Ryan

Employment

Drawing Real Life

This week in my nude figure drawing class, a new model entered the usual rotation. Not another svelte dancer or beefy male model, but an older overweight man with every indication of having spent his life banking or speculating. If only to bring the dancers back, I hope this mess gets fixed soon!

Jonathan Slater

Commerce

in your back yard

It occurred to me that this year's fund drive shows the impact of the recession -- where the matching grants are 1:2 and 1:1 rather than 1:1 and 2:1 -- and how difficult it was for you all to find a way to explain the 1:2 ratio.

Tony Aromando

Bright

Continuing Education

I teach at Hunter College Continuing Education. Lately, my afternoon classes have enough students to run and my evening classes have filled up. Some students are out of work, some now have new responsibilties at work some are getting ready for a career change, all are taking positive action to better themselves.

Eric

Behavior

dying is just not an option these days

Editor's Note: Eric's contribution of a New York Times article was re-posted on our Uncommon Economic Indicators wiki, where all of you can share information, tips, post questions or get help.

You can post your own information there. Here is the url:
http://issues.wnyc.org/wiki/index.php/Bulletin_board#Articles_on_the_Economy

Lauren

Swindlers

Empire Rates

I work for a small internet company in NYC. We have employees all across the country - this month we have to renew our plan with Empire BCBS. They raised our rates 40%. The company I work for contributes an annual sum to each employee for health care - they raised their sum as much as possible - 20%. It will impossible for them to function and contribute if this increase continues, let alone hire more employees. I was told by Empire and our payroll company that all small companies in downstate new york with our plan had this increase. Is New York the only state that doesn't have a cap on insurance increases? We've been bullied into a corner. And I'm mad as hell. Congress (at least) needs to do something.

29 Broadway, New York, NY 10006

Susan Slome

Commerce

Waiting for a brighter tomorrow.

Bowling Green: Every weekday morning there is a long line of citizens spilling out into
the plaza waiting to get into the U.S.
Backruptcy Court. Men with briefcases, on cell phones, reading the newspaper, freezing on the plaza
hoping for a better day.

Bowling Green Manhattan

Keysha Dixon

Bright

Zagat's Guide

Zagat's 2009 Guide contains more lists of restaurants that offer prix fixe meals than they have in the past.

102 Stevens Avenue

Giuseppe

Behavior

almost a meta-indicator

Is it just my anecdotal attention or did the number of matching
contributors to your current fund-raising campaign actually plummet?

I was actually hoping to have mine tripled thanks to a two-for-one
matching, but had to settle for what seems to be the only one-for-one
(from WNYC Trustee Lex Kaplen and the Kaplen Foundation). I think I even
noticed an unprecedented one-for-two.

This is not surprising given that charitable contributions are getting
slashed---dismaying nonetheless when it hits close home.

In this era of
transparency, I think you should point this out.

Jeffrey Slott

Employment

One of the reasons for all of this

I had an appointment with my tax preparer the other day. I use to work for a state-funded nonprofit and was recently laid off. I complained about how they had just spent a lot of money overhauling and redecorating their place. I remarked it was kind of foolish to have spent so much with no attempt of putting some of it away in case of rainy days.

My tax guy, who has a lot of non-profit clients, says this type of budgeting is unavoidable. A non-profit goes to the state and if they succeed in getting any money, they have NO CHOICE but to spend it all for the upcoming fiscal year. Whatever is not spent has to go back to the state. When the time comes to ask their political patrons for more, and if there is any sign that not all the money given previously was spent, that will jeopardize further grants.

So all these non-profits are forced to be spend, even if it's on totally unnecessary things or items gotten at a better price.

And when the government becomes totally strapped, like now, and must make budget cuts, the non-profits must do like-wise. It's like a parent who not only smokes cigarettes but tells his children that they better take up the habit or else...

It all means an incredible amount of wasted funds as well as many people unemployed, like me.

Bronx

gary oleyar

Behavior

what recession?

i live in central NJ. last saturday i went
out on a date and just wanted to go to a local place. there were 6, count 'em six jammin', line out the door establishments in the next town over, cranford. a gourmet pizza, an upscale fishhouse, an irish bar, a nouveau asian, a corporate theme bar and a spanish restaurant. we head over to the next town, westfield. there was an upscale italian, an upscale pizza, a wine bar, a high-dollar tex-mex and a couple fern bars all packed solid, not one empty seat. if there's a recession on it ain't here.

central ave, cranford, nj, broad st, westfield, nj

harlemita

Commerce

Cheap is doing fine!

