How do I know that? I have super-secret inside sources that feed my political intelligence from the Keystone State — my parents!
I grew up on a small family farm in Pennsylvania. My parents and my siblings and their families still live there. Most of my extended family lives there, too.
So I have a bit of an inside track on what “regular” voters are thinking and which way a good chunk of Pa. might be inclined to go in the presidential primary in April. They’ll be focused on the candidate they believe can deliver a real change in the direction of the economy. As James Carville still likes to say about the key to winning presidential elections, “It’s the economy, stupid.”
How do I know that? Because my parents are already pinching their pennies so hard they scream.
My dad drives miles out of his way to buy lunch meat that’s less expensive than at the grocery store in town. My parents wanted to take a vacation to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary last year. Even though we all chipped in so they could swing a few days away from the farm, they had to postpone it because my dad needed to fix some things around the farm and they needed the money for that more. They reasoned that maybe spring would be a better time for a road trip anyway. Now, they don’t know if they can afford their holiday because the price of gas gone up so much.
Oh, and they haven’t had a vacation for about 20 years.
My parents have to carefully scrutinize their budget to decide if they can afford the $50 tank of gas to come visit our house, about 4 hours from theirs.
But I’m not the only one with a family story like this. Others are starting to lament, as well.
Bookish on a Budget is dealing with unexpected expenses and focusing on her budget in terms of where she can “trade up” and where to “trade down”:
Target has done a fabulous job of capitalizing on the true consumer insight that people like to trade down in some areas so that they can save their money and trade up in others. People can do both at retailers like Target. But they’re also mixing the concept across retailers. Shop for home decor at Target so you can shop for handbags at Gucci. You get to value what you value, and both retailers win. As a marketer, I’ve thought about this a lot in my professional life. Brand loyalty is irrational behavior, and yet, one of the most normal behaviors in our consumer culture.
And while families are already in belt-tightening mode, there are some “luxuries” the Beyond Mom family won’t scrimp on:
Well, you know what…I think that millions of households are probably talking about recession and belt-tightening and scaling it back. My household is one of them. We live very simply here, and the one thing we do that is special (i.e. bringing in take-out for dinner on Friday night, because I’m too exhausted to cook one more meal) is going to continue.
But Julie Pippert from Using My Words (and a fellow MOMocrat!) sent me an E-mail on this topic, which started my head spinning in another direction — what will a recession do to families who already have bare-bones budgets?
We don’t take trips. We do free summer camps (read: vacation Bible school…I’m nondiscriminatory, any religion will do). I take hand-me-downs and shop at resale shops. We maintain and don’t replace unless necessary. I buy local produce through an organic CSA [community supported agriculture program] because it is 1/20th the cost of stores and better, too. I haul 90 lbs of trailer and kids around on my bike to drive as little as possible (double benefit: free exercise! Gyms cost too much). We don’t use cell phones, have no video games, iPhones, laptops, etc. Our television was free; my husband won it.
I’m a Luddite and Green by necessity. LOL
What can I cut…
I can take the little one out of preschool, but then I’d have to stop working, basically.
We could drop the life and or health insurance (we just have catastrophic coverage and an HSA). Home or property insurance. Flood and acts of God insurance. That could save us tons (or cost us tons).
We could downsize our house again, or move into an apartment, but we haven’t seen any with a cheaper mortgage (not any place we’d live with kids, anyway).
Well, that’s about it. We’re pretty bare bones.
What about you? Summer vacations? Summer day camps for your kids? What thing will it be that you cut back on that will lead you to say we are in a recession? Or are you already in bare-bones mode, hoping and praying that things don’t get worse before they get better?
March 7th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Well, I just re-analyzed our budget. With inflation, we are now spending $300 more/month on gas and groceries combined. We’re already bare bones…I was laughing at myself today because I had on a 20-year-old sweater and a 10-year-old pair of jeans (at least I can still wear them, I guess). I’m going to get a part-time job on nights and weekends to help with the shortfall. We’re also thinking of starting an opera blog, that will, of course, be wildly popular and successful (my husband and I are former singers). C’est la vie!
March 7th, 2008 at 10:31 pm
I guess one good thing is I love my 20-year-old sweaters. I’d love mt ten-year-old jeans if I could still fir into them!
And go opera!
March 8th, 2008 at 8:33 pm
We really need something approaching a budget over here. I’m not materialistic but I do spend on books, travel, food….and since we’re being honest, clothes for my son. I’ll wear jeans that are several years old and originally grabbed from the Old Navy sale rack, but think noting of snapping up cute things for Max.
