Signs the Economic ‘Turndown' is Affecting You

• You’ve lost a lot of weight because you are back on the ‘one bologna sandwich and glass of milk per day’ diet.
• You’re debating bunking the kids in the mini van so you can rent their room for grocery money.
• The barristas at the local Starbucks call you fifty cen’ because you bring in recycled cups everyday for your 50 cent refill.
• You’re considering a career change to lawn boy.
• You’re on a first name basis with the local recycling guy.
• You have a dollar store shopping cart tucked away in your garage ‘just in case’
• You check the Hamburger Helper box ingredients to see if there is actual hamburger in it.
• You put on weekly garage sales with the treasures you found in your neighbors trash cans on trash night.
• You’re learning how to write government grants in order to get your own bailout.
• You’ve downloaded Skype and have cancelled your cell phone.
• You’ve become an expert at pirating other people’s wireless.
• You’ve retrofitted your old van as a summer home.
• This year you’re vacationing in your backyard.
• You’ve devised your own water filtration system using vacuum cleaner bags, construction paper, coffee cans and an old garden hose.
• You’re watering your dogs buried bones in hopes of growing a meat garden.
• While there may be other signs that the turndown is affecting you, these are surefire indicators.

Gotta go, looks like my neighbor is getting rid of a not too shabby treadmill.