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The last few days have favored us with soaking cold mists and chill winds. Mushrooms shoot up overnight and green mold appears on every vertical surface including our relatively new vinyl siding.

My normally sunny spirits are on hold and my thoughts increasingly turn to the state of our economy and the nonsense that is spouted by those we have elected and the media lackeys who curry favor with them.

To shake off my gloom, I drove into town to pick up supplies and prospect for business. Downtown Floyd has a charm that lifts my mood in the worst of seasons, but this inclement weather is hard on visitors.

The streets of downtown Floyd are normally crowded with strolling shoppers on Fridays, but today there were only a few hardy souls bundled up against the cold.

Inside the shops people chatted and exchanged greetings as usual, but conversations inevitably touched upon a sense of dwindling confidence in the economy and unhappiness with government policies.

Money is so tight that most people I know have significantly changed their buying patterns. Local businesses are lowering prices or developing lower priced goods and services to reflect the needs of their customers.

Even though most business owners are trying to be realistic and are doing what they can to tough things out, there is a pervasive feeling that the economy is not stable and may subside at any moment.

Most people still seem to have long term hopes, but are actually planning and executing on a month to month basis.

It seems like more people are making major changes to their lifestyles in an effort to deal with worsening financial situations. Those with jobs are developing craft opportunities in an effort to generate additional income. Those who are out of work or are in changed family circumstances are doing odd jobs and even cleaning houses to make ends meet.

People are resilient and those who concentrate on providing worthwhile products and services for those who need them will survive and will be ready to take advantage of the next economic recovery.

The current economic situation will not change for the better until true job creation occurs in the free enterprise sector. For more thoughts on what that might entail, read past the jump.
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