My new car that I drove more than 10,000 miles this winter is a gas hog.And I’m already trying to figure out my next trip.
On the positive side I’m planning an elaborate container garden, and the tent I bought this morning is far less expensive than staying in hotels. And I’ve been using the interlibrary loan system since I realized that basically any book I see and want on Amazon is available from one of the gazillion library networks.
I do feel guilty at times, even though I know that I probably spend a lot less than many women I know. Until a few years ago, owning more than I could fit in my 1983 Volvo made me uncomfortable. Now my son’s wardrobe would not even fit in that old 240 sedan.
My husband is the real shopper in our house though. He’s terrible!
March 10th, 2008 at 9:01 pm
Okay, I have only ever voted Democratic, am pro-union, even studied economics Berkeley, etc, etc, etc… and I am afraid I will sound a bit like Marie Antoinette saying “let them eat cake” but…
I don’t think it’s the government’s problem that you would like new clothes, or an iPod, or a vacation.
I think it’s good social policy to invest in education for all so we can be globally competitive, health care so we can live long productive lives, and make sure our most vulnerable citizens are well-fed and safely housed… but everything else?
March 11th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
We’re trying to figure this out too. With a kid on the way, a hubby in grad school, and nothing resembling paid maternity leave at work (talk about an ignored issue at the national level, but that’s an entirely different rant), we’re looking at having to take out a home equity loan just so I can afford to take my measly 12 weeks offered under FMLA. Yeah, selling the house and downsizing would be nice, but with this housing market, NOTHING in our neighborhood is selling. We’ve had other houses in the neighborhood on the market for over a year. So even though our mortgage is our biggest expense, we couldn’t downsize it if we wanted to. We’ve already gotten rid of the satellite television, don’t have a long distance plan. We pretty much have to suck it up!
March 13th, 2008 at 6:32 pm
I have dramatically cut back on my book-buying.
I am fortunate in that federal law enforcement is a growth industry… there are lots of people to train to do battle, and fewer and fewer dollars being spent on the people to actually conduct the training. This is where my rather esoteric skills come into play.
I am making a ton of overtime… which will pay for our summer vacation.
March 28th, 2008 at 9:54 pm
Speaking as someone from Pennsylvania, you better believe it is “still the economy!” I’m on social security and if my daughter and son-in-law and their kids didn’t live with me, I have no idea where I could find a place to live! Filling up a gas tank for $50 -I wish! Mine takes close to $60 to fill -my son-in-law’s pickup (old, gas hog yes, but used, paid for) takes abotu $100 to fill the tank which lasts about a week before needing filled again and he doesn’t even have a long commute to/from work. Groceries -geez, we’ve cut back every place we can with that but with two small children, both autistic, who won’t eat certain foods, due to texture, not taste -well, you have to find ways around that here and there, which sometimes don’t make the shopping cheaper. Fuel oil -$500 bought us 140 gallons of fuel -Penna is not a “warm” state you know. That 140 gallons, even with warmer weather coming still won’t last all that long in the economic scheme of things. My son-in-law has a job that is not reliable -actually, his employer is the one who is not reliable. He’s an auto mechanic, a good one, wants to open his own garage and inspection station but how? Debt, poor decisions earlier in life has his credit rating down at piss-poor -fair would be a blessing. So his income even at its best is not great; my daughter works part-time, waitressing -her job will be ending as the owners of the restaurant are trying to sell the place. Fine dining in this area of the state -even when the food is excellent -too many here who can’t afford the luxury of something like that. Because of the therapy sessions both the children receive, my daughter can’t work fulltime hours at this point in time. We pool our resources and for doing that, we get slammed by the state with respect to the LIHEAP fuel program. They can’t afford to rent a place of their own, I can’t afford to live in my home on my own either. Together, our income is barely over $40,000 a year for six people. You do the math.
My best friend from high school, recently retired as did her husband. He is eligible for social security medicare, she is not. Searching for supplemental insurance, they are currently paying out over $1,100 a month for health insurance that will supplement ss for him and cover her until she is eligible for medicare. Who the heck can “afford” that? Ok, Bill Gates, Madonna, and those in that type of income bracket, but not people of median incomes.
Yep, it’s still the economy. The war on not becoming poverty stricken is alive and well in Pennsylvania!