Capt._Chaos
May 13th, 2008, 07:43
By now, many of us have began getting those so-called "Economic Stimulus Checks" that were intended to spur the economy a little. Like many, I doubt it's going to work with the cost of damn near everything going up like they have been.
Yesterday evening, after having dinner with a friend I went to what is normally one of the busiest shopping malls here in my home town (San Antonio) to go buy a pair of my favorite Skechers leather sandals that were on sale, and a couple of nice shirts to wear while I'm on the road.
As I drove into the parking lot, there were very few vehicles parked anywhere. In the recent past, it was not uncommon to be forced to park over a 1/4 mile away from the building at just about any hour they were open due to the parking lot being so full. I don't mind the walk- I'm just giving others an idea of how insane things were for many years.
Once I went inside, I saw the place was literally deserted. It was obvious that the store employees were bored with little or nothing to do. I guess the good side to this was that I was able to get in & out of there in less than 45 minutes, as I'm not one of those I've seen through the years that appear to be "taking inventory" of the entire place.
I went to Wal-Mart across the road a short while later to get some bottled water & vitamins for the road, as well as a few other necessities. It was a little busier there (as could be expected), but nothing like it normally was. I was in & out of there in about a half-hour.
Surprisingly, the Academy sporting goods store just down the road from home was still almost as busy as it ever was before. I went in there to get my EZ-Up canopy replaced after its frame broke while we were at the beach a few days ago, as well as to buy some more workout clothes. Still, I had no line to wait in when I went to pay for the stuff I bought. They did give me a new EZ-Up canopy with no hassle, and took my defective one to the back to return it. They have always done good by me, and I will always be one of their customers since they treat everyone very well and have most of what I want in terms of sporting goods.
I dropped off my pickup at Midas for a new exhaust system since the old one rotted away, and they didn't have much work to do there either. That's another place that used to be extremely busy, and while it's understood that gas prices are high & taking a large chunk out of peoples' incomes, it's kind of scary from a safety standpoint to think of how many people are likely neglecting to take care of their vehicles.
Has anyone else been seeing similar signs of the economic slowdown going on where they live?
Yesterday evening, after having dinner with a friend I went to what is normally one of the busiest shopping malls here in my home town (San Antonio) to go buy a pair of my favorite Skechers leather sandals that were on sale, and a couple of nice shirts to wear while I'm on the road.
As I drove into the parking lot, there were very few vehicles parked anywhere. In the recent past, it was not uncommon to be forced to park over a 1/4 mile away from the building at just about any hour they were open due to the parking lot being so full. I don't mind the walk- I'm just giving others an idea of how insane things were for many years.
Once I went inside, I saw the place was literally deserted. It was obvious that the store employees were bored with little or nothing to do. I guess the good side to this was that I was able to get in & out of there in less than 45 minutes, as I'm not one of those I've seen through the years that appear to be "taking inventory" of the entire place.
I went to Wal-Mart across the road a short while later to get some bottled water & vitamins for the road, as well as a few other necessities. It was a little busier there (as could be expected), but nothing like it normally was. I was in & out of there in about a half-hour.
Surprisingly, the Academy sporting goods store just down the road from home was still almost as busy as it ever was before. I went in there to get my EZ-Up canopy replaced after its frame broke while we were at the beach a few days ago, as well as to buy some more workout clothes. Still, I had no line to wait in when I went to pay for the stuff I bought. They did give me a new EZ-Up canopy with no hassle, and took my defective one to the back to return it. They have always done good by me, and I will always be one of their customers since they treat everyone very well and have most of what I want in terms of sporting goods.
I dropped off my pickup at Midas for a new exhaust system since the old one rotted away, and they didn't have much work to do there either. That's another place that used to be extremely busy, and while it's understood that gas prices are high & taking a large chunk out of peoples' incomes, it's kind of scary from a safety standpoint to think of how many people are likely neglecting to take care of their vehicles.
Has anyone else been seeing similar signs of the economic slowdown going on where they live?