When I was gigging back in the late 60s - 70s I made the most of what I had, saved up my pay from weekday paper round, Sat. butchers round & Sun. papers until I had enough for my dream of a Ricky!
It turned out my illusions were shattered when I tried playing one & then a lot more but I ended up spending my hard earned on a brand new Gherson Jazz bass - because it played better & sounded better than anything else on sale in the whole of THAT LONDON at the time + I got my dream amp, Hiwatt 100 & a fantastic Orange 2x18 cab. We were playing pubs, clubs & youth centres, but I felt great, it fitted in with the rest of the band, we were loud & heavy & I knew many other bass players who were green with envy. That was a very long time ago
Now I play for fun, never dreamed of owning a Fender back then, now I have too many! No excuse required, I like them