gen x

The average Gen Xer is on track to face $1,700 a month income gap in retirement. The average baby boomers will fall a whopping $2,100 a month short. Those may sound like insurmountable numbers, but don't throw in the towel yet.

As Gen-Xers hit middle age and start thinking more seriously about retirement planning, the warnings they're hearing about how far behind they are may make their situation sound more dire than it is.

Generations of Americans are facing threadbare finances in retirement: Judging by what people say they expect to spend versus what they expect to take in, the disparity between income and expenses will be severe.

A recent poll shows that penny-pinching is still on the rise in the wake of the Great Recession: 62% of American surveyed are buying more generic brands, and 45% are brown-bagging lunch to save cash. Moreover, the direction of the poll numbers suggests permanent changes in the way Americans spend.

Being in my 30s, I'm one of those Gen X-ers older people look down their nose on for my flashy spending, addiction to bling and Starbucks lattes, and preference for credit card over savings account. I'm actually not a coffee drinker and I prefer planting flowers to purchasing flashy bling, but...