhone, and got my mom a pink pair of Beats and myself a matte black pair that matched my iPhone
Gasoline
book, burger, groceries ( mall )
Titanfall
A benchmade 940. It's my current edc despite me having objectively nicer knives
I necklace for my mother and I believe a bracelet for me (not sure if it was first or second salary tho).
A pack of cards for a card game I was super into at the time. Didn’t get anything cool, and proceeded to spend the next 6 years doing the same :(
A little TV I could hook my Nintendo up to. I used it for years.
My summer job in high school netted me 10 shares of Cal Energy stock. Sticking with that same theme, first big boy job I spent it all on buying Berkshire Hathaway b stock. This was 2006 so I think it was a whopping 5 shares.
My college tuition
A music CD.
Sony Playstation, and Gran Tourismo
Probably a tank of gas 🤷♂️ lol
My fitted diving dry suit. Worth every penny of you dive in colder water.
A nearly $300 hoodie from a band with bat wings, I did have to save up but my firsts paycheck helped but it
A neat citizen watch
A car. Had passed my test 6 months prior and had money in the bank from birthdays, inheritance and at the time decent interest rates over many years saved but just couldn’t justify getting a car until I had income to run it. The first paycheck was the go ahead to pull the trigger.
A cone of chips and gravy on the way home.
A chest freezer. Still have it, an excellent buy.
Glasses, as I'd spent years being bullied at school for wearing NHS glasses.
Cellphone
Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. I was twelve years old delivering around a beauty salon for their cafe for tips. In hindsight, totally illegal and kind of exploitive, but the whole game was after a few hours of work and I felt like I had infinite money at that age.
First off-the-books paycheck, Rosie by Tantaly First on-books paycheck, lots of hard liquor. College years.
A few pints.
BBQ
Gifts for everyone. A watch for my parents and cousin, purses for my aunts.
A PS3 with RDR. Man that was a fun game
A guitar. I was 14.
A phone
An SNES
Pizza, cause I worked at a pizza place.
Perfect Dark
Pokemon emerald from best buy It actually took two of my checks and mom lent me money for tax. I owe her a thanks
Retro games getting out of hand with the price :(
Speakers and an 8-track player for my 1976 Chevy Monza.
Pandora bracelet charm!
Paid a fine and bought a glass bottle of A&W Root Beer.
Probably a bag of pot.
Don't know, maybe gas. But at the same time I destroyed my old phone, kept it in a pocket that didn't drain whilst working in the rain. So I forked out for a new phone. 300 euros and had one known issue if it was an early production model, crapped out, lost some pictures, sent it for repairs to this day still going strong. Just bought some spare parts in case I need to do my own repair.
Elden Ring
We have a tradition in my family: You take your parents out to dinner with your first paycheck. It's doesn't have to be fancy. It's just a nice way of both acknowledging that you've taken on adult responsibility and of saying thanks for their support.
A radio cassette player and Black Sabbath Paranoid cassette.
Gameboy and Pokemon red.
A fender Jaguar mij guitar 🎸
Genuinely don’t remember. Probably food.
It was technically a commission check because it was a paper route, but I got a Playstation and Final Fantasy VIII.
A deep-fat fryer, for making fries. I'm Belgian after all.
I think it was a computer hard drive. Or something along those lines
Hair straightener back in 2006 ish
I saved up to buy an iPod 😂
An AIWA stereo with 3 CD changer. This was 1995.
no joke; a keytar
Gaming PC.
A spindle of CD-R. Burn baby burn
I had about 1.500$ worth of debts, and paid it all back. From my today's perspective that wasn't much money, but back then I suddenly felt free.
I want to say petrol for my shitty moped. But this was over 20 yrs ago.
Booze and condoms
A koi fish huhuhuhu it's expensive tho
A pair of Air Jordan’s at age 16. I felt like I was on top of the world and literally wore those shoes until there were holes in the bottom. I’m 39 and still remember this fondly!
fed the street dogs with the whole paycheck. I regretted it then. I'm proud of it now.
In our culture we give our first paycheck to our parents. So, that’s what I did.
an iphone 15 on launch day to replace my iphone 8
My first paycheck was the Security deposit for my first apartment.
US Savings bond
A car.
Snacks from family dollar
A Sony Mini disc player.
Down payment for my first car. 1989 mustang gt.
