Poor, poor me

A friend of mine put me in touch with one of his colleagues here in Boise. We had lunch last Friday. When the bill arrived, he picked it up, remarking, "You're a poor grad student. I remember those days." Now, I'm not one to turn down a free meal (especially when it's sub-par almond chicken), but I'm not really poor.

The funny thing is that I was the "poor VISTA" when I lived in South Dakota. Once again, I had money. Granted, I lived solely off of my $850/month living allowance for 19 months. (True, I didn't have a housing payment. But I paid in other ways, trust me.) So, yes, I was technically living in poverty as defined by the government. But I was still able to travel some and pay race registration fees. And if things got bad, my savings were still there. I could have gone on food stamps, but chose not to because I didn't truly need them.

And now? I'm not working, not too worried about it, and enjoying a life of leisure at the moment. (I do have an interview on Wednesday, so light a candle for me. the position is a great fit for me.) Poor people can't do that.

It's not that the negative connotation of the word "poor" bothers me. It's just odd how others stereotypically define poverty. Or is it that I'm a "good" poor person and entitled to a free meal because I joined the national service program, or am now pursuing a graduate degree? Or maybe I'm just completely overthinking this?