Wife's battery in her Jeep died, so this morning we took it over to a

[FSogol]

tire-battery-brake shop near her office. It is a franchise of a national chain. It had 12 bays for repairs. There wasn't a single car or customer in the entire place. Nobody waiting. No cars left in the key drop or from the day before. The manager said it has been eerily slow and that he suspects that people are putting off repairs. He's been calling his employees and giving them extra (unpaid) days off, but since he's been able to spread it around, he hasn't had to lay anyone off.

We live in the Northern Virginian suburbs of Washington, DC. Other than a lot of vacant office space, the country's economic woes haven't really affected this area. I know many DU'ers aren't as fortunate as me and my family, but the nation's woes will not be corrected if we sit home on election day. Whether you are pissed at Obama or not, please vote for the Democratic candidate regardless of your feelings. It is the only long term solution.

My 2 cents.

[Botany]

1. One other thing about sitting home on election day

The U.S. Supreme Court!

Ginsburg will be retiring soon

Kennedy is 74

Scalia is 74

Thomas is 63

Roberts is only 56 but he might have epilepsy

Not to mention federal judgeships too.

[FSogol]

2. +1 n/t

[bobbolink]

15. That is an issue that doesn't bring people out to vote. IF you truly want votes, then the political

way to do that is to LISTEN to the electorate, and find ways of meeting their needs.

It really is Political Reality 101.

Yes, I know... I will now get a lecture about how we are ALL affected by the Supremes. What I am telling y0u is that y0u can keep repeating that, and then be very angry on election night (and rage at the "Stupid"), OR you can look at it politically, and look at those being ignored in the current political climate and appeal directly to what we/they are needing.

So, bring it on.............:(

[kickysnana]

24. It won't makea ny difference. They could have blocked these for moderates.

It is the ones they wanted in.

[RegieRocker]

3. I would've take care of that myself, not because I couldn't afford

it, but because I can and I save money.

[Obamanaut]

25. I read it as "Wife's battery..., so ...we took it..." as in they took the dead

battery to the tire/battery shop for a replacement.

What could you have done differently that would save money, if this was in fact the way it happened?

[RegieRocker]

27. Glad you asked. Had this happen to me last friday and yes

it was the wife's battery. How to save money you ask? It's cheaper at the auto parts store. D.I.Y. enuf said. No more.

[Obamanaut]

34. And the one I got for wife's car was even cheaper at WalMart. nt

[RegieRocker]

37. Even cheaper? You have a crystal ball or something?

The fact is doing it yourself is cheaper. You don't know what I payed nor do you know what kind of automobile it went into. You should stay away from WalMart.

[Obamanaut]

38. Yes, mine was even cheaper than the local auto parts store, so I don't

need to know what you "payed" for yours to compare those two prices of the replacement I bought. Don't need to know what kind of car your replacement was for me to know that the one I bought was cheaper at one place than the other.

I often go where I can save money when the product is comparable, regardless of the approval rating on an internet forum.

[RegieRocker]

40. Well mine was cheaper at the auto parts store because

Walmart doesn't carry a replacement batter for my wife's car. Now back to the real world. It's cheaper to do it yourself. End of story.

[Obamanaut]

41. Yes, it is cheaper to do it yourself, and that's why I did it myself. If you

followed your own advice about staying away from Walmart, how would you know they don't carry the battery you needed?

[RegieRocker]

42. My wife called

[Obamanaut]

43. But you would have gotten one, wouldn't you. Come on, you can

admit it.

[RegieRocker]

45. Nope. I don't do business with Auto Zone either. Don't trust the

merchandise.

[Tesha]

44. And Hey!, so what If some of your money goes towards electing Republicans, right?

[leveymg]

4. My car is more repair put off than car. And, I live in NoVa.

Neither I nor my wife work for defense contractors or the military. A lot of us in the DC suburbs don't. That explains all those empty repair bays, and the boarded-up retail space around here.

[RaleighNCDUer]

5. A long-time recession guage of mine is vehicle dings.

The number of cars you see on the street with cosmetic damage, but which do not effect the running of the vehicle.

The worse times are, the longer people go without fixing dinged fenders or doors or bumpers.

[Davis_X_Machina]

7. I have an informal...

...big-boys-toys-on-front-lawn index.

Everyone tries to sell their snow machine at the end of the winter, or sell their boats in the fall.

When you see snow machines for sale in November and December, or boats for sale in April and May, that's a bad sign.

[SharonAnn]

35. My indicator is the number of concrete trucks on the road. Lots of them when times are good,

Not many when times are bad.

