Life has taught me the value of patience. Not that I have adapted to patience well, but that patience has golden moments.
Such as: “Don’t like the weather? Wait a minute.” This adage
is common throughout the United States.
I first encountered it in New England, western Massachusetts
specifically. There the hills and valleys located between the mountains of
upstate New York and the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Boston, trapped moving
air and caused weather front disruptions. Often we had days of beautiful
sunshine one moment, and a scattered shower the next. Or a warm day today, and
snow and chill tomorrow. Just what we displaced southern Californians needed, right?
Later, the weather patience advice popped up in Ohio, New
York, Illinois and just about any other state I visited or lived in. This is
not a unique statement to any region I learned.
Today, we have another lesson in patience. Inflation and
economic turbulence.
When the nation shut down normal routines due to the COVID
pandemic, we expected economic repercussions. They arrived almost
immediately. Many effects were expected, but most did not appear as we had
thought. Housing sales still took place. Work continued from home. Working from
home caused economic pain for downtown work areas where bars, restaurants and
commuter services thrived in normal times. Now they were dead. Silent. Other
segments of the economy were affected as well.
Some affects were good. Family time improved. Meal
preparations and grocery sales spiked. Household expenses dropped (laundry, dry
cleaning, clothing purchases and tailoring and shoe repair services, etc.) Gasoline
costs dropped as did all other commuting costs (public transit, commuter train
tickets, etc.). The new car remained new much longer. The old car seemed to
work just fine.
Painting and redecorating rose as families lived more
intensively in their homes. Businesses related to home improvements and
furniture welcomed the increase in business.
Now as the pandemic eases enough for the economy to begin
its return to an unfolding normal, supplies and services are suddenly in
demand again. Dislocations in supply chains for goods, and staffing changes
have caused a slow return to full operations for many businesses. Shortages
appear and prices rise. This is true in restaurant services, home prices, used
and new car pricing, and a host of other supply and demand situations.
How do we cope with all this? With patience. You knew I
would say that!
And patience is the perfect answer. You don’t need a new
home immediately. You can wait for a better selection of available properties. You
can wait and build your dream home or search a favorite area of old and watch
home listings in future months for opportunities. Filling the home purchase
need immediately is nonsense unless you are homeless. That is another matter.
If a working spouse has transferred to another city or state, he or she can
move there for the new job while living in temporary, short-term housing. The
family remains behind with the family home and arranges a timely sale, then a
move to the new location. Immediate relocation of the family simply doesn’t
have to happen. Many generations of Americans survived such changes in the
past. Your situation is not unique.
Same with the car. The old car can last another 10,000 miles.
A new car to replace the old is not necessary if a late model used car is
readily available. No emergency drives you to purchase the new(er) car right
this minute. If such a need exists, pricing can be lessened in a number of ways
(lease, older vehicle, etc.).
As a senior citizen living on a fixed income, we avoid
buying items with inflated prices. We go without or find a substitute. We are
adaptable. We will wait for better pricing and availability. Or continue to go
without.
Americans are used to immediate satisfaction. That is an
unrealistic expectation. The pandemic helped us break a lot of expectations.
Let this be another one of those.
August 20, 2021
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