The roads are covered with salt, and generally are real cold and nasty. We’ve readed yet another arctic blast that’s going to jack up heating bills again. At this point though, the days will not be as cold as January-December, and the cold doesn’t bother me as much, so I doubt the heating bill next month will be quite as high.
I delayed paying off my credit card until the end of the month to avoid getting dinged this month for a low bank balance as happened last month. Money is always tight after saving for retirement, my lift kit, and general savings. I’ve cut way back on gas expenses, but there is always bills for supplies, rent, and utilities. This is a three-paycheck month so hopefully I can dig myself out of the hole this month, and maybe even pay back the $200 I loaned myself in December, but hell I don’t know. It’s going to be tough.
Money is tough to manage, especially when there are so many damn things competing for it.
My experiences are somewhat different then younger millennial who went to college during the post-2008 recession.
This morning, getting ready for work, I heard NPR’s Markplace Update, where they discussed young folks expectations and beliefs after the recession. They said a common refrain – that young people are more liberal and believe that luck rather then hard work is the results of their accomplishments. I have younger people say that I’ve gotten where I’ve gotten by luck and not hard-work.
They may have a valid point. But mostly my luck was being born a few years before they were born.
I graduated from High School in 2001, and while the economy wasn’t perfect, the reality is by the time I graduated from college in 2007, we were at the height of the post-September 11th boom. Getting my current job wasn’t easy, and indeed I applied many places, and worked temporary work and did a lot of volunteer work to get where I was. But it was nothing like those who graduated in 2008 through 2011, when the US economy was in the crapper.
I also had the benefit of going to college while state university rates were relatively affordable. Price escalation was well underway by the time I graduated in 2007, but prior to that was quite affordable. The cost of college really started going through the roof as the recession deepened and SUNY implemented what it called “rational” tuition hikes, as apparently its rational to continue a high-level of spending on education on the backs of students from working poor families.
When I started at Community College, coming from a working class family, college was free, and even included a small stipend to buy books and pay for commuting to classes. There was good Pell grants from the federal government, and a pretty generous state Tuition Assistance Programs. Both would be cut a few years later, by the federal government and state government. Counties also cut their assistance to community colleges, and they hiked fees to pay for their ambitious building programs and to keep up the quality of their fringe benefits and salaries of employees.
As mostly a commuter student, state college prices were pretty low after aid. But it changed. In 2003, the state raided the finances of SUNY to pay for it’s ever growing budget, To make up for some of the state raid, they hiked and hiked again the cost of tuition, and let fees grow without cap or control. But it still was fairly affordable, living at home, and commuting. I only lived away from home for two semesters in college, and after the tuition hikes and cuts, it was like $5,000 a semester, but by spreading those semesters apart, I was able to pay for cash.
Today, in part because I graduated during a strong economy, I was able to get a very good job. I’ve worked my way up in the company, and are doing fairly well for myself. I had to work for the job, at first an unpaid volunteer, and then by persistent asking for favors from people and making phone calls and interviews. While I’m sure luck and timing played a role, I think it’s a mistake to say not most of it was my hard work.
I think I worked hard for my accomplishments – my college degree, my good job, my 4×4 pickup truck, and my outdoors gear. It wasn’t given to me by some luck on a roulette wheel. Rather, I took a conservative approach to my finances, and saved money. I worked hard, and the results paid off. But I also received many benefits from government programs like college aid, that made school much more affordable.
I believe if people work hard, they can get ahead. Not all will, and luck and timing have a bit to do with it — but it’s not all. The government can lend a helping hand, but it shouldn’t replace individual ambition to succeed at life.
It takes the NY State Department of Labor a long time to produce data on the Unemployment Rate. It usually is not released until the middle of the month proceeding month, so the data for September, was not released until around October 20th. The NYS DOL breaks unemployment data down by county, which is relatively easy to merge with Census TIGER Shapefiles, and produce some nice maps. Which is what I did.
Here is the NY State Unemployment Rate by County.
Notice how Rural Western NY has some of the lowest unemployment in the state, though the rate in Saratoga County, along with NY City suburbs of Putnam, Rockland, and Westchester Counties shows the economy is relatively strong in that portion of state too.
Unemployment tends to peak in the Southern Tier and also in the counties impacted by Hurricane Irene that month, e.g. those of the Catskills and the Central-Leatherstocking Region of state.
Here is the Change in NY State Unemployment Rate from September 2010 to 2011.
