Let's Talk

Not With a Bang (But With a Cauliflower)

Posted November 4, 2009

It’s time, Fellow Whiners, to bring this wonderful experience to a close. So a brief discussion of cauliflower seems to be in order.

After all, it was a failed comparison-shopping hunt for that sometimes maligned and frequently overpriced vegetable, up and down the streets of the Upper West Side of Manhattan, that helped lead to the launch of this website.  

It’s true that a costly head of cauliflower wasn’t the only thing that got us going (sorry, New York Times, we lied — or, at the very least, we exaggerated, when we told you the story of EconoWhiner’s origins).

In fact, it was a more general recognition that the ever-weakening economy was killing us — at a time when we lacked the psychic energy and simplest survival mechanisms to cope — during an era in which the whole notion of in-demand job skills was becoming increasingly anachronistic — that led us to where we are now. 

We knew that we weren’t alone. We wanted to create an online community in which people could band together to share their rage and confusion, ideas and emotional support. You came. Indeed, we weren’t alone.

By now, you know many things about us, so we think that you know it’s been a struggle, sometimes, to keep EconoWhiner going. The cost. The time. Those days when only a few people sent in a comment. Did we mention: The time.

We thought about closing the site on our one-year anniversary, but your outpouring of support convinced us to give it another try. But it didn’t work. Despite our most fervent wishes (and hard work with no end in sight from the always magnificent Deputy Whiner, Kascha Piotrzkowski), we can’t keep it going any more. Life has just gotten in the way. We face some big challenges and they’re taking all the time and energy we’ve got.

So it’s time for us to say goodbye to you, dear friends. Now and forever, we wish you all the very, very best. You deserve it. You’re smart and you’re talented. You’re hardworking. You keep trying new ideas. (Jerla, who else except you would embark on that whacky plan of writing one-thirtieth or whatever it is of a 50,000 word novel every day? We’ll see you on the best-seller lists!) 

In the face of incredible adversity, you don’t give up (you know who you are).

Every one of you who has ever sent in a comment or an email has been an inspiration to us.  But to all those of you who didn’t, please know that it’s meant the world to us to know that you’re there.

We’re not alone. During the toughest of times, that has meant so much, we believe, to so many of us.

Guess it’s time, finally, for that cauliflower. We prefer to toss it in olive oil and kosher salt. Then roast it for 45 minutes to one hour in a 425 degree oven.

When you make it that way, think of us.

The Whiner wants to know: What do you want to say? We’ll leave the site up for at least awhile so that you can share any thoughts you might have with our community. Or, if you prefer, please send an email to jfraser@econowhiner.com. Our thanks, as always, for everything.

First Person

A Tale of Two Utilities

Posted November 1, 2009

Rotting infrastructure plays a large part in all our lives these days, it seems. Bridges and roadways fail, water mains spring leaks. In our case, living in an older home in an older town makes for lots of necessary repairs.

Over the last few years, we had two major repairs, one to the gas line and one to the water line.  Although both are utilities, any similarity between the two experiences ends there.

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Let's Talk

Our Weekend Plans

Posted October 31, 2009

It’s one of those weekends for Whiner-in-Chief where there’s not much spare time for fun and games.

Actually, whatever happened to fun and games?

W-i-C is focused on helping Offspring #2 make some headway with college applications. Shopping, bill-paying, laundry, and more of the same. Finishing an editing project (a freebie for a friend which has dragged on for so long that it’s becoming an embarrassment, but what can you do when you can’t even remember what spare time looked like?). Hopefully, squeezing in a visit to Elderly Parents #1 and #2.

You know the drill: Get to the end of the weekend and start all over again.

The Whiner wants to know: What are you doing this weekend — something fun or at least productive, we hope? Do you ever find that your “time off” is more demanding and exhausting than the rest of your week? How do you cope?

Let's Talk

Unexpected Great Moments (Yes, They Happen)

Posted October 30, 2009

So.

It started out like one of those days. Whiner-in-Chief woke up at 5:50 a.m., went to the gym, rushed off to various work-related commitments, worked like a maniac, eventually skipped out on everything to head off to what may well be (and hopefully indeed will be) her last set of parent-teacher conferences ever. Yes, it was one of those days.

But the conferences weren’t too terrible (in the crazed city in which W-i-C lives — in which school matters are governed by our billionaire mayor-for-life — parents race from room to room, hoping to beat out all the other parents in the mad dash to squeeze in a three-minute conference with each teacher). W-i-C and The Guru were out the door in just about 60 minutes. That left time for cheap eats at the restaurant down the block.

But guess what happened next? A neighbor, from way back when, arrived, guitar in hand, with the rest of his trio. (Who knew? he’s really just a basically unemployed would-be environmentally-friendly contractor who turns out to have a sweet voice and an even sweeter touch for choosing songs).

It was a delight. It turns out that he can sing (kind of, but more than good enough). Whiner-in-Chief settled back, very happily, with a second glass of house red. All was right with the world. Fellow Whiners, we wish you a night like this as well.

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Food & Drink

Cheap Eats: What’s Good About Stir-Fry

Posted October 29, 2009

Vegetables and rice, very nice.  We love to whip up a quick stir-fry when we’re pressed for time, and a more elaborate version when there’s time to dawdle in the kitchen. Whether we pick a bold or mild combination of flavorings and spices, the crunchiness and fast cooking time mean that stir-frying may be our all-time favorite way to eat our veggies.

