New Shoes in the Rain

Do you shop online? Do you do this routinely, or just at Christmas? I ask because a big part of the news coverage this holiday season, as it was last year, was how our retail economy is faring in a generally bad economy. And while I don't know anyone personally who's forcibly unemployed, I'm sure that people I know DO know such folks, as you might. So, with all of that going on, the media has been highlighting every trend in retail sales since Thanksgiving, trying to divine some meaning that will tell us where the economy is headed. And today's morning news coverage spoke volumes about how fragile this economy has become as retailers all along the east coast suffered because of the wintry blast that dumped feet or at least many inches of snow on major cities. But what I didn't see is any mention of a corresponding jump in retail sales by homebound shoppers looking to check off their shopping list. I actually had a customer once who ran a family-owned business an

My wife and I did our Christmas shopping over the weekend. You read that correctly. We didn't start the process, nor did we "get a leg up" on the entire shopping list. We completed ALL of our holiday shopping. And did so in a foreign location called Cincinnati, Ohio. Allow me to explain.... Two or maybe three times a year, we make a trip to Cincinnati, largely because it's the biggest and best city that's less than two hours away by car. Because my job requires me to travel extensively, I accumulate a large quantity of hotel points, so we use those points for a room at a better hotel chain. And because the hotels are really hurting for leisure business, we don't have to pay out as many points as before, and sometimes get free stuff along with our stay. This particular time we were granted a room on the concierge level, so there were fewer people up there, and were comped our breakfast both days. So our primary cost--lodging--is no longer an issue, and o

I'm no sports expert, nor am I a journalist of any ilk, but what I am is a very interested observer in many aspects of the sports world. And a few things caught my attention since my last posting, which was about my Kentucky Wildcats of various sports. To wit: KENTUCKY FOOTBALL LOSES 25TH CONSECUTIVE GAME TO TENNESSEE: What is it about trying to beat their border rivals that causes so much heartache for Kentucky's up-and-coming football program? Around Lexington there was a lot of talk that "this could be the year" and I even encountered a member of Kentucky's athletic administration who gave me a couple of "Beat Tennessee" bumper stickers, which popped up all over town. Yet, once again, the Cats fell short and disappointed fans question coaching decisions, etc. Truth be told, Tennessee's skill players appear to be better, for the most part, than Kentucky's, and in greater supply. Until that changes we can expect this quarter-century strea