How do you feel?

[Scottw]

I feel pretty good as I am in a career that does good in good times and unbelievably great in bad times. Business is up 35% and we have some large institutional deals coming in. I have been a Sr. Manager there for 5 years and things look good. I agree with someone in the past post as he said he feels bad for the older people. I am 32 and know I have time. I minimized my risk in the stock market and still have over $100K equity in my home. I flipped my parents 401 (k) money out of internationals and index funds and into bonds right before the 778 point drop in the Dow 2 months ago. My dad said his old fund dropped 22 % the next week and the one I put him in did + 4% so I guess he dodged a bullet. Hey could you imagine if gas was still at $4.25 per gallon?

[M1903A1]

I am nervous about the current situation...but when I think back on what my parents went through growing up in the Great Depression, and what my friend the watchmaker went through (being a slum kid in the Depression, dropping out of school to feed his family, and then going through five years of hell in the southwest Pacific), I realize that things could be one helluva lot worse.

I work in an industry that depends on consumers. I have been in retail for over 20 years. Consumer confidence or lack of is a nasty cycle. The more scared people get the less they spend, the less the spend the less that gets recycled into the economy. I have seen some tough retail years, this is turning out the be the worst. Even the big boxes are feeling the squeeze. There will be some names in retail we are all familiar with disappear after the holidays. Maybe the market is correcting itself, I think it is over correcting itself.
As a country we must cut back, but not shut down. I work for a very large discount retailer, that gives back 5% of its revenues to the communities we do business in, with revenues down 4% we give 4% less back, we have less labor, which means less jobs available. It will come back... when is the question!

[SeanGAR]

On my own, with no direction home, like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone ...

Actually, although I have tenure and high degree of the job security that comes with that, they will have to cut programs here to keep up with the huge budget cuts we've gotten from the state, and they can fire tenured faculty if they eliminate programs.

We'll see ....

On a different note ... I just bought Captain Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica CD ... and after listening to a couple of songs, I'm starting to wish I hadn't stopped smoking weed in 1984.

[icehog3]

Originally Posted by SeanGAR

On my own, with no direction home, like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone ...

Actually, although I have tenure and high degree of the job security that comes with that, they will have to cut programs here to keep up with the huge budget cuts we've gotten from the state, and they can fire tenured faculty if they eliminate programs.

We'll see ....

On a different note ... I just bought Captain Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica CD ... and after listening to a couple of songs, I'm starting to wish I hadn't stopped smoking weed in 1984.

Maybe we can have a unique herf when we both retire, Sean.

[Scottw]

[I'm starting to wish I hadn't stopped smoking weed in 1984.[/quote]


It's never to late to start again!

[gettysburgfreak]

I am really worried about all the crap thats going on. Im trying to start a career and graduated in one of the worst economic times in our countries history. I would much rather have a job and be worried about losing it than have no job and try and find one.


Ive always wanted to start a business but now a days thats not going to happen. I send out resume after resume with no response, each day I watch the news the message is not good. Eventually the sun has got to come out but as of right now I don't see it happening in the near future.

[MadAl]

I remember last summer when gas went over $4.00 a gallon, predictions were $5.00 was close behind and by this time of year $8.00 a gallon was possible. The speculators that drove up the price of gas hastened and possibly created this global financial disaster. Kind of a domino effect, people couldn't afford gas, stopped buying SUVs, cut back on other expenditures and so it began.

[Ratters]

My job as a teacher is pretty much recession proof. Even if the company I work for went under I could get another job in a week. But I fear for my friends. I know several who've been recently laid off and are having a dickens of a time getting work. But like all cycles this one will turn around. My greatest fear is that the next administration will add so many taxes and bans on the hobbies I enjoy, cigars, guns and motorcycles, that they will cease to be viable options on my meager salary. It's bad enough that California is about to hike taxes a ton as well as quadruple the car tax.

I feel absolutely awful. I just got back from one of my most dreaded ambulance calls. I can't explain how it feels to have a mother crying and screaming for you to save her child and yet there is NOTHING you can do, no matter how hard you try. I feel so powerless and helpless all at the same time. I don't know what else to say, I don't know what else to do. Out of all the calls I've been on these are the hardest for me. Nothing else phases me, but when it comes to children, GOD. I feel so sorry for this family, I can't imagine.
I've got 5 1/2 hours to go of a 24 hour shift and all I want to do is go home and squeeze my son as tight as I can and never let him go.
I'm sorry for the downer fellas, I have never talked about a call on here before. I guess emotions have gotten the best of me and I just needed to let it out a bit.

[Scottw]

Originally Posted by Waynegro1

I feel absolutely awful. I just got back from one of my most dreaded ambulance calls. I can't explain how it feels to have a mother crying and screaming for you to save her child and yet there is NOTHING you can do, no matter how hard you try. I feel so powerless and helpless all at the same time. I don't know what else to say, I don't know what else to do. Out of all the calls I've been on these are the hardest for me. Nothing else phases me, but when it comes to children, GOD. I feel so sorry for this family, I can't imagine.
I've got 5 1/2 hours to go of a 24 hour shift and all I want to do is go home and squeeze my son as tight as I can and never let him go.
I'm sorry for the downer fellas, I have never talked about a call on here before. I guess emotions have gotten the best of me and I just needed to let it out a bit.

