<p>I had no idea you did that, Mini.</p>
<p>My youngest daughter is absolutely wild about this cause. Wow. She’s got my husband all up in arms about this, as well. </p>
<p>Great work.</p>
<p>So how can we put her to work? (you can write me privately - we have two youth reps - one age 17, one age 11, both trained). We have two trainings this summer…etc. (send me her e-mail, and I’ll put her on our News and Notes list.)</p>
<p>Spent several hours looking for an apartment with my daughter this afternoon. Walked five or six miles with a 20 pound backpack (I have to work you know). This area of Boston is amazing - so amazingly vibrant, young people buying stuff - at Whole Foods, Starbucks and a ton of other places. People dressing well, busy, going places and doing things. Son was informed that he is moving to another office to accommodate more new hires (he started on Monday). They have a space crunch. That’s the problem with living in New Hampshire - you don’t see all of this energy from the younger set. My daughter was rather enthralled - where we live is rather boring for young adults and I think that she’d like to live with her brother in Boston. My guess is that she could get a job doing retail something with a little effort.</p>
<p>Consumer Confidence in MA is 84; nationally it is 72.</p>
<p>I look at the costs of living in Boston and it amazes me but money is saved eventually for spending. Big cities seem to be very expensive but the costs seem to generate a lot of jobs for people that don’t have a lot of skills. I think that big cities can run well, as long as you don’t have a ton of cheapskates like me. Well, maybe former cheapskates.</p>
<p>" - you don’t see all of this energy from the younger set. My daughter was rather enthralled - where we live is rather boring for young adults and I think that she’d like to live with her brother in Boston"</p>
<p>Yep…i understand. My oldest daughter lives in SF. She loved it.</p>
<p>“I look at the costs of living in Boston and it amazes me but money is saved eventually for spending”</p>
<p>Yes…I look at the living quarters of the younger people…and the places are so small…and expensive…but…it wasn’t that long ago they lived in dorms either. My daughter’s place is huge compared to her dorm room. :)</p>
<p>Mini…very nice. What you are doing is great.</p>
<p>mini, I should hook you up with Rotary Club. One of their major endeavor is to provide clean water in the third world countries.</p>
<p>Oh, we are hooked up with MANY Rotary Clubs! But if you’ve got another one, please do the hookings!</p>
<p>mini, Are you hooked up with Jewel? :D</p>
<p>[Jewel</a> - Official Website :: Project Clean Water](<a href=“http://www.jeweljk.com/cleanwater.html]Jewel”>http://www.jeweljk.com/cleanwater.html)</p>
<p>as far as the economy is concerned, I was just listening to a talking head who pointed out that the percentage of people who can work and are working is at a 31 year low. So what does it all mean?</p>
<p>Reporting from the Maryland burbs: </p>
<p>Highly educated, wealthy county, with many government, university, and other stable employers in the area. Nonetheless, there is still considerable hangover from the real estate run up from the early 2000’s. People who bought in 2005- early 2006 were offering much more than asking price, and prices are going to take years to regain those prices. Friend paid 900k for house now valued at 700k, another paid 1.5million for house now valued at 800k. Both were move ups within the neighborhood, who jumped on what seemed like a good deal at the time. Not suffering, but stuck.</p>
<p>Back in 2005 fundraisers in the public schools raised crazy amounts of money. Wrapping paper, magazines, dinners, you name it, all were successful. All of those profits plummeted during the recession, and have not regained momentum. The annual fundraising dinner used to sell out within days. This year they are having trouble filling tables. </p>
<p>The high school lists donor names who support after prom activities. This year that list is one fourth as long as it was back in the day. </p>
<p>People wait until the last minute to send in payments for school trips.</p>
<p>In 2007 this county received $30 million in state aid. Last year state aid was $4 million. This year the governor has proposed shifting teacher pension costs to the counties. For our county that is an additional $17 million hit. The county is proposing cutting 50 police officers, some bus service, reduced hours at the libraries. The school board is looking at teacher cuts, transportation cuts, athletic program cuts, preschool program cuts.</p>
<p>Not a lot of abject poverty here, but I personally do not see the economy rebounding, either.</p>
<p>I don’t see a lot of improvement in our area yet. Homes not selling, foreslosures and short sales happening , people out of work and out of business. Not spending their money like they once did in our business
I can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel
This is just a guess , but I think people are fearful of the threat of rising gas prices , so the roads are quiet and parking lots in all kinds of businesses pretty empty</p>
<p>^^^ see a bit of the opposite…Malls are crowded,restaurants,(fine dining,and casual ) are packed,even on wednesdays…don’t know a single unemployed adult…</p>
