Recipient: Gregory Torz Occupation: Senior, Lane Tech College Prep High School Responded On: February 17, 2005 Bill Received At: Jewel 4729 North Central Avenue Chicago Originally Dropped At: Torres Musicales Record Shop 5149 West Diversey Avenue Chicago On: January 22, 2005

 

Gregory Torz's Comments

Does your generation view money differently than your parents' generation, and if so, how?
I think our generation does view money differently because nowadays, our young kids, they look at money and they just want to be how other people are being on TV. The older generation, it was more like they were holding back. Holding back the money, not wasting it, trying to, you know, save it up.

But our generation, we try to, you know, use it as much as possible and we’re not really too much into saving money. It’s more of looking at how people do it on TV.

If I told you that you could be rich, or famous, or really accomplished in something you do, but you can only have one of those, which one would you want to be?
I would want to be really accomplished with something I do. As a matter of fact I’d like to be an automotive major. That’s something I really like doing. And being rich, that’s just not going to take care of it.

Now going to school and learning about that and making money doing that, that’s the way it’s going to make me make my money. And I’m going to feel rich myself.

But not rich like everybody else, where they didn’t have to do anything to become rich. I’m going to be rich from the point that I had to work hard for it and become what I am.

Now we're not talking about you, but young people, your age, 17-18 years old—if you asked them, choose between being rich or famous, or accomplished in something you do, what would most of them choose?
In my opinion, I think most of them would choose being rich or famous. One or the other. Because a lot of people, they don’t want to work for it. They see rappers and musicians and everything become famous in a very short period of time. And they think they can become that, in that same way. But they don’t understand that it’s harder to become rich or famous. It takes a lot of work. That’s what they just don’t see and understand.

Do young people think that you're kind of a chump if you work for minimum wage at McDonald's or something like that, and kind of slowly go through the ranks?
Yeah, a lot of people do think you’re silly. Because I worked at a
barber shop for a few years. And I didn’t get paid a lot. I got paid
minimum wage. And a lot of people were like, “Oh? You work?” And I’m like, “Yeah, you know.” And they’re like “Oh, I can’t believe that.” Because people from my school they don’t really work. Some people do. But you know, those are the hard workers. And then you got the other people who just think they’re going to become rich and famous from doing nothing.

Because a lot of kids these days too, their parents support them. And a lot of other kids—they have to support themselves.

And that’s how it is in my case. I have to support myself. So I’ve been working for, you know, as long as I could just to make myself as much money as I possibly could. To have money in my pocket. So I could go out, you know, do things I want to do.

Other kids, they don’t have that. So they have to go out and work as hard as I do. Sometimes it’s a good thing and sometimes it’s a bad thing for kids who don’t work and they get to just, you know, go and do what they want, and they still get money from their parents.

What do you think about parents who just give kids as much money as they need, instead of the kids having to work for it? What do you think about it?
I think its’ not right. I think kids would slowly have to learn to work
and get up to that point where they’re getting money for doing
something. Not for doing just household chores. But for real work. You know what I’m saying?

When the kids grow up, they’re going to keep asking their parents for money. They’re not going to go and get jobs. They’re going to just keep depending on their parents. And that’s what’s going on a lot these days. Kids don’t think they need to work. They think they can just live off their family.

So, you think it's a good thing that your folks haven't just been giving you money all along?
Well, more in my case, it’s not that they haven’t gave me it, it’s just … Well, my family is not wealthy if you know, if you want to use it in those words … I’m not saying they’re poor either … But you know, sometimes, there’s hard times in families and in my case, that’s how it is. You just have to work hard. If you work hard and do what you have to do, it’ll be alright.

What have you done in your life to earn money?
Well, it’s going to be kind of funny because I first started working
when I was about like eleven or twelve years old. And I was working at a fruit market actually, right down the block from where we’re at … And all I did was push carts and I didn’t even make minimum wage. It was just a few dollars a day just to try to make whatever I can so I could go out with my friends and have a good time.

Soon after I started hanging with more of my friends and one of my buddies got me a job working at a barber shop. But that wasn’t working for minimum wage either. I wasn’t making a check, I was just making money under the table and it wasn’t that much either but I said, “Well, if this is what I have to do to make money, this is what I’m going to do,” just as long as I could, you know until I graduate and then maybe get a better job making more money in real money. I was working at the barber shop about two to three years. It was just an experience that I really liked because I learned how money goes back and forth and how people need to go and get haircuts for example (laughs).

And you know, it’s a good business doing that. I learned a lot. I
learned a lot about how to manage a business, how to, you know, talk to people and it was just a real good experience.

So, have you worked at all since then?
I have but I’m really more looking for a job. Because the jobs that I have tried to go apply for, they’re not trying to give me the hours
that I’m trying to look for. I’m trying to work as much as I can, so I can help myself pay for my tuition for college and other things that I need for life.

Ok, you're about to graduate high school in a couple of months from now. What are your plans?
I was hoping to go directly into the work world, working on cars and
stuff like that. But now I’ve learned that I have to go to school and
learn more about it so I could become, you know, better at what I do. And I think I’m going to go to a two year college and just learn as much as I can from there and then hope somebody accepts me, you know, for what I can do.

If this is too personal, you don't have to answer anything, but how will you obtain the money to pay for that tuition for college?
I’m probably just going to try to work for it as hard as I can.
Probably get a student loan. And just try to work it off as I go to
school and as I work—just try to pay it off and become rich after
that (laughs).

When you were growing up, what were the jobs your mom worked and how many hours was she working per week?
My mom would work for between seven in the morning until about twelve in the afternoon. And then she would only have about half an hour break, when one to about seven at night.

I think it was just pretty difficult for her to have to work those
hours and then have to come home and still have to make dinner and do stuff like that.

Even as a younger kid, were you aware that your mom was working pretty hard?
Yeah, I was very aware. That’s why, when I was eleven years old I
started thinking, “Well, maybe my mom needs this money.” Instead of her giving it to me, I might as well just go make my own money and have her spend it on the the things she needs to spend it on. Instead of having to spend it on me. I was just like, “Alright. I’ll work a little bit, make a little money, the little bit of money that I do need.” And that’s about it.

In your household, how do you economize? What will you do to save money?
Well in my household what we did sometimes was, for example… aluminum cans. We would, after drinking pop or whatever, just save those cans and even though you only get a few cents for the cans … You still get a little bit of money to save up on something. You can always use that money for food or whatever else … And it was pretty easy doing that.

In your household, what will you splurge on, spend a little extra money on, once in a while, just as a treat?
There wasn’t really much that we splurged on. There were maybe a few things. For example, if I ever really needed something, for example, a computer which I just got a few years ago. You know I begged my mom, for a few weeks, a few months, to get me a computer and she finally got me it because she thought I deserved it because of the things I helped her out with and everything like that.

Is it hooked up to the internet? You can go online and get information off of the internet?
Not at the moment.

Why not?
Because of the expense. And I wasn’t using it too much. Because now in school we don’t really do that much on the computer and I don’t need to use the internet, so, you know, she thought maybe we didn’t need it for the time being.