Have noticed there's a LOT of commercials and ads out for low-end (cheap, non luxury, not even "bridge") products lately! things like giant billboards for pet sponges on the outside wall of Madison Square Garden, Chia Pet commercials during prime time...

And in my "day job" in the fashion industry, I notice that all my low-end vendors (who sell clothing to Target, Walmart, Mandy Shops, Forever 21) are doing better than ever, whereas my higher end clients, well.... some have had checks bounce and have had to lay off plenty of employees.

Cheap is doing fine!

Fashion Avenue, NY

Niina

Behavior

Packed Yoga Studio

The attendance at my donation-based (read: pay what you want) yoga studio has soared in past weeks. Those attending are hard-pressed to find a spot even if I'm arriving 15 minutes early. People definitely find the flexibility of donating what they want to be more doable at this time than rigid $10-$12 class fees.

Elizabeth Wheeler

Behavior

How far will you go for $9.00?

I work for a community-based organization. We provide hepatitis A and B vaccines to high-risk communities on Staten Island. When a client gets a vaccination, we also give them a Metro card and $5.00. Hepatitis A is a two shot series – 6 months apart and hepatitis B is a three shot series – day 1, 1 month later and 6 months later. Many, many, many of the clients get the first shots then fail to return for the 2nd and/or third shots. Now, all of a sudden, people who got their first shots in 2006 are returning for the follow-up vaccines. Frequently they ask if we are still giving out the money and Metro card before they register

380 Van Duzer St. Staten Island 10304

lisa

Housing

Combining Households as a Practical Matter

Visited my in-laws this past weekend in NJ and we were discussing how they and their friends are managing - financially, emotionally and physically. They and their friends are upper middle class and in their late 70s/early 80s. Several friends who are widowed and doing ok now are starting to seriously talk about selling their homes and moving in together if the economy gets worse. They are debating and discussing whose house is best for accommodating such an arrangement and which local market will result in the best sale prices. They are all lucky in that they all own their own homes outright (so they are not having trouble paying a mortgage!), have health insurance, pensions and investments but of course have been very effected by the drastic changes in the economy. Fear is a dominant motivator but so is a sense that they want companionship and a larger and closer social network as life gets more difficult. A practical approach that nonetheless seems sad and scary.

Wykoff, NJ

Geoffry

Commerce

Downsizing on Smith Street

Patois, the French bistro eatery brought the culinary spotlight to Brooklyn's Smith Street recently closed. Opened in 1997, their 11 year tenure, created not only a restaurant row, but a retail buzz for indie designers. A note taped on the shuttered door, expresses their hope to re-open in another location.

Smith Street Brooklyn

Jeffrey

Employment

Strip Club Looks Average

This works inversely to the Dow Jones Average. The higher the SCL Average, the worse the economy usually is.

95 Barclay St, Paterson, NJ 07503

Rachel

Behavior

Frigid Renters

As a renter, I'm usually spoiled (and disturbed) by landlords who overheat our buildings. This is the first year that I'm really noticing a drop in the temperatures. While once a landlord bore the full burden of maintaining a comfortable temperature, this year the burden has shifted to tenants, to use space heaters, sleeping bags, or simply numerous layers of clothing. It's also the first year I've had to schedule my showers around the building's warmest times of day. I'm glad we're no longer wasting energy on steaming buildings with open windows, but I do miss sleeping without a hat!

432 PROSPECT AVE, Brooklyn, NY

peter Kerlin

Commerce

organ meats! yum!

An upscale restaurant on the brooklyn's smith st restaurant row, now serving tongue and liver!
Yay!

smith st

marc bouchard

Behavior

The big shot bailout

My brother the big shot - you know - the one with the house, the boat, the occasional Mercedes, asked me - the ne'r do well - for a $5000 "loan" (gift) to help with mortgage and property taxes. I could only do 1 grand. Who's the smug one now?

beatrice

Behavior

how we save money - bring lunch in the office

in a small family (like in my case, my husband and I) you would not cook because too much trouble for only 2 people. cook for 4 and bring the left overs to the office for lunch the following day. we are a small company, 4 people. every single day we sit down at lunch and share the food that all of us bring from home. lunch has become a cherished moment. if we are out of the office for business meetings, we try to get back for lunch. it is when we talk about business or personal issues and share our cultural and ethnical differences (1 from Rome, 1 from Bologna, 1 from Germany, 1 from Trinidad). we save money, we eat healthy and most importantly, we learn who we are.

1715 west farms road, the bronx