Dating myself here...
As a kid, I mowed lawns all summer for 2 bucks per lawn, 25 cents extra for clipping with those awful hand clippers. (yea, I know, uphill both ways...)
Didn't spend a dime all summer, while dog-earing my Heathkit and Allied catalogs, drooling over kits that I could afford.
At the end of summer, I would spend my hard-earned cash on a Heathkit or Knightkit, and then wait with anticipation for the kit to show up.
Seems like delivery back then was 4-6 weeks...an eternity for a kid. Spent all day in school hoping that there would be a box waiting for me upon my arrival at home.
From best memory I bought and assembled:
Knight-kit: Tube CB radio, Tube Shortwave Receiver, Mono tube audio amp(wish I still had that but why keep that old thing when you could go solid-state?!!!)
Heathkit: Tube Oscilloscope, Solid-state guitar amp with twin 12" Speakers
Still have the shortwave receiver.
Good memories for sure and a lot of lessons learned: The value of saving, patience, following instructions, and soldering skills. And sometimes trouble-shooting....
Jim