Why Business is Bad

On the cable news and in the newspapers we read that business is suffering and many Americans are unemployed. I believe it - but if you went by how businesses are actually doing business day by day you'd have to wonder if things are that bad. Let me give you an example. I've been trying to get my driveway repaired for over a month now. There are only two listings in my city's phone book for driveway repair companies. If you call one they'll tell you that don't have time to help you. "We've got all the business we can handle," they tell me. The other company repeatedly promises to call back but never does. If I was looking to go into business right now I know what I would do.

Everywhere I look small businesses are extending poor service to potential customers. Contractors that hand out cards with email addresses and phone numbers that don't work. Small shops that don't post their hours and are closed on the weekend when you have time to shop. Shops that take a month longer than promised to repair your lawnmower and tell the customer not to call - they'll call you when they get around to fixing your mower. Are these the same people that complain about the economy and it's effect on their business?

Is it just me or do you ever get the feeling you could run most businesses better than their current owners do?

Facebook may be useful afterall

Experienced some serendipity today. I don't use Facebook that often but I did check it on Sunday. One of the notices on my wall from an old high school friend mentioned that her father had lost his dog and was sick about it. By happenstance a big dog that could barely walk had showed up in our front yard the day before and we had been feeding it and keeping it cool. I asked my old high school friend (which I hadn't seen since high school) what area her father had lost the dog in. For all I knew he lived in Maine. She replied with an address that was exactly the street I live on. Well, it turns out that we had her father's dog and they were happily reunited.

Beside Route 66

Just now recovering from a three-day trip to Albuquerque we made last week. But wow, the chili rellenos swimming in green chili sauce was worth it! I like the Southwestern cuisine so much better than the cheese-laden variety of Tex-Mex - although I do like Tex-Mex a lot. Nothing beats the green chili sauce though. And it's healthier too.

Sante Fe was far too crowded for the 4th of July holiday. The old town plaza was packed for a pancake festival and old car show. The museums were overpriced. New Mexico is the only place I've been to outside of China where museums and attractions have a two-price policy. A cheaper price for residents and a much higher price for out-of-state visitors. Seems like an odd way to attract tourists and a bit of a slap in the face.

So we took a pleasant drive through the National Forest lands around Los Alamos - the home of nuclear research. It was great to get out into nature and smell the evergreen trees. Thank goodness for National Forests and National Parks. Thank you Teddy Roosevelt. Thank you John Muir.

When I was younger my family took several trips out West on Route 66. The trip on Route 40 is much faster now but a lot is lost rushing by like we did on this trip. Still, the sight of Tucumcari Mesa, Clines Corners, the Big Texan in Amarillo bring back a lot of good memories. I hope I can someday make a more leisurely trip on what remains of the old Route 66.