Ron is away on vacation right now, so he sent us this column from the road. Unfortunately, we didn't have the foresight to get this week's portrait before he left, so here is a picture of some guy in an official Hey Ron! mask.I've been poor. It's tough. But you make it harder on yourself if you don't know how to handle your money. The last thing you want to do if you're broke is try to keep up with the Kardashians. You'll always lose that battle. Instead, you've got to wear your worth and save your money. Meaning, don’t go out and buy $120 sneakers when you’re working at McDonald’s for $8 an hour. Also, put your money in smart places. Minorities, especially, need to stop investing in other people’s millions and invest in themselves. Create your own clothing line, or at least figure out how to get in the stock market and invest in Nike, Puma, and whatever else you want to invest in. Take the slow route now so that when you get older you can reap those rewards.I don't want to sound like an old man, but kids these days spend their money like idiots. Just the other day I saw a kid in the hood walk out of a building that looked condemned wearing $600 worth of gear. He rocked a 5 karat diamond ring and all designer clothes, and he was probably taking public transportation to public school. People like that are trying to portray that silly image because their parents never taught them to be their own person. Teach your kids values and pull up their pants before they leave the house. Sagging isn't gangster. If I punch one of you knuckleheads in the stomach and your pants fall around your ankles, the fight is over before it began.But just because you're poor doesn't mean you have to dress like a bum. Places like Forever 21 and the Burlington Coat Factory sell brand name stuff for cheap. It's also good to buy stuff a season later. If you buy shorts when it's hot you're going to go hungry. I need a new air conditioner, but I am going to wait another month to buy one because they'll practically be giving those things away in the fall.Of course, you could make money under the table by selling drugs or whatever, but is a new pair of sneakers really worth the risk? You're making $500 dollars really quickly, but you might get 500 years for it. A regular job might take longer to land and the money may not be as good, but it beats dropping the soap in a prison shower or putting your hand in another man's back pocket to let everyone in the yard know you're his piece of ass. When you get out of lock-up you wont have those flashy new sneakers, just a record and a sore booty hole. And that's not good.