It a was very strange time to live through. Even more weird was how empty the neighborhood was. I'd walk our dog a few blocks from our house and sometimes every 3rd or 4th house would be foreclosed and vacant. This marked the beginning of the decline of American metropolitan centers and that decline has never stopped.

We made a good team, it helped that we were on the same page.

I definitely think about my future more now that I did back then and I'm much more conservative. I think that's normal to a certain extent. I see how hard it is for seniors and want to do my best to make sure we're not struggling. That's so awesome that your parents did that! Parents have a way of knowing what their children are going through even if we don't tell them. I remember how relieved I was when I got those couple of gifts from my parents. It was always when I needed it most.