<p>In regards to eastcoastcrazy observations about real estate, it is without question those who paid up AND moved up are losing money, but lets not forget the fact they also SOLD at an inflated price,so they would have seen price depreciation even if they stayed in their prior home…</p>
<p>Metro Atlanta is still struggling. In fact, 4-5 neighbors have moved (most to San Francisco) in the last 9 months for job opportunities. Those that purchased their homes in the last 4 years have taken a huge hit. Starting to see people moving in for jobs for the first time in three or so years.</p>
<p>Atlanta had an entire industry built on “growth” and that industry is fairly well dead and probably won’t be coming back anytime soon. Those employees (now unemployed) are struggling.</p>
<p>I just took a new part time (all I want for now) job and have been attending economic development meetings for the last few weeks. Interesting stuff, most experts believe it will be 2013 before Atlanta gets below 9 percent unemployment. We are lagging much of the Southeast, which is something we aren’t use to. </p>
<p>A big problem is that average salaries are now lower in Metro Atlanta than peer cities, Charlotte, Dallas, Nashville etc. This has had a subtle impact on the housing market, I suspect.</p>
<p>Stores seem busier and restaurants do as well. My town is getting three new restaurants in the next few months but we house one of the largest employment centers in the southeast.</p>
<p>Atlanta’s housing market is among the worst in the country and it will be a long time before it fully recovers (however, I am not sure what a recovery will look like, so I am not sure we will really know.)</p>
<p>dstark - so sorry about your work situation. Some people in the workplace - strike that, many people in the workplace need therapy, and there’s no one to make them take the step, either because they work for themselves, or because they are “successful”. I personally think some of the Enron execs were like that.</p>
<p>mini, congratulations on your “retirement”, which sounds less like retirement than it sounds like you’re redirecting more of your time to pursuits that don’t have as big a paycheck. I can’t imagine you actually doing less. You’re amazing - few people on this board walk the walk like you and E do.</p>
<p>As far as the economy goes, the recovery will be spotty, but I think improvements are being seen in the aggregate. It’s hard to see real improvement around where I live. However, I see fewer going out of business signs, I see few or no articles in the newspaper about companies closing plants or downsizing. There are a much smaller number of foreclosures on the market. Our state revenue has gone up a lot, but it looks to me more like our area has stabilized, rather than really taken off.</p>
<p>Hayden…thanks…</p>
<p>Today is a new day…I haven’t talked to any psychos yet. :)</p>
<p>I can see areas getting hit because state and local governments are cutting back…so the Maryland post doesn’t surprise me. </p>
<p>I am surprised to read that some people are leaving Atlanta for SF because the cost of living is so much higher in SF. Atlanta must be very depressed.</p>
<p>Have frinds purchase a home in Maryland in December,very pricey area, had to pay nearly list, so housing is not suffering in the burbs of DC…homes were gettting multiple bids at prices well over 1 million …their home they purchased was on market for 4 days</p>
<p>Are home prices back up…close to the peak?</p>
<p>Qdogpa, I do see a lot of the kind of home sales you described around here, too. The key is whether the house is priced correctly. Home across the street sold in two days, but it was a short sale, and a terrific bargain. There are enormous homes being built around here, and selling, but for much much less than they would have sold for in 2005. On the other hand there are still a lot of people who are having a hard time dealing with reality. Every home in our area has lost at least 200k in value compared to the inflated values of 2005… The prices now are just a more realistic representation of actual worth, but some people are still living in 2005.</p>
<p>Economic news this morning was pretty good. Jobs report better than expected, trade report shows deficit jumping about 4% on autos, food and other stuff. Greece has a new band-aid. Dollar way up, gold and silver down.</p>
<p>^^^ Too late to edit my post. I meant to say that housing prices lost a minimum of $200K in value after 2006, (many lost much more than that), but have regained some value in the past year or two. My home, a low end house for this area, gained $250K from 2002 to 2006, then lost around $200K from 2006 to 2010. Since then it is up around $100 from its 2010 lowpoint. We were never underwater, but I believe it is going to take a long time for area real estate to regain its (highly overinflated) 2006 value. Higher end homes had bigger swings.</p>
<p>Eastcoast, these homes are in the Potmac area, and all sold for well over 1 million, at least 5 in same area…don’t know what eynmay have sold for in the ‘height’ of the madness, but if they traded up from an inflated price,the loss is not as significant…i sold a 1900 sf home for nearly 900k in 2006, so any depreciation of value in thte home we purchased is not truly a loss of significance…</p>