Over a century ago, Keeping Up With the Joneses was created to make us laugh.
At some point, we started to take the idea seriously.
That, in large part, became the American dream of our parents generation.
Yet does it hold true today?
Do most Americans still see more money and more stuff as the path to a good life?
To answer that question, we turned to the very real people the catchphrase evokes.
The answers were decidedly mixed.
Some still view money as the bridge to a better life, believing more is generally better than less.
Who would you rather keep up with?
We present: the United States of Jones.
Bike-shop owner
Annual income:$80,000 and growing
Retirement strategy:My business is my retirement.
Ill grow the wealth, and that wealth will be my future.
He has set aside about $50,000 in liquid cash.
His wife, Monica, earns $26,000 at a school-district job; this covers household expenses.
All other income goes into the bike business.
How he earned it:I used to run corporate cafeterias in the Kansas City area.
I dont wear spandex or enjoy snobby bike talk.
But I found a niche selling recumbent three-wheeled trikes.
People started driving from 200 miles away to buy them.
Pretty soon I was named dealer of the year.
Monica and I are homebodies, he says, so were not spending on entertainment.
We sometimes clip coupons, and we buy generic brands.
I dont consider myself a millionaire, but I will be one by age 60.
The meaning of money:Im not extremely motivated by big wealth, though Im learning to appreciate it.
Having money gives you the comfort of knowing the bills will be paid and your needs will be met.
You wont end up in the poorhouse.
My dad was a wealthy man, a doctor.
He could buy a Mercedes-Benz and pay cash, but he drove a Honda Civic.
He taught me to value the peace of satisfaction rather than chasing after some dream.
Social Security is my lifeline.
The upkeep:Its tight.
He has eight kids and 16 grandkids, and the family helps out with utilities and groceries.
How he earned it:As a little one, I was very poor but didnt know it.
It was fun, and we were contributing.
Im a full-blood Lakota, and the name Jones has deep implications.
It was an attempt to civilize us, to take away our Indian-ness.
I left the reservation in 1974 and eventually got a job spraying houses for bugs.
Everybody assumed I was an environmentalist because of that Indian from TV with the tear rolling down his face.
People felt safe with me, and I made good commissions.
I was earning $275 a week.
Come to find out all those sprays were nerve poisons.
I wore a respirator, but the poison still absorbed through the skin.
I got tumors, needed surgeries and had to quit working.
I tell my kids all the time: Be wise with your money.
Me, Ive had my ups and downs married and divorced three times.
Ive had my car repossessed.
Ive had my home foreclosed on.
Its not been easy, but life goes on.
I probably feel the poorest when my kids ask me for things and Im not able to help.
