When I was growing up my family was so poor______________________.

If you are looking for a punchline, I am not going to give you one. If you want a true fact I can do that.

When I was growing up we were so poor that we returned found soda bottles for the deposit money so we could buy bread and lunch meat so we could eat dinner.

We had to steal people's newspapers for paper in our outhouse! Corn cobs wear out too fast! 
This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at January 21, 2017 5:55 PM MST

...that we couldn't even afford the Internet. 

Actually, we weren't very well off. I was born toward the end of the Great Depression when Dad had lost his job and my parents lost their home. I wanted to be rich when I grew up so that I could have my own house and my own car. Well, I got both of those so, by my own definition, I am rich. (Anybody want to borrow a million or two?)

This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at January 21, 2017 5:56 PM MST

Parents couldn't afford toys for me so my mother cut holes in my pockets so I would have something to play with. 

my family was middle class, im the one thats poor now

I didn't grow up in a poor family.  We were a middle class family along with most of the other kids with whom I went to school.  I had three sisters and my mom used to sew our clothes so we were able to have other things we needed or wanted.

When I was growing up my family was so poor "that we didn't have an upstairs maid."