Bucking the Trend

So we just made our final payment on our Honda, making us perhaps some of the only people in Orange County who've elected to forgo car payments for the more finer things in life (e.g. childcare, diapers, food, water, etc.). Given how things are looking on the economic front (two of my former mortgage banking clients simply no longer exist), we figured the right thing to do now would be to save up a little. Besides, after November we'll probably need to shell out a bit more in taxes to either 1) fund Obama's planned increases in social spending and welfare programs or 2)  kick in a bit more to help McCain extend the Iraq war's reach to Afghanistan and reignite the cold war with Russia on Sarah Palin's doorstep.

That said,  as we look around, we're starting to see signs that perhaps we're not the only ones in Orange County being a little more cautious these days. Therefore, thought we'd share a few data points we've collected recently that indicate that tougher times may be upon us. So without further ado, let's take a look and see how your locale compares:

1. We just about hit parity on the number of daily Lamborgini to Mercedes Smart Car sightings (seeing about 10 of each daily). Used to be no self-respecting Newport Coaster would be caught dead in car shorter than they were tall but  guess even the wealthiest among us are looking for better MPG.
   
   
2. Home builders are seriously slashing prices and throwing in huge, six-figure incentives for things like landscaping and designer options at The Tides in Crystal Cove. Better hurry and get your name on the list. Deals won't last long at these prices.

3. We tried to save a bit on pizza the other night by picking one up at Costco instead of getting a more expensive one from Gina's but, to our surprise, were informed that we should have "reserved" a pizza in advance and that all their pizzas were spoken for.

4. People are driving less and traffic's not too bad. Only took me 2 hours to drive from Irvine to Santa Monica the other day.  Pretty good for the 50 mile trek.

5. Saw my first "sign-twirler" on the corner promoting a Sushi Bar. Must be a lot of people that are now just opting to stay home with a can of "Chicken of the Sea" instead.

6. Church is packed.  To get Andrew into his normal, although over-subscribed, Sunday School class last weekend, Leslie had to escalate things to a higher power (the Sunday School Director...not the higher power).

7. Valet parking prices at John Wayne Airport just increased 10%. Can you believe I'll have to walk all the way from the parking garage to my gate now?

8. Local high-end restaurants are filing for bankruptcy due to increased costs and lower patronage. We went to these places all the time before we had kids. If everyone else who bought a house in Irvine 4-5 years ago had kids like us shortly thereafter, then I think I know why these places are struggling. Mental note - pay attention to demographics when launching a business.

9. Monthly costs for Kindercare have risen to about the same price as our fixed-rate mortgage. Wish we could have gotten fixed-price childcare.

10. Finding that the most fun our family has these days is when we take a few juice boxes and a shovel down to the beach, dig a hole and fill it up with water, then throw in a bunch of rocks.  Total cost?  Free.

Well that about sums it up for now. We'll keep you posted on how things are progressing but we're curious to hear about what you're seeing in your town(s) and what you're doing (if anything) to prepare. In the meantime, we've got some of those "finer things" to attend to - Owen needs another diaper change.