[rurallib]

6. lots of cars on the highways with little time bomb repairs being put off

I think about this often when I drive down the interstate at 70 (+) mph.
Bridges need repair. Many empty houses.
I worked for a senate candidate last year driving him around from spot to spot. We visited many small towns in the midwest. Very, very sad. Seems like each had a Walmart on the edge of town and a slew of empty stores down town. Nearly all houses we went by looked like they needed major repair of some sort.

[FredStembottom]

8. Well, it's Step1 of a long-term solution, anyways.

Then after re-electing our Democrat place-holders, we begin the harder work of getting better Dems elected.

[thecrow]

9. My brother lives in NJ and he's a mechanic...

He's working every day and most days 14-16 hours.
He admits he's glad he has more work than he can handle,
and he's built his business reputation over the years.
Now he can't turn work away because he knows it could also
stop at any minute.

I live in NoVA too. (Hi, neighbor!)
I had a great job until 2008.
Have not worked since!
UI ran out last fall, so I am now dwindling my
retirement savings and stocks. I am in my 60s. Who's gonna hire me?

I am apalled at all the empty stores around here. Everywhere you go!
Yet I still see brand new cars driving around.
I have to stop driving soon because my car needs the A/C done.
This is not what I EVER pictured my life would be.
I did things right.... paid my bills, kept my credit clean, worked.
Now Wall St is rising again and people like me are sunk.
Welcome to Murka!!

[FSogol]

18. Luckily, Fairfax County doesn't have a lot of vacant stores. Prince William County

does and it is because they harassed Latino-owned businesses in an attempt to scare away illegal immigrants. Now they have fences around entire shopping center along Route 1. Very disturbing.

[JDPriestly]

10. I will vote. So will most DUers.

We will always vote for Democrats. But, I can only go out and talk to voters and campaign as I have done in the past if I have something to talk about.

So far, Obama hasn't given me or other DUers anything much to talk about.

The healthcare bill may eventually prove to be the best thing that ever happened to our country. But very few people have received any benefit thus far. And those of us on Medicare are scared. No one seems to be able to tell us just where the promised (or threatened) "savings" in Medicare expenditures are going to come from. We older folks have been around a few times, and we think we know -- out of our services and our pockets. That's where.

Obama's war record is abysmal. He never served, but he seems to love to throw America's sons and daughters into harm's way. Can't seem to watch a fight in any country without feeling the urge to interfere. Good heavens. He needs to take some time out from playing with his drones. Seriously, that is how it looks to grown-up Americans (those of us over 65).

Except for years when I did not live in the US, I have consistently voted and worked for Democrats since I first wore my Adlai pin in the fifth grade.

But I am fed up with what the Democrats of today are perpetrating on our country. Free trade, charter schools, a department of religious involvement in government, wars of aggression, snooping on citizens, 4th Amendment abuses, no habeas corpus for prisoners. The list of Obama's transgressions to a real liberal American like me is very long.

I really like Obama as a person. He has a nice way about him. But we need a better candidate. I just cannot go out and talk to voters about Obama's record. He has done a few nice things, but nothing to crow about. Sorry. Don't blame us. Blame Obama, Tim Geithner, Ben Bernanke, the Pentagon ---- Obama doesn't have to do their bidding. He could fire them if he wished.

[tularetom]

11. I know this is anecdotal but

Last week I went to the Apple store in a certain city in CA that begins with F and ends with o. Supposedly F----o County has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation and even farm employment has been cut back in recent years.

I was amazed, the Apple store is located in a shopping mall that has seen better days. Most of the stores that used to be in the mall have been replaced with shops that cater to the "yoot" market and more specifically, teenage girls. There were no vacant stores in the mall. The place was packed at 4 pm on a weekday afternoon it was hard to find a parking space and there were hordes of kids wandering around inside. They appeared to be spending money as well, since most of them were carrying bags. The cars in the lot seemed to be a pretty good cross section of late model domestic and Japanese sedans with the occasional SUV or pickup thrown in. In short the place had a feeling of prosperity to it, in an area where unemployment is pushing 20% and household incomes among the lowest in the state.

I don't know what these snapshots prove, but I was sort of dumbfounded at what I encountered.

[EC]

17. tax refunds?

it's always busier here when those start getting to the mailboxes.

[FSogol]

19. I think that even if people are cutting back, they still give their kids money to waste. n/t

[The Backlash Cometh]

12. It's Easter week. Everyone is on vacation.

[abelenkpe]

13. My family is from NoVA

My father ran a business there for 20 years after retiring from the navy. He sold his office as a short sale recently as business has been dismal. I left long ago but if DC is feeling the recession, you're right it is much much worse elsewhere.

[MedicalAdmin]

14. We are hanging on but just barely.

I have had to let an employee go for the first time ever. And because we ran a lean operation, my workload just doubled.

