The “Great Recession”, with Capital Letters.

My personal economics have changed a great deal since the beginning of the recession. My story is a nice, rich example of the complex issues of the American laborer/consumer.

January 2008 - I charged some things that could have waited to a credit card, because at the time I wanted them, and I figured I would pay off the cards within a month or two. This was MY FAULT.

March 2008 - My employment was terminated at one company which I worked for. To this day, I do not feel that the termination was justified. Nevertheless, my loss of that job was MY FAULT.

April 2008 - I secured a replacement job, about 45 days after I lost the former job. That loss of labor hours turned into more credit card debt. This is PARTLY MY FAULT.

March 2009 - I am laid off, along with many others (as a direct result of economic downsizing) from the job I secured for myself the previous April, but can still support myself with a secondary income. This is NOT MY FAULT.

April 2009 - The owner of the house I am renting defaults. I am forced to relocate. The cost of my new house is 25% more, and the location is much further away from the interstate corridor. This is NOT MY FAULT.

April 2009 - The same month, I take a vacation to New York which I had planned earlier, and spend money which I obviously should not spend. This is MY FAULT.

April 2009 - Tax season arrives, adding to my ballooning Credit Card debt. This is EVERYBODY’S FAULT.

October 2009 - I am rehired; but now I work downtown. Because of the direct result of the recession, I nolonger live within walking distance to the bus station, like I did before. This means that I must drive, and pay expensive garage fees on a daily basis. As a result, my daily commute costs 700% more than it did before. This is EVERYTHING ABOVE’S FAULT.

December 2009 - I am working again. I am pouring capital into the local economy. The fact that I spend hours on the road means that I boosting gas revenues. The fact that I spend almost all of my time away from home means that I pour more money into local dining. The fact that I work downtown as opposed to the suburbs means that I spend more money on commerce in general. That is good for the economy, but where does it leave me?

It leaves me feeling unspeakably grateful for the job that I have. In the last year, feeling like a caged rat without a real job to go to, I learned that work is about fulfilling a higher purpose, and money-making is more about loving what you do than just earning a dollar for the sake of a dollar. In fact, I am outlandishly happy.

Nevertheless, like many Americans, I can’t help noticing that the harder I work, the more life costs. If I wasn’t having so darn much fun, I would feel like I was on a variable-speed treadmill. I am not alone in this.

It is the result of my bad spending habits. It is cheered on by bad spending habits which I still hang onto, like my refusal to stop visiting Starbucks frequently. It is also the result of other people’s bad spending habits, and the result of personal carelessness in regard to other things, such as keeping the peace with people who have the power to fire.

The recession hit me, just like it hit everybody. Nevertheless, it has done more to remind me of how much I have done to cause my own financial discomfort than it has to make me feel like the victim of a force beyond my control.

It is true that I would be better off if certain things - like the layoff and having to move - wouldn’t have happened in the last year. On the same scale, if I wouldn’t have opened a credit card, I wouldn’t be in debt; and if I wouldn’t have spoken out of line once, I wouldn’t have ever lost a job in the first place.

Even in the shadow of all of the “could have beens”, there is new hope; because if this recession would not have forcibly jarred me out of my miserable and mundane zone of comfort and safety, I would not have been able to rethink my strategy, and renew my focus, and reboot my endeavors into a new set of circumstances that have more long-term potential.

I have shared my tale because what financial articles always leave out is the human error part of the scenario. They talk about numbers and refer to living people as if they were a crop of corn or potatoes; something that can be grown, fertilized, and harvested according to some kind of schedule. They overlook the bigger fact, which is that the “Great Recession” is 50% self-inflicted; that the great lack of confidence is also self-inflicted; that there is always a human element that evades the dynamics used as market fundamentals.

There is no simple victory; but if there is one thing which we all need to remember, it is - coining a phrase - the fierce urgency of the now.

- JHoward

Related Posts:

• Having a high savings rate is the right thing to do because it creates financial security.
• “The real recession is yet to start for most people who are now employed.”
• This recession is far from over! We’re just lucky that it did not turn in to a full depression.
• Sign of bad economy: December consumer spending data is worse than expected.
• If you want to see the real employment data paste the following into your browser.

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