I've been around long enough to remember old school inflation, where a can of soda would got from $0.25 to $1.50 in a decade. So it makes sense that our extended era of super-low inflation created some breathing room for middle class families. I'd imagine equity for homeowners, especially the ability to refinance/borrow at rock bottom rates, was filling in some of the gaps. Well, that and credit card debt.
But even with that perspective, it still begs the question that, given a healthy dose of disposable income, why did so many people seem to choose a $1500 minor TV upgrade or a new $3000 couch instead of, I don't know, an extravagant European vacation? Eating at any restaurant you want whenever you want? It's really that divide that baffles me - the experience-spenders (me, hi) versus the stuff-buyers. But maybe that's more of an urban/suburban divide than a generational divide.
I think relative prices can answer a lot of your second paragraph. Air travel is relatively cheaper than it used to be in a lot of ways. It certainly isn't cheap today, but the middle class can do it sometimes. When I was young, it was an extravagance, especially to go to Europe.
Also, if you were in the US in the 1960s, I can well understand why "eating in any restaurant you wanted" would not necessarily have appealed much... the food of the era was... adequate.
I think the experiences were not as readily available versus the stuff as you may be thinking. To the extent that they were available, they were taken. Piling your family into the station wagon and driving around for three weeks used to be a lot more common, I think. But that's not "an extravagent European vacation". The relative prices of things have changed a lot in the past century.
(And to be clear, I mean, relative to each other, e.g., "how many years in college is a trip to Europe", not in absolute inflation terms. A thing that has gone up a bit faster than inflation is still relatively cheaper than a thing that has gone up way faster than inflation.)
But even with that perspective, it still begs the question that, given a healthy dose of disposable income, why did so many people seem to choose a $1500 minor TV upgrade or a new $3000 couch instead of, I don't know, an extravagant European vacation? Eating at any restaurant you want whenever you want? It's really that divide that baffles me - the experience-spenders (me, hi) versus the stuff-buyers. But maybe that's more of an urban/suburban divide than a generational divide.