Certain Uncertainty

It certainly isn't hard to find uncertainty these days.

As a matter of fact, everywhere you look there are reminders of just how 'uncertain a time' we are living.

In our neighborhood, homes are currently selling for considerably less than their appraised value of a only year ago. So, how much is our home currently worth? Just how much equity do we have today and how soon can we buy a bigger house to fill with more stuff that we don't really need? Of this, I'm not certain.

Regarding my own family, like so many others, we've recently experienced a salary reduction and watched as coworkers have lost their jobs entirely. In my extended family, I have three brothers who are each self employed and work is scarce. What might our career and financial futures look like? Of this, I'm not certain.

Yesterday afternoon, I stopped for gas at Seven Eleven and paid $1.98 a gallon. As I drove my daughter to school this morning, I saw that the Shell station had regular unleaded for $1.89. (You should know that the previously mentioned Seven Eleven and the Shell station are less than a half a mile apart.) So, I ponder, how much will the next tank of gas cost me?

A few weeks back the price of gas was lower than I'd seen in years. Last week the price seemed to be rapidly climbing back up and was going for just over $2.00 per gallon - I had thought for sure that the little breather from the high prices of gas had drawn to a close. I recall quickly filling up my tank before the price potentially climbed even higher. I guess I was wrong.

Now the price of gas has dropped by nine cents, overnight.

How much will it cost me to fill up my tank this Friday? I'm just not sure.

With all of this uncertainty, a certain (sorry) amount of unrest is expected, and with unrest, anxiety rises and we human types sometimes get a little nervous. You know, we begin taking cautious measures in attempt to grasp at least a thread of some kind of sense of security. We begin to make little changes that we can control, like say, spend less on food by preparing meals at home rather than dining out, brown bagging lunch, carpooling and spending less on our extravagant excessive expensive everyday indulgences like say, our daily

$4 - buck, afternoon coffee.

I believe that I absolutely have to encourage all of us, however, by noting that while we must certainly adjust our spending to fit our declining incomes, at the same time,

we certainly have to keep marching forward, keeping our eyes on the prize and

dreaming the 'American Dream' of hope and prosperity, that is,

if we ever expect to return to, ...the good old days.

You know, the good old days... when home prices were actually more than what was paid for the home five years earlier and all of the ridiculously expensive, name dropping handbags and lavish weekend shenanigans were no brain-er conversation starters around the old water cooler.

Ah, the good old days... when over paying for a fancy purse meant that you were one of the lucky ones who didn't have to worry about how much you spent on a silly purse that you'd end up tossing onto the closet shelf to collect dust within just a few short weeks as you made room on your hip for the newest and most glamorous, overpriced handbag.

Yes, it looks as if ... those ... good old days ... are gone.

Old bag, new bag or no new handbag, we certainly must keep marching on.

Our marching forward is what keeps our world, as we know and love it, in motion.

When we stop marching, we stop needing marching shoes... in other words,

we all stop spending and

our prosperous world stops turning.

When we, the people, stop spending, we all stop earning.

It's really that simple. It's like this:

If I don't purchase new marching shoes, the store where I shop for shoes needs to have fewer employees and buy less merchandise from their suppliers. Suppliers, in turn, have to cut back on the number of employees to make the shoes as well as cut back on the amount of materials they purchase from which to make the shoes. Leather, vinyl, canvas and other shoe type material manufacturers then have to cut back on their supply purchases and now those new shoes that I didn't purchase has affected the farmer and his family, because they are the ones who raise the cow that supplies the hide that provides the leather.

You get the idea.

See what I'm saying?

We simply must keep marching forward.

It's true, due to the salary reduction that I mentioned earlier, my family currently has less income from which to budget expenses like new marching shoes or even an extra tank of gas necessary to make that family getaway to go 'budget friendly' camping.

But make no mistake, this American family is marching forward, full steam ahead, not looking back and expecting a better day to come, tomorrow.

If not tomorrow, then the next day.

If not then,

soon, and hopefully,

in the nick of time

and certainly,

...soon enough.

Until then, we're still going camping - though maybe we'll camp a little closer to home. Regarding new shoes, I should start saving up my pennies and consider buying some new hiking boots rather than another pair of cute sandals, and I'm thinking I'll be using the hiking boots for more than just the next camping trip. These new financially accountable and credit-less roads could prove to be a little rough and tough on the stylishly french pedicured, tootsies. So, off with the sandals and on with the boots.

Oh, ... I'll be paying cash for the new hiking boots - no overpriced credit purchase for this

desperately trying to be positive and happy, :o) camper.

I've learned my lesson, finally, and the funny thing about it is that if I'm honest, I'm reminded of how I lived life when I was a young, struggling to make ends meet college student as well as a period a few years back when my family and I had excessive medical bills that nearly ate us alive...

Back in those days, I bought new hiking boots when I could afford to pay cash for them, or else I borrowed some boots from a friend. Back then, I got out of the house for a little 'break' by stepping outside and chit chatting with a dear neighbor or two instead of making a $5 to $10 date to meet and greet at the trendy corner coffee shop.

We can do this. We can live on what we have rather than what we wish to have or think we should have.

We're Americans.

We created our own country, for crying out loud,

we can certainly do this.

*******

Hey, do you have any money saving activities or meals that you honestly enjoy? Seriously. Let's help each other out and toss around some budget defying food and fun... American Style.

Come on - help out a fellow financial crisis survivor - I know you have some great ideas. Together, we can do this.