No loans.
Paid everything myself.
Went to school full time AND worked 30-40 hours a week slinging hot dogs and hamburgers or busing tables.
During breaks/vacation I was working 40-60 (sometimes more) hours a week.
Of course, today, working those kind of hours...that would be called greedy.
Wanting to keep what you work for...is greedy.
Not willing to bail someone out...is called greedy.
Spending above your means and not working...is called down on your luck.
I did the same thing. Worked my way through college bartending at night. Paid cash for everything. I recently had the loan conversation with my granddaughter. She’s a sophomore and wants to go away to college in Oregon and was talking worriedly about loans.
I explained to her that an education here, at a less expensive school, while she’s still living at home is just as good as the one that will cost her a fortune in Oregon. They get no sympathy from me. lol