Abracadabra. Now you see it, now you don’t. I’m not talking about the rabbit in the hat or the pigeon or even the lady sawed in half. I’m talking about money. M.O.N.E.Y. Such a tantalizing item, there are famous songs written about it (Money, Money from Cabaret, for example, or Money for Nothing from Dire Straits) - and even movie quotes worth repeating: "Show Me the Money" from Jerry Maguire. .
Now, many people think of magicians as tricksters and foolers. And maybe they are. Somehow they can make a rabbit pop out of a hat or a pigeon fly out of a pocket, but when it comes to money, there is no magician I know of who can make real green money disappear and then reappear in greater spendable qualities (except for Ben Bernanke, of course).
Well, thanks to This Recession, money is disappearing faster than you can say "Houdini Did It." And it’s not because of magicians. It has to do with the under-water mortgages, the zooming credit-card interest rates, and most importantly, the lack of jobs. In the coming weeks and months, unfortunately, we may face even more money disappearing in the form of inflation. This might be hard to see except at the grocery store and the gasoline pump, where the prices seem to go up and down faster than a Duncan yo-yo. Expect way more prices-up in days to come. Even if the grocery stores don’t raise prices, they are reducing the size of the bags and/or containers, so you are paying more for less, which is just another form of vanishing money. People who have efficient cars, hybrids and otherwise, are paying less than most of us at the pump (if you don’t count the cost of the car), but I just can’t keep track of the gasoline prices anymore - until they go up to $4 per gallon again.
We, all of us, are in a pretty penny situation. But the penny, in some cases, is actually pretty ugly. If you don’t have a job, you don’t have money; if you don’t have money, you can’t buy and if you can’t buy, the stores can’t hire, and if they can’t hire, they have to reduce hours or staff or fold-up and go away, and so it goes. The second part of my title predicts when money will reappear again. This is what I see: unless stores can sell their goods very cheaply and make up the difference in volume, they may be posting a lease sign in the window, soon. So here are some psychic tips to make your money go further and to help the economy, as well:
1. Think local when it comes to shopping stores - for example, I shop at my local independent coffee cafe, the local butcher, baker and/or candlestick maker. Right down the pike, we have a great coffee bean roaster/cafe, and a little bit further down the main drag, an authentic French bakery. Both of these are independently owned and run and they employ local staff. The greatest butcher around is only a few miles away, in the other direction. The best, choice chicken and beef comes from him, not Costco (where it’s more expensive) or the super-market, where I can never tell the point of origin, and there generally is no butcher to ask. Not only do I save gas going less distance to my great local butcher, but I already see the virtues of reducing my lifestyle to local venues. As some one once said, "It takes a village. . . "–and now, more than ever, If we are to recover from This Recession. One way to begin to set things right is to start by shopping locally at locally-owned stores and businesses and then spread out, if you can’t find what you need.
2. Shop the best thrift stores you can find. Recycle the old; buy someone else’s old that will be new to you. You will spend pennies on the dollar at the good thrift stores, like the one I volunteer for where most clothing goes for $2 -$4 per item. All of the proceeds go to the Humane Society and often cats and dogs, up for adoption, visit the store and are adopted on site. This is a newer version of an older way to shop that feels both good and extremely frugal. Avoid some of those thrifts that have priced items higher than the department stores. These are misguided, mis-managed thrift stores, and they do exist. But thrift stores like the one I’m talking about help the economy because people frequenting the store also drop in at the nearby local donut bakery, the gas station, the barber, and so on, and spend a bit, because they spent so little at the thrift store. This thrift is a magnet for the stores around it. And at these businesses, everybody knows your name.
3. Make do with less of everything. Start with smaller portions of food (drink more healthy water before your meal and you won’t be all that hungry). Where in the world did "Supersize" come from, anyway? And All-you-can-eat buffets. Bad news for bears and healthy adults hoping to stay healthy. To start doing with less, clean out your closets: make do with fewer articles of clothing. Eat out less and just to celebrate special events. Try to avoid fast food, which, in most cases, is fats food; cheap, but unhealthy. Making do with less is going on a diet that makes sense for both your health and your budget.
It’s as if Life has been trying to tell us via This Recession: fast food, fast pace, fast money made us and the planet sick.
Finally, practice setting realistic expectations. This Recession has caused us to re-set our lives like some people used to re-set their Timex watches. No, thanks to This Recession, some people cannot retire yet; some people have gone back to school to get re-training for job markets that are hiring; some people understand that the best of everything is not what it used to be. Money in the near future will be harder to come by and quicker to disappear, if inflation rears its ugly head.
But, if like a good boy (or girl) scout, you are already prepared, you will be around to see the good things that come from saving money and saving the planet. No magician required.
09.23.09
