Taking care of ourselves

I don’t have to tell you that the news has not been particularly good lately. The bad times are going global, and about the only good news is that the price of gas is going down.

Are we headed for another Great Depression? I hope not. However, do you know how the last one started? Here is an excerpt from a commentary posted at CNN:
“The Great Depression resulted from a series of economic and financial shocks -- the end of a housing bubble in 1926 and the end of a high-tech bubble in 1929 -- but also from truly breathtaking neglect and incompetence on the part of policymakers.”
Sound familiar?

So while governments and the World Bank rush to bail out the big guys what happens to the rest of us? For me, the only thing that comes to mind is a line from an old Beatles song: “I get by with a little help from my friends.”

Family, friends, neighbors. We’re going to have to pull together to get through this. I’ve been using the barter system for some of my medical care, I’m hoping to use it now to trade for other essentials. Here’s a few other suggestions:

• Carpool with neighbors when going to the store to save gas.
• If you don’t have to go very far, consider walking or riding a bike.
• Check out the public transportation available where you live.
• Save money on food by cooking up a couple of big meals then freeze them in easy to heat portions. It will give you the convenience of take-out at a much lower price.
• Instead of buying books, magazines, or newspapers, visit your local library.
• Team up for savings. I needed to have my roof replaced, but it turned out that two of my neighbors had roofs of the same age as mine. By having all three done at once we were able to get a great deal from the roofer. The roofer saved too by having his team working in the same area.

It’s a tough world out there, but if we just pull together we should be able to get through this.