Running water

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[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Yes.

No, but I spend lots of time living where I had to go outside to use the facilities. Running water is not a good measure of poverty. People tend to live where they can get water easily.

Yes. Life's struggles build character.

Edited August 15, 2011 by Crusty Old Perv

[TBoneTX 43,155]

At the turn of the newest century, some newspapers interviewed centenarians who had been born in 1899 or before, asking them (among other items) what the biggest advance in technology was during their lifetimes. A couple answered with the guessable-by-us "space flight" or "the Internet" or similar, but more than half said "indoor plumbing." That's something that few of us today would think about, si man.

Interesting that the old folks remembered "that far back," considering the explosion of "high" technology in recent decades.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

In 1979 I worked as a project manager for a National Museums Inventory programme in Regina, Saskatchewan. I hired 5 University students to assist in the programme during the summer. 3 of them were born in homes without running water and one of those had only got running water when she was in high school. The topic arose because part of the programme involved camping out at historic sites where we would have no modern conveniences except for a well.

At one of the sites we inventoried - Wood Mountain National Historic Site - we travelled to interview a 95 year old Sioux artist and his 90 year old wife. We had to drive across country to get to their iron-roofed shed/cabin. They had no running water. They had no heat. They had no electricity. They had a well and they had 2 horses. They were several miles away from the nearest 'civilization'. It was an eye opening experience.

I agree that life's struggles can build character but I don't believe that survival issues - living in poverty - necessarily build character. Sometimes people rise above their struggles but sometimes the struggle wears them down so much that they having nothing left except trying to survive.

Edited August 20, 2011 by Kathryn41

[milimelo 4,221]

Yes.

Yes - 1992-1995 - we had a lot of time without water - Sarajevo under siege for over 1000 days - you had to go get the water under snipers if you wanted to drink, cook, wash clothes... Whatever doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. The things I learned as a teenager at the time are still useful to me. And not just without water, without food, electricity, everything people take for granted.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

No.

No.

I think having nurturing parents has more of an influence on ones character than their economic situation. But if someone is so poor that they often go without eating, don't get medical attention when they are ill, or don't have enough clothing or blankets to keep them warm, that IMO, can have an adverse effect on that person that may last a lifetime.

Edited August 22, 2011 by DFH

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

I think having nurturing parents has more of an influence on ones character than their economic situation.

Nurturing parents produce metrosexual tree hugging wimps. Validating parents producing self-realizing pro-actice alpha males and females comfortable in their sexuality.

[Nina~ 431]

Yes

Yes, but not in NA or WE. I lived in Chennai, India, around 1993-1995 when there was a major drought. I remember having to stand with my mom and sister in lines holding buckets trying to fill up as much as water we can from the back of a truck sent by the City. These water trucks never came on a schedule, and we'd have to bribe the truck drivers to stop at our neighborhood. I still remember my arms aching from carrying these buckets, and standing by the stove on a hot summer day, boiling and filtering the water so that we could drink it. If we did not boil the water right away, we'd start having insect larvae hatching in it.. gross.

We were never poor, dad had a very good job and mom was a housewife with 2 masters degrees. We lived in a wealthy suburb but we still struggled those 2 years for water just like any other "poor" person.

I don't think Poverty in itself builds character in a person, but it is the person's attitude towards poverty that builds character.

Growing up, a former friend of mine (and his family) grew up poor, and they despised rich people. My friend & his sister claimed that they have truly lived life and were "old souls" because of their struggles unlike other rich spoiled kids, but in reality they were just bitter about their past. On the other side, I see many Americans who tend to despise the poor and equate poverty with laziness. Poverty can happen to anyone, even the rich.. it is how you deal with it that builds character.

ETA: Great topic AJ.

Edited August 23, 2011 by Nina~

[scandal 951]

Yes.

Yes - 1992-1995 - we had a lot of time without water - Sarajevo under siege for over 1000 days - you had to go get the water under snipers if you wanted to drink, cook, wash clothes... Whatever doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. The things I learned as a teenager at the time are still useful to me. And not just without water, without food, electricity, everything people take for granted.

Glad you came through this experience safely

[Saddle Bronc 124]

1. the home (apartment complex) where I currently live wasn't even constructed when I was born
2. 6.5 years in Mumbai (Bandra) apartment, another 1.5 years in another (Colaba) apartment--in both, we had to keep a 205-liter plastic container (aka plastic version of 55-gallon drum) to store for usage during non-availability times
3. no

Edited September 29, 2011 by Saddle Bronc

[JoBri 545]

Do you believe being born in poverty or being raised in poverty or spending significant time living in poverty builds character?

Not necessarily good character. Just take a walk on the wild side in your nearest big city. It is how we approach the challenges in our lives that develops good or bad character in us.

Edited May 5, 2012 by Brijo

[adiiann 163]

Experiencing that kind of situation in life is not necessarily building character but rather, understanding the privileges in life as well as understanding the rationale of people we think not following a certain social norm we used to.

[adiiann 163]

Experiencing that kind of situation in life is not necessarily building character but rather, understanding the privileges in life as well as understanding the rationale of people we think that are not following a certain social norm we used to.

[engineer21 51]

Growing up I always had running water, but not necessarily out of every faucet. To flush I poured water down the toilet bowl. We didn't have a regular hot shower in the bathrooms. I would boil water and pour it into a big basin and mix it with cold water. Then I would use a scoop to get the water and pour it over me. It was just an old, old house and definitely was not the norm where we lived. My aunts and uncles all had regular showers/tubs in their homes. We weren't poor, per se. My mom just prioritized more important things (like education ) over plumbing upgrades/home improvements.

I was a typical poor college student. The first 4 years were ok because I had a full ride and only had to pay for a small portion of room and board. But I did couch-hop for a couple of months and lived out of my car between OPT jobs. When I went back for my second undergrad degree, I had to pay for most of the tuition. My mom helped a lot! But she isn't made of money and there isn't much left over for living expenses. So I got rid of the car, lived paychek to paycheck, and ate half a ramen noodle packet per meal (with lots of broth to lengthen the meal experience )

Once I became a grad student, things got easier because tuition was taken care of and I had a stipend. So this is a completely different situation then someone who has no access to modern conveniences such as water, electricity, and food all of their lives. It's a different kind of poor. I was poor in that I didn't have much money. But I wasn't surrounded by poverty with no way to get out.

Sure, things looked bleak for a while for me.. but I always knew that if I just toughed it out and finished school, I'd be an engineer and can make an acceptable living.

Was it all character building for me? I'll let others be the judge of that.

I agree with Nina~ that it is not necessarily the struggles, but how you deal with it that build character.

So I guess in a way.. it would only build character if there is already a strong foundation from which to build.

[abner137 48]

I remember a bath house at my great grandmothers home that was a short walk behind the house, you filled the tub with rainwater from the barrels around the buildings and boiled it with a wood fire....