These are unpredictable times... but the fact that savings are down and credit card balances are up (including more people carrying a balance) leads me to believe that demand destruction will get worse before it gets better.
We are retired (2016) and enjoy life daily. We have not altered our purchasing... we are in Fairbanks Alaska right now and bought a fair amount of 'cold weather gear' in anticipation of. We feel blessed... though we have no grandkids and will not have any, so there is extra time not spent in that direction as well as some finances not spent in that direction.
Yes it is always the little guy that is the problem. We got too much stimulus money. So it was us not the million dollar PPP money given to businesses.
We buy what we need and don’t “stock-up” on anything; if they don’t have my favorite ground coffee, then we get something else. Go for experiences and very little stuff for grandkids. Shipping containers to LA or NY/NJ aren’t needed for hiking in Arizona’s Sebino Canyon or classic skiing in MN.
Very true. It has always bothered me that 70% of the US economy depends on consumer spending. That forces a cycle of making and buying (and throwing away?) that isn’t very attractive. What to replace it with? An economy of services? Apps? I don’t have the answer, as usual.
a very interesting mess! the "Alameda Corridor" was supposed to help this some 10+ years ago. ....ship to train to the riverside county warehouses - Yet for amusement i looked into it's capacity and useage and it's always been lightly used. now i don't even see a stat for how much of it's capacity is being used. https://www.acta.org/
anytime i drive to the 15 north i see tons of big warehouses being built. more and more and more!
and a shortage of labor? or an unwillingness to pay people living wages for reasonable work?
My New Year's Resolution was to reduce debt, so I've cut spending. Actually I started last year, as I had a vacation planned for the Pacific Northwest, but gas prices put the ka bosh on that.
As far as supply chain troubles, they should have called in the fixer - CLUTCH CARGO! Here's a link for those of you too young to remember:
These are unpredictable times... but the fact that savings are down and credit card balances are up (including more people carrying a balance) leads me to believe that demand destruction will get worse before it gets better.
We are retired (2016) and enjoy life daily. We have not altered our purchasing... we are in Fairbanks Alaska right now and bought a fair amount of 'cold weather gear' in anticipation of. We feel blessed... though we have no grandkids and will not have any, so there is extra time not spent in that direction as well as some finances not spent in that direction.
We have been buying basic items because most things have risen up to 10-30 percent. Living on a fixed income is not for the feint of heart.
Yes it is always the little guy that is the problem. We got too much stimulus money. So it was us not the million dollar PPP money given to businesses.
We buy what we need and don’t “stock-up” on anything; if they don’t have my favorite ground coffee, then we get something else. Go for experiences and very little stuff for grandkids. Shipping containers to LA or NY/NJ aren’t needed for hiking in Arizona’s Sebino Canyon or classic skiing in MN.
Very true. It has always bothered me that 70% of the US economy depends on consumer spending. That forces a cycle of making and buying (and throwing away?) that isn’t very attractive. What to replace it with? An economy of services? Apps? I don’t have the answer, as usual.
a very interesting mess! the "Alameda Corridor" was supposed to help this some 10+ years ago. ....ship to train to the riverside county warehouses - Yet for amusement i looked into it's capacity and useage and it's always been lightly used. now i don't even see a stat for how much of it's capacity is being used. https://www.acta.org/
anytime i drive to the 15 north i see tons of big warehouses being built. more and more and more!
and a shortage of labor? or an unwillingness to pay people living wages for reasonable work?
My New Year's Resolution was to reduce debt, so I've cut spending. Actually I started last year, as I had a vacation planned for the Pacific Northwest, but gas prices put the ka bosh on that.
As far as supply chain troubles, they should have called in the fixer - CLUTCH CARGO! Here's a link for those of you too young to remember:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsBjOWmKGsI
Yes, we are spending less. But, due to retirement. Less things - gas, clothes and shopping. But more travel.
Travel is better than stuff.
🤔 When/if you start a Well$ $treet merch’ line, sign me up for the mug or hoody with that slogan on it!
“Travel
is better than
Stuff!”