It's no secret that living is getting atrociously expensive everywhere, especially the United States.
These concerns are often correlated with the minimum wage pay being too low, but that actually undersells the problem.
TikToker @drew.rose6 pointed out in a recent rant on the platform that she makes double the minimum wage in her state and still struggles with living paycheck to paycheck and not being able to live on her own or pay for other more expensive necessities, like car repair.
The TikTok sat down in her car and vented:
"For whoever wants to know what it's like being young in 2025, here it is! I just got off an eight-hour shift at work, where I make double minimum wage in my state."
"I hop in my car, check my banking account, cool, I've got $50 to last me until next week."
But $50 is hardly a buffer for when life happens.
"Then I remember, oh sh*t, I have to run to Walmart, because the wire in my bra snapped. I don't have underwear because it keeps going missing. My eyelash curler broke, and I have no food."
"I bought four things, four f**king things, and it came out to $40! I'm living off granola bars!"
"But I hop my depressed a** back in my car and I look at my banking account again. Oh, cool, I've got $10 to last me until next week."
And the rant just keeps getting more and more depressing.
"I try to drive, but my car keeps misfiring. I can't afford to fix that. So I keep parking, turning off my car, turning it back on until it decides to act right..."
"30 minutes later, I'm finally heading home... to my four roommates! Four roommates!"
"I pay $850 a month, and now, given, that's everything included—but $850 per month with four roommates!"
She then turned the situation onto the generations before her, especially the Baby Boomers.
"Remember back in the good old days when a man could afford to feed, raise, and house his family on minimum wage? And he had a second family on the side, who he also housed, fed, and raised?"
"You know what I say to that? F**k you!"
"You guys had it so f**king easy, and then you destroyed everything behind you. F**k you!"
You can watch the video here:
Fellow TikTokers agreed with the sentiments of the video wholeheartedly.
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
@drew.rose6/TikTok
It's getting really hard—if not impossible—out here, and more people need to film these kinds of rants and share them online. There's power to be had through our speaking up, and maybe if enough of us post them someone will listen.
That's the hope anyway.
@jimmyfallon/Instagram