Been there, done that:
Living paycheck to paycheck? Join the growing club.
A survey of 7,192 workers released Wednesday by online job-search Web site CareerBuilder.com shows 47 percent of working Americans claim they always or usually live paycheck to paycheck just to make ends meet. This marks a jump from 43 percent in 2007.
The "paycheck to paycheck" people are, like the poor, not the same this week as last week. People move in and out of all categories -- that's what it means to live in a dynamic (i.e. free) economy. I'm in a unique (for me) position right now -- both my house and car are paid off, so I can put a little money aside before the next crisis hits. I'm still one paycheck ahead of disaster -- there goes the job, the benefits, etc. -- but that puts me a little ahead of all my ancestors who were just one turn around the next wilderness corner from sudden death.