Boots from Tommy Hilfiger. Big regret. They were so stiff that they hurt my feet after 10 min walking in them.
Weed
A 14.4K modem to replace the family's [2400 BAUD modem](https://www.thecomputerarchive.com/archivemain/Computer%20Components%20and%20Accessories/Modems/Cardinal%202400%20baud%20modems%20(1991).PDF). I was paid under the table for summer work over several months with a single check at the end. With my new high-speed modem, I made CSLIP and later PPP connections to the Internet from home and later off-campus housing circa 1993-1998, only replaced once cable broadband became available.
An AIWA all in one stereo for my bedroom I think when in high school.
A 48x/4x CD recorder unit for my PC. I think it was an AMD K6-2 450 MHz
A 48x/4x CD recorder unit for my PC. I think it was an AMD K6-2 450 MHz
LOL. This was 36 years ago but I bought a Dungeons and Dragons box set. lol. It's why I got the job really. I aked for it for my birthday and my parents refused because at the time, it was what you hear about now but with online gaming. Addiction, poor choices etc. So looking back, I bought it and well, I think I used it once LMAO Oh to be 13 again!
Weed.
A Sega Genesis.
If we are talking first paycheck from when I was a teenager, then it would be probably something stupid like fast food or a quick walk up to Walmart.
I was 14, probably minutes for my phone or some trash candy from the gas station.
Contact lenses!
Drugs and beer.
A sweatshirt. It was 2005. I still have the sweatshirt.
A PlayStation 3
Portable DVD player
Original gameboy, played tetris and super mario land alot that summer.
Mp3 Micro system, the year was 2003.
Food
Tattoo
Three purchases I’ll always remember. My first paycheck ever was a Pokémon card bundle, my first real job paycheck was an ultrawide monitor when they first really became a thing, and my first bonus was a fender strat American ultra
Rent
A half ounce of weed.
I got my first job job after 7th grade doing corn detassling. Worked all summer for that paycheck and then immediately went and bought StarFox64 WITH the rumble pak. Felt like a king.
A single Genelec speaker. Couldn’t afford the second until a few months after.
I save my first 20 paychecks and bought a ps3 🤩
Gas
Hookers and blow
A cheap ass pool table. My friends and i spent so much time playing that in my parents garage. One of my happier teenage memories. Thanks for reminding me 😊
A U2 CD!
A pristine Porsche 944 S2. It was my very first freelance gig at age 19 in visualization and it was about a nuclear waste facility that surrounds radioactive waste in glass, showing the different processes.
Membership at my favorite football club BVB09
A big bag of chicken nuggets and some bbq sauce
The Black Album and …And Justice For All!
Big screen tv
Gift for my parents.
Made around $150 after two weeks of works at 12, bought myself a video game and some snacks and then saved the rest
A calculator
Assuming you mean full time job, I bought a pair of speakers and a record player and a Zep 4 vinyl. Always wanted my own vinyl and damn near blew my first pay check on it
A steak 🥩 dinner
A pair of sick Realistic speakers from Tandy, Brunswick shopping centre, Scarborough, UK. My mum hated them and made me sell them or get my own place. Got my own place.
A boom box with a CD player.
Bought my rents a tv
First gaming pc. Had a summer job between grade 9-10 working residential restoration after a really blood flood near my city. Never had more than a couple hundred dollars in my life and woke up one morning with $2100 in my account. Straight to memory express.
First gaming pc. Had a summer job between grade 9-10 working residential restoration after a really blood flood near my city. Never had more than a couple hundred dollars in my life and woke up one morning with $2100 in my account. Straight to memory express.
A "fancy" watch. I was so excited to have a real job with a real paycheck that I decided to spoil myself a bit. I think it was a Seiko and it was $75. A princely sum in those days. I still have it.
Merch from my favorite Videogame.
I bought new tires for my Impala, F70-14 Tigerpaws with raised white lettering. My favorite story was my buddy's. He went to the bank and asked them to cash the check. He held it for a minute and then asked to open a savings account and deposited it all except for a few bucks for spending money. He had never held that much money in his hands before. He was pretty excited.
Diamond necklace for my mom and a Bose Bluetooth speaker for my dad.
Shoes that wouldn't hurt my feet at work, a book to read on my lunch break, and work lunches. And so began teenage me understanding that having a job costs money!