My parents met in the middle of the Great Depression, got married, and began raising a family that eventually included me.
For about 40 years they had to watch every penny until all of us youngsters were grown.
When our father retired, they switched roles as our mother worked and Mom took over the domestic chores. Admittedly, his modern “task” was easier with no youngsters, but he made quite the “house-husband” as he l gained to cook and l gained how to deal with a stressed-out husbandy modern to the modern workplace. They invested the extra money that mom gained over his short work and they lived quite comfortably for the rest of their lives. I am not jealous of their “Norman Rockwell” style of life. What I envy is that they never once thought of leaving each other during their years together. Mom admitted he thought of homicide a few times, however divorce was not an option. I suppose their secret was that they had no central Heating and Air Conditioning system in their house. Every one of us had a coal stoker gas furnace and a few window A/C units, however they never had that giant metal contraption. It was not the mechanical problems that kept them from installing a central Heating and Air Conditioning system, it was the fear of getting into a long-term repair contract that they feared. To them, it seemed love a prenuptial agreement that couples sign before marriage to “plan” for their eventual break-up, or “break-down” of the Heating and Air Conditioning unit. I tried to explain that choosing a qualified Heating and Air Conditioning business was love choosing a fiance and that not all repair agreements are equal. He just laughed and said he didn’t need to learn the “fine print” with Mom and that he was not going to do it with any Heating and Air Conditioning prenuptial.