Wow, the economy around here is going south even faster than I expected. With every turn of the screw, I just back away another couple of feet, quietly drop another purchasing order I was going to make, buy a ream of paper instead of a case, and so on.

Not sure anyone is going to totally escape the bear. But if I get a nice little head start, maybe the bear will catch the other guys first. By the time he gets to me, maybe I'll have found some shelter or something. Maybe the cavalry will be on the way....

The lady cutting my hair yesterday would have none of it.

1.) there was no real problem with the economy (this after telling me that some of her builder clients were complaining.)

2.) it didn't matter to her. (I pointed out a several ways it may impact on her, but she just kept shaking her head.)

3.) and why was I stomping on people's dreams?

Hey, I'm all for taking a risk, of following your dream. But there's a difference between the calculated risk of playing blackjack with some knowledge and experience, or taking a wild-ass spin on the roulette wheel. Hell, I can even understand betting on red or black; (scary risky, but I can see the allure) -- but some of these new businesses are basically putting their entire bankroll on one number of the wheel and hoping to hit.

So? She asks.

I have a friend who mortgaged his house to start a business that had no chance, I say. He lost the business and the house.

That was his choice, she says.

Well, yeah, of course. But it seems kind of a brutal way to find out the true risk.

Linda pointed out that we had people tell us, we had no chance, we had no business, and here we are 28 years later and they're all gone.

But I had worked for Pegasus for 4 years; I did my homework before buying. My estimates turned out to be right on. A gamble, yes, but a calculated gamble.

Bend is completely overbuilt, and I can't understand why my barber lady couldn't understand that. I felt my voice rising, and myself going into an anti-growth rant, which was weird, because while these blogs may sound like a rant, they are at least measured and (driving bilbobuster crazy) even-handed. I was surprised by my own response and the resentment I felt.

Oh, well. What's going to happen is going to happen. I don't have the power to 'stomp on people's dreams', thank goodness.