Patient load is down. People are putting off care until it is sometimes too late. We just had to tell a young mother with 2 kids that she has stage 4 cancer... It breaks my heart. They have no insurance and we help all we can, but it's gonna be spagetti dinners and a lot of wishful thinking.

[FSogol]

16. My company (an Architecture/Engineering firm) actually was doing really

well up until this year. The last couple of years, we added technical staff. Now our backlog of work is dwindling. We have some retirement coming up, so we probably won't have to have layoffs this year.

[ThomWV]

20. And what does one do if there is no Democrat worth a vote?

Because everyone who runs under the guise of being a Democrat hardly counts as one in my book. I won't chose a candidate based on the notion that he or she is the least offensive. Oh, and there is no indication what so ever that a vote for a Democrat is the only long term solution. I have been voting for nothing but Democrats for decades and very little is better now than the day I started, in fact much of it in much worse shape and all along the way supposed Democrats have hastened the fall. So No! Rather than vote for a bad Democrat I'll just pass, I've done it enough, I won't do it again.

[riverwalker]

21. another observation I made yesterday

behind the counter at Arby's, the check out at Target, etc., all were older people, over 60.
The jobs where you used to see teenagers, are now taken by over 60 folks.

[tammywammy]

22. I went out to lunch today

And the restaurant was crowded and very busy.

[bluestate10]

29. I agree with you. Everywhere I go is crowded. I am a speed shopper,

would be nice if shop and eating places were empty.

[MindPilot]

23. I was out and about this weekend...went to Costco & Lowes

My first impression would be "recession? What recession?"

Twenty minute wait in line to buy gas for $4.10, couldn't find a parking space within fifty yards of the front door. Costco was packed, Lowes was packed. There is an Ikea in that same center--I didn't go in, but there was a long line waiting to get to the loading area. Every place I went this past weekend I had to wait in line to spend money...even yesterday afternoon at my neighborhood vacuum cleaner parts store. I also went to my local Indian casino...packed.

If I had to make the judgment based on direct observation, I would say the economy is roaring ahead.

[bluestate10]

30. That has been mu experience.

I live in the wealthiest county of a wealthy state, so I have withheld an opinion because of those circumstances. But even when I venture outside my environment, shops and eating places are crowded and I am ducking and skirting around people just to walk three yards.

[Sonoman]

26. Our town's shoe repair guy is swamped.

But shoes are cheaper to repair than are cars.

Sonoman

[Snoutport]

28. Your advice is worth more than 2 cents.

[Chris_Texas]

31. Vote for corporate stooge A over corporate stooge B! Woo Hoo!

The Exxon Mobile, Locheed, Ge, Monsanto, BofA guy is EVIL!!!!

The BP, Chevron, Goldman Sachs, Alliance, Chase guy is GOOD!!!!

[madokie]

32. As true as words I've read

I wonder sometimes if they, they being the fatcats who can live through some hard times no problems cause they got all our money, want us at each others throats at some point taking some out on both sides. Sometimes the words said by some of the repukes make me wonder if they don't have a plan to where they're going to thin the herd some, if you will. Make whats left more owner friendly, People got too uppity with unions and such wanting an honest wage for an honest days work and a damn vacation each year too, to top it off. So they needed to be taken down a notch or two.
Sure this isn't needed but just in case :sarcasm:

sunsabitchs the whole lot of them

[Carni]

33. Those mechanics get paid "Book time"

Which is why that generous manager hasn't laid anyone off (they would be better off if they DID lay them off and they could collect unemployment)

I am in NOVA, we moved here from MI -- my husband owned a shop for 25 years. We came here and were rudely awakend to "book time" pay for mechanics.

If the shop doesn't have any business, those mechanics have to show up for 40 hours and they ONLY get paid for the jobs they do--mechanics don't have any control over the marketing, quality of the service in the shop (and this goes for dealerships too)

In rural VA the economy SUCKS.

My husband has been "laid off" for over two years.

[rhett o rick]

36. I volunteer at a food bank. The amount of food being collected is down. The director said that

that is common with other area food banks. The other telling statistic is that food kitchen participation is way up. The food bank directors figure that the poor are being moved out of their homes with facilities to cook food and now are living in tents and need food kitchens. Our food bank also supplies about 150 bags of groceries (that can be eaten w/o cooking) to the ministries that feed the homeless.

[barbtries]

39. yes

please VOTE.

[MattBaggins]

46. Or doing it themselves

Bought myself a Hayne's manual for my car yesterday and did my repairs myself for free. Did everything my car needed for under $100 bucks when my preferred shop was going to charge me 900 dollars.

I hate doing this in a way since the guys that normally fix my cars are great guys bu I don't have a job and am back in school but still have too kids and a mortgage. I have to do this myself.

I suppose this is the true "trickle down economics" republicans love so much.