I wrote a while back about the shock of finding out my physical therapist had moved from Michigan to North Carolina. That was bad enough until I found out around Christmas that my OB/GYN (who delivered Caroline) was relocating his practice to a distant town that is not convenient at all (90 minutes away). Boo hoo! I so dislike looking for health professionals. And I had gone through so much with Dr. M. that I felt good about our doctor/patient relationship (translated: he actually listened to me). And I loved the fact that he was in his own practice so it was very personal. Sigh. Now I’m trying to find someone else and so far everything else has been so less personal. I hate that.
So I know neither of these have anything to do with the economy, but the list of things I’m missing is steadily growing.
I finally found a style of jeans I liked and that fit well at L.L.Bean. Now they aren’t making them any longer because they can’t find a supplier or something.
I tried to stop by Tuesday Morning a few weeks ago to poke around and it was gone.
I found out yesterday I had received my last issue of Cooking for 2 because it will no longer be published. Instead they are substituting Taste of Home which used to be one of my favorite magazines until Reiman sold it to Reader’s Digest and ruined it. I knew as soon as they sold their magazines that they were ruined. Now they have ads in Country, Taste of Home, and such. I have all my back copies and just enjoy those.
And Saturday we went to Costco and stopped by The Fresh Market to pick up some snacks and discovered they were closing! We asked one of the employees about it and she said they had just found out on Wednesday and were closing on Sunday. I felt badly for the employees. That is a very short amount of time to find out you are losing your job.
So the list of casualties continues to grow. We have friends who have lost jobs because of companies going under. We have friends whose jobs are closely connected to the auto industry who are hanging on but wonder what will happen week to week.
After we left The Fresh Market on Saturday I said to David that I was starting to realize in a whole new way that things are really changing. Even if the economy turns around at some point in the future, there will be many great stores that won’t be there because they will just be gone. I knew that before, but it just hit me in a new way that day.
This is hard to think about. So far, praise God, my husband and I have safe jobs. And in Canada, Linens N Things is the only major chain that has closed. But our economies are so intertwined that what happens to you affects us (especially between states like Michigan and provinces like Ontario).
They are opening a new Fresh Market here! It’s moving into an old Barnes and Noble building, which moved to a new store. I guess our area (Richmond, VA) is doing ok because a new Target, Walmart, Penneys, Joann Fabrics, and more are opening in the coming months. But the woman across can’t sell her house…..it’s been on the market since last summer.
My husband sometimes teases me that if I like something, it’s like a death sentence for that thing… Many of the products I like to buy have been phased out, and several stores I like are gone too… Sigh.
It’s scary to think that it will get worse before it gets better. Even so far away from the US we feel the ripples of the economic slow down there. Although another joke we have here is that Filipinos won’t suffer much in the economic meltdown, cause we’re so used to being poor already. There’s a ring of truth to it tho. Being third world and not being able to acquire things on credit as easily as in the US has meant that our banks are not in as much danger of collapsing from unpaid loans and such. And many, many people are just so used to going without…
But we’re still affected and businesses closing down left and right make me sad and scared.
I am glad I can put my trust in the Lord to carry us through this time.
My freelance writing job is ending soon, directly related to the economy. Ad revenue drying up and all that.
It’s a real bummer and I’m quite blue about it. I don’t think I will be able to find something else right now as everything is drying up.
A small example, and I’ll be fine as long as my husband has his job. I agree though, in general, we are moving into the new territory. The boom years are over and were an illusion anyway.
I forgot another one… A regional soup place we liked to go to closed several weeks ago. Now they put in a Subway. Just what we need – another Subway.
Oh, I know what you mean, Sallie! Do we really need ANOTHER Subway?? *sigh*
If it’s any consolation, we still have a Restoration Hardware and a Tuesday Morning. I remember someone mentioning that their RH was closing, so I thought they all were. But ours is alive and well which surprised me. Maybe many of these companies are just cutting back on locations rather than going out of business? I sure hope so!
I lament all the time about how products I like end up discontinued. Happens all the time, unfortunately. The worst is make-up. I get so tired of trying new make-up products that I end up unhappy with. Last time I took the item back to the store for a refund. And they accepted it.
I guess flexibility is the key to get through this tumultuous time.
I rarely go to the Mall so I was quite surprised recently to walk around while waiting for Christopher and a number of the stores had left. I knew some of the national chains had gone under but this was rather scary.
At the same time, there were lots of cars at the Mall so some stores are still getting the people in, unless they are all there for deeply discounted items which won’t help keep them in business. The only business that I spent money at was the Panera in the Mall and that was a cup of coffee.
I don’t like the Mall but I’d hate to see all those people lose their jobs.
Hmmm… I hope the Tuesday Morning here doesn’t go out!
We have had a number of stores close here in Nashville. There is one mall near us that is vacant except for one anchor store – Macy’s. I hear rumors that they will be closing also. I did go to another mall with my cousin a few weekends ago on a Saturday and it was like a ghost town. It was a high-end mall though, so maybe that accounts for it. Neither of us bought anything.
Our Tuesday morning went out of business about 5 months ago, and I hate that. They were the one true discount store near us.
I hear you loud and clear! My Dr. retired. We have been to Tuesday Mornings three months in a row to find them closed. I am having a book giveaway for a great book, Free Yourself to Love, The Liberating Power of Forgiveness. Come by and sign up. However, the way things are going for you–you probably won’t win. (Just teasing. Why not give it a try).
I was surprised that The Fresh Market was expanding over the last years. I live in the town where the chain got its start, and they have two spanking brand new stores here. Very nice, upscale markets. They are way price-y for our area too. When I occasionally shop there, I see mostly affluent retirees and rich folks. (I love to get a Sunday roast there as the butchers/meat quality in the “regular” grocery stores are not so great.)
Something I’ve noticed is that product stock and choices are dwindling everywhere around here. I used to go into Garden Ridge where one could find anything home-related from patio furniture & yard art, kitchenwares, storage systems, silk floral supplies, crafting supplies, frames and decorations, etc. On a lark, I went into the store the other day, and they had majorly cut back on the products they offered. The crafting supply section was totally gone. The Michaels here has also followed suit.
I’ve been trying to find consigned or old chests of drawers for my children lately for cheap, and even the thrift and junk stores are depleted!
The only places around here that seem to stay open seem to be the nail salons, law offices and Subways, haha of course.
Ok everyone: What is the appeal of Tuesday Mornings? I just looked up the hours of the one near our house. Can anyone describe it to me? Thanks!
There’s still a Zoups on Cascade…not too far of a drive
Imajackson, the appeal is that you can get high end goods at greatly-reduced prices. It’s sort of a high end Big Lots.