The meaning of "Somebody has it worse". In the past year, I lost my home to a fire, had both my shoulders reconstructed and missed 6 weeks of work (I work on commissions), had a daughter in the hospital for 5 days while doctors thought she had a fatal skin infection (she is 15)and could lose her sight as it traveled to her eyes. My wife almost lost our baby from a difficult pregnancy. I got into some legal issues but still, there is someone worst off. I send my prayers to them. Being that this is thanksgiving week coming up, let's give thanks that we are here and have the luxury of enjoying cigars, friends and community.

[Buena Fortuna]

Behind every problem lies opportunituy. There is no better time than the present to look outside of our situations and seize the opportunities that are waiting. It may be uncomfortable, and it will be challenging, but the rewards will be worth it. Never give up...remember, it's not about getting knocked down by our problems, it's about getting back up one more time than you get knocked down.

Originally Posted by Scottw

The meaning of "Somebody has it worse". In the past year, I lost my home to a fire, had both my shoulders reconstructed and missed 6 weeks of work (I work on commissions), had a daughter in the hospital for 5 days while doctors thought she had a fatal skin infection (she is 15)and could lose her sight as it traveled to her eyes. My wife almost lost our baby from a difficult pregnancy. I got into some legal issues but still, there is someone worst off. I send my prayers to them. Being that this is thanksgiving week coming up, let's give thanks that we are here and have the luxury of enjoying cigars, friends and community.

Posted via Mobile Device

Really!? Thank you!!

[filly]

You know, I feel very fortunate and try to see the glass half full. I have my health, a fiancee I love, my two dogs, a house we both are working on owning fully in 12 years, and all my family healthy. I have a job that has pretty good security (teaching) although we have been impacted and our classroom number will increase to 40+ in each class. :-X

Finally gas is is reasonable at 3.00 a gallon but is on the rise and will probably be back to $4 by the holidays.

My fiancee lost his job early in March and between my job and unemployment we would have barely squeaked by. I would have had to get rid of my horse, but I was willing to, if we had to, to make ends meet. I read through many posts and am hoping many of you are better off now. My Dad was also one who lost almost his entire retirement fund and is also unemployed. Its been tough on our family but we still have each other and our health. For that I am thankful. My fiancee got re-employed in April, thankfully, but I was nervous.

I'm a Pisces so I don't pay much attention to the economy or govt, or that stuff. I try but it's just too big and depressing to me. That's why I have Bill! lol He pays attention to that stuff.

God bless all of you and find you doing better than when this thread started.

[shilala]

I feel pretty good, Thanks for asking, brother.
Today might be my last day, so I'm going to live it like that. My job is pretty simple. Love others, let God take care of me, and do what's in front of me.

Well...I feel cautious. My company is closing the facility I work at in the next 2 years, and moving production to Salt Lake City (not a place I want to take my family). I have a job right now, and I will be getting a severance package, but I do watch the jobs section of the papaer and notice just how small it is and how few jobs I see in it for chemists. Most of my connections at other companies tell me that they are letting people go, as well. Add to that that my wife is a social worker for the county at a time when Health and Human Services budgets get slashed huge amounts before other things in the state budget gets touched. And then there is the fact that the value of our house has dropped ~$55k since we bought it over 4 years ago (so we won't be selling any time soon), and you can understand my cautionsness. I can only hope that things turn around (jobs and housing) by the time my company cuts me loose.

[Sr Mike]

Interesting how the economy has changed so much since this thread started last year, yet it has only been 9 months. Many more have lost their jobs. Politicians have become celebrities and cannot be scrutinized. Health care continues on and people are still treated for their ailments. The national debt is almost at 12 trillion dollars which is still unknown how it will be paid off. To top it all off, Michael Jackson is still not buried yet.

[Skywalker]

Originally Posted by Sr Mike

To top it all off, Michael Jackson is still not buried yet.

I heard they're placing him in the Smithsonian!!!

[DMK]

Well... today I feel like crap.
I'm on two weeks holidays and just got a call from my temporary boss..
I've been doing a different job since the begining of Feb. and had thought it would turn into a full time gig...NOT !
What a way to F@#$ up my holidays.

[TheTraveler]

Today I've had a nice little upswing in mood and outlook. Over the last, oh almost a year now, I've been behind the 8-ball a little bit and it seems that just as I fix something and get it paid for something else breaks. Something more expensive each time!

Well, today is my birthday and I learned I won the CA Pipe Tobacco Lottery, my buddy gave me a gift cert to a local B&M, my wonderful wife is cooking a big dinner for me and I've got a nice cigar waiting on me to get home.

Also, I was supposed to go out of town on business today but that was postponed. I enjoy travelling for work but really wanted to spend tonight at home.

Sigh. Well, I won't look a gift horse in the mouth but I could sure use MORE days like this. The sun shines on every dog's a$$ once in a while ... guess today was my day in the sun.