Hillbilly Elegy

for a big paycheck at the end of the year,
and then he’ll get a ton of stuff.” These
excuses were meant to mask what
everyone knew: All of us were poor, and
no amount of Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles memorabilia would change that.
No matter our financial position, our
family somehow managed to spend just
more than we had on holiday shopping.
We didn’t qualify for credit cards, but
there were many ways to spend money
you didn’t have. You could write a future
date on a check (a practice called “post-
dating”) so the recipient couldn’t cash it
until you had money in the bank. You
could draw a short-term loan from a
payday lender. If all else failed, you