Wal-Mart Shoppers are Tapped Out

A sign of the times.

Wal-Mart says its own prices on groceries and goods are continuing to fall, which is part of the reason people are spending less there, but it is noteworthy that shoppers are not using their “savings” found in the grocery aisle to buy something else in the toy aisle. They’re actually pocketing the savings and going home.

It’s not surprising. The pinch is being felt all-over. Twice in the past two weeks my husband and I have had to tamp down our instinct to send flowers to people (one had lost a beloved pet, hard on the loss of a spouse; another had broken a wrist) and sent cards with personal notes, instead. We’re foregoing a scouting dinner for a retiree (something my very social husband would never miss, under normal circumstances), for the “card and personal note” routine. Basically, we’re trying not to spend, at all, if we can help it, and I know we are just in the same boat everyone else is in.

I find myself getting more use than I expected out of Clara’s Depression Recipes.