Notice how Western NY is creating jobs while the economy is stagnant or losing jobs in the regions impacted by Hurricane Irene. Those Hurricane-related job losses may be temporary, and not reflected in the October numbers, but they do suggest that there is a lot of growth occurring in Western NY, not occurring in the Eastern portion of state.
Also, note the weak economy in the Tug Hill Plateau region between 2010 and 2011. Unemployment has increased in Jefferson and Lewis County during that time period, while remaining stagnant in Oneida County. Definitely not good news in that rural part of state.
I probably will do a new series of maps come the release of the October numbers later in the month.
If you want to make god laugh, tell him your plans. — Van Zandt, Help Somebody
It seems like there is a lot of talk about planning these days. People are constantly urging us to make retirement plans on the radio, especially for the young. Cities are told they have to make 20 year solid waste plans, along with Comprehensive Plans through 2030.
What’s the obsession with plans? Why can not we as a society simply learn to live in sustainable ways today, and not spend so much effort focusing on tommorow? There is a difference between planning and sustainability:
Planning is…
Abstract plans
Based on a view of tomorrow by today’s ziegist
Educated guess based on today’s technology
Excuse for not doing things right today
Sustainability is…
Taking sensible steps today that are right for today and tomorrow
Not consuming more resources then we currently have access to
Avoiding debt unless it shows short-term benefit, and can be shown also to have a long-term benefit equal to payback time
There is a lot of talk about short-term pain for long-term gain these days. Yet, what should be the threshold for pain? While it would be irresponsible for us as a society and individuals, to ignore long-term consequences of our actions, it’s just as bad to scrimp today on false beliefs on what tommorow would look like.
Planners of all stripes are bound to take issue of prioritising sustainability over planning. They say, without a plan, how can you really know if your actions will lead you where you want? I disagree. Do what’s right for today, but also don’t destroy your world for tomorrow.
I rather amazes me how some people can run up these huge debts so quickly on credit cards through frivolous shopping. Some people are given the privilege and convenience of using a credit card only to get caught up in consumerism and outspend their ability to repay.
I have gotten offers frequently for credit cards throughout college, but those quickly ended up in the recycling bin. I felt credit cards where a waste of money and an unnecessary temptation that I did not want in my life. Yet, as I have grown older my opinion on these seemingly endless source of credit for people has changed.
I now see having a credit card as an important way to build credit by using the card for small purchases. I did not borrow any money for college so I have essentially no credit score and it’s something I want to build so some day I can have the money to buy land and money to build a farm.
Recently, I went searching for a credit card online and shifting through the variety of offers. Unfortunately, I found that the number of offers I could get where quite limited, with a limited credit history. The cards with good perks where either declined for me or required a yearly fee. It turns out that nowadays getting a credit card has gotten more difficult.
Ultimately, I settled on a very basic Capital One card, the one that’s so heavy advertised to college students including myself. It was free to get and use as long as you pay the balance back right away. The ceiling on the card was very low, but that’s fine for me. I don’t plan to use my card to finance anything expensive — it simply is a tool for me to build credit.
There is one additional benefit to having a credit card. It’s great for limited emergencies, when you run upon a situation where you need more money then is directly available in your bank account. When I have my card I will very rarely use it for this purpose. I believe a credit card should only be used for emergencies until you can get the funds from a savings account or other guaranteed place that ensures that it’s paid off as soon as possible.
It horrifies me to see how some people use credit cards for thoughtless consumption. Yet, I realize there are many legitimate uses of credit cards to build credit scores and bona fide emergencies. I believe that with restraint, that’s often so lacking in our society, credit cards are a good thing.
There is a view in our society that shopping at the Thrift Shop for clothes will somehow get you an inferior product, or will make you feel inferior. Yet, for some things, its make sense to look at a good thrift shop, and try to find out what you get can at a reasonable price.
Thrift Shops not only save you money on the clothes, they also save useful material from going to the landfill. Many people buy expensive clothing to wear for one or two occasions, only to stuff it in the dresser or hang it into their closet to be forgotten.
Some people have funny feelings about buy used clothing. It feels funny to think somebody else has worn a pare of clothing before you have put it on. Of course, our society is full of all kinds of creepiness and weirdness, if you only think about it. Be assured however, that used clothing places must either carefully wash or dry clean all their clothing before selling it.
When we choose to make do with what we have existing on our planet, and not demanding the extraction of new materials from the ground, its good for all of us. And while we cant survive entirely by shopping at the thrift shop, for the occasional blazer or suit pants, it might just fit the bill. And your saving the environment and a money at the same time.