And stir-fry’s a very healthy and inexpensive meal. We keep a good selection of rice in our pantry, and when we’re steering toward stir-fry, we usually pick brown, basmati, or jasmine rice. All we need, then, is a selection of fresh veggies, maybe a little meat, lower-sodium tamari soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, ginger, garlic, cilantro, and our favorite hot condiment, Sriracha chili sauce — all things we keep on hand, and buy whenever we can get them cheap.

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Let's Talk

How Is It Possible We Never Asked This Question Until Now?

Posted October 28, 2009

What’s the worst mistake you ever made in your worklife?

If you’re like us, you may have a hard time selecting just one “worst” mistake. Ours fall into such broad categories as: refusing to network; turning down apparently dream jobs that probably were dream jobs; and loyalty to old jobs and old bosses to the point of self-destructive insanity.

If absolutely pressed to pin down a single biggest error, however, we’d have to point to our decision to stay in our chosen field years after it became clear that said field was, in polite terms, a goner.

No, we weren’t among the very last ones out the door. But, yes, we stuck around much too long — long enough to have accumulated a lot of bad memories about how people behave when they’re scared that there’s no longer any way out.  When there’s nowhere near enough money to go around. No future. Not much of a present. And too many practically paralyzing tall tales about the good old days when work scarcely was work.

The Whiner wants to know: What would you do differently about your work life, if you could? What was that worst mistake — and did you know it at the time? What were the consequences? Are you still suffering from them?

Well-Being

Don’t Miss the Best Movie of the Year

Posted October 27, 2009

Whiner-in-Chief, Offspring #2, and The Guru just had a great — underline that, great — night at the movies. And we urge you, we we beg you, to follow in our footsteps. “Where the Wild Things Are” isn’t just an absolutely terrific adaptation of a timeless children’s classic.

It’s the knock-out, no-doubt-about-it, best movie of 2009.

Two irresistible points. We have never, ever, ever seen a movie that did a better job of conveying the exuberant, terrifying, ecstatic, heartbreaking, violent, emotionally-over-the-top experience of just being a little boy. And we’ve likewise never seen a movie that conveyed the uncontrollable highs and lows of emotional life as experienced by any of us, no matter what our age may be.

See this movie. But we must add one more point: Watching it, we were reminded of just how deeply a children’s book can influence our lives. It doesn’t even need to be as visually captivating or beautifully written as Maurice Sendak’s book is. There’s no doubt that Whiner-in-Chief was just as influenced by Nancy Drew mysteries (and Brenda Starr: Star Reporter comic books) as she was by Little Women. Some people don’t even think Little Women is well-written. We don’t care.

The Whiner wants to know: What were the children’s books that influenced you or your family? Why did they matter to you so much? Are there any children’s books that you’ve read as an adult and still been influenced by?

Jobs

Job Creation Brought to You by Swine Flu

Posted October 26, 2009

Ladies and Germs, we know that the swine flu is bad. It’s here, it’s nasty, and we’d better get used to it. And of course we’re worried and we’re reading all about it, a lot of the time — maybe more than we should be.

Yesterday we stumbled across an article announcing a shortage of hand sanitizer. It seems people may be hoarding the stuff. Some retailers may run out. Sales are up by a factor of three.  Which means the factories are running 24/7; they’ve even hired additional workers to try to keep up with demand.

It’s job creation, brought to us by the Swine Flu. A stimulus in microbe’s clothing.

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In the News

The Hammer Comes Down on Executive Pay — or Does It?

Posted October 24, 2009

Executive pay is under fire, and it’s about time, too. First U.S. “Pay Czar” Kenneth Feinberg plans to cut compensation of the 25 highest-paid employees at seven firms that received “exceptional” TARP bailouts. And these cuts sound serious: overall compensation will be cut in half, and cash payouts by an average of 90%.

Meanwhile, the Fed proposed new guidelines for pay practices at banks, and is launching a review of those practices at the 28 largest institutions.

Before we throw our hats in the air, though, we’ll need to see some more detail on exactly what’s happening here. The main thrust seems to be a plan to shift compensation toward non-cash, longer-term rewards like stock to help curb excessively risky behaviors like those that brought about the whole EconoMess.

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Shoestring Spending

Here’s One Way We Cut Costs (What About You?)

Posted October 23, 2009

Whiner-in-Chief recently went shopping for a new pair of cold-weather boots.

While this wasn’t exactly high on her list of fun ways to spend either her spare change or her spare time, it was a complete necessity, since Offspring #2 absconded with the old pair. (Life as a high school senior apparently doesn’t leave much time for shoe-shopping, unless you happen to live life on a reality television show.)

Fortunately — as has been mentioned and mentioned and mentioned — W-i-C is one of the shortest adults who ever lived. (Good to know that Fellow Whiner Geri is too; we may not see eye-to-eye when it comes to politics, but clearly we’re at eye level when it comes to everything else.)

Result: Whiner-in-Chief just bought her boots in a kids’ store packed with 6 to 10 year olds. True, the noise level left something to be desired. (So did that kid who kept attempting to walk off with her handbag.)

But the price for one very trendy new pair of extremely warm and cozy UGG boots was about one-third what W-i-C would have paid in a store that took care of adults. And they even came with a lollipop.

The Whiner wants to know: What tricks do you keep up your sleeve when it comes to ways to save money, especially on clothing? Are there some items you just won’t buy at today’s prices? Or, really good deals that you’re stocking up on?

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