Tiny
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Post by Tiny on May 14, 2020 13:28:27 GMT -5
I'm a bad consumer. I don't consume much. So far during the pandemic pretty much everything I do "consume" has been available. I haven't been able to "consume" convenience spur of the moment stuff like snacks (at work), or drinks after work, or impulse purchases from stores as I was "ninja shopping" from a list. My life looks and feels a lot like what it did pre-pandemic. I'm pretty much still doing stuff that was on my "social calendar" - it's just alittle different. I'm doing house/yard/car maintenance on schedule. I'm going to work. I continue to lead a dull and boring life. So, the whole "small businesses going broke" thing got me wondering. As in WHaT small businesses aren't doing business - I've heard about hairstylists (and salons) and sit down restaurants. And I would imagine dog groomers (there's a zillon labradoodles that will need to be pelted soon...   . SO, what other kinds of businesses AREN"T doing business? (I'm not a good consumer... nothing has dropped off my plate of "consumption" so I wonder what I haven't been consuming that I should have been.) What kinds of services/products that you use to use on a schedule (daily, weekly,monthly, some other time frame) other than take out food/restaurants or "travel" or personal grooming are you not consuming? I want to know what I'm missing out on... cause I feel like I'm missing out on the whole "pandemic" experience - cause my life isn't all that different.
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Lizard Queen
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103/2024
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Post by Lizard Queen on May 14, 2020 13:38:48 GMT -5
Gas, daycare, entertainment for the kids (trampoline park, zoo/stuff like that, recreation/sports equipment). Also less makeup, hair color and clothing.
ETA: our lives usually revolve around the kids, working, trying to maintain the house, and collapsing in exhaustion.
Another ETA: gym membership is on hold with the shutdowns. Not sure how quickly we'll go back even if it's opened again soon.
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Opti
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Post by Opti on May 14, 2020 13:40:47 GMT -5
What I miss is running into Whole Foods to buy just a little of something for lunch. I wonder if buffets there and in other grocery stores are going to come back in the next year or so.
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wvugurl26
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Post by wvugurl26 on May 14, 2020 13:46:09 GMT -5
West Virginia is reopening dine in restaurants to 50% capacity soon. Among the rules is one saying no salad bars or buffets. I'm not sure when those will be back. By the time I got through the list, I don't see why you would want to go. If it's suggested the server limit visits to the table, I might as well order carry out and eat at home and serve myself.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2020 13:57:58 GMT -5
My life is pretty much the same except I don't actually get to see family and friends. The vet still does grooming; Abby has an appointment at the end of May. I rarely went out to eat except with my DIL. I only shopped for clothes a couple of times a year. I only get my hair cut about every 4 months. We are doing drive-in church now, which isn't exactly the same but gets me out of the house to worship once a week. Maintenance goes on. The lawn crew comes every other week. The exterminator, painter, electrician, and plumber have all been out, a couple of them twice since this started. I do miss thinking of something I want or need (usually want) and just hopping in the car to go get it. Now my trips to the store are deliberately planned to be once a week, in/out. But basically my life is the same as it was after DH died and pretty much the same as it was when he was so sick. I didn't go places then or if I did, it was in/out as fast as possible. The biggest difference was that we had each other. Now it is just me and Abby. We'll survive.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on May 14, 2020 14:00:16 GMT -5
A lot of our social calendar involved eating out, so that has ground to a screeching halt. I had a weekly standing lunch date with an elderly neighbor. We had a weekly standing happy hour with a group of TD's engineering friends, where we wound up eating dinner. Our ballet and opera tickets were in Seattle, so that involved catching a meal in Seattle either before or after the show.
Our gas consumption has gone waaaay down. I don't think that we have used a tank full of gas between 3 cars in over 2 months. The longest trip that has been made since 3/7 was when TD was called into an onsite meeting at the refinery in Ferndale, about 20 miles away.
I need a pedicure, but I'll live. TD badly needs a haircut, but he'll live too.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on May 14, 2020 14:06:49 GMT -5
meeting up with friends for a happy hour, stopping in the store to pick up something for my kid. I can soon crank my hair up to 1986, except it's gray. My feet are going to need a sander on them. My eyebrows look like oscar the grouch.
My dog badly needs a bath and i let the groomer do that.
I'm still letting my cleaning lady in. Im not supposed to, but I do.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2020 14:12:01 GMT -5
The huge ones for me are no teachers or daycare. Kids need haircuts and we normally go to the science museum, zoo, or something similar at least once a month. As for "goods", there really isn't much I can't get off of Amazon. I'm actually spending a lot more online on non-essentials than I used to and am using the lockdown and decreased spending in other areas to justify it.
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on May 14, 2020 14:12:36 GMT -5
So, what kinds of businesses had to completely shut down other than sit down restaurants, local bars, and "personal care" salons?
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on May 14, 2020 14:14:40 GMT -5
So, what kinds of businesses had to completely shut down other than sit down restaurants, local bars, and "personal care" salons? My PT has shut down. Along that line, there are a whole batch of hurting people who need elective surgeries who are waiting for phone calls that hip replacements are starting back up.
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on May 14, 2020 14:15:09 GMT -5
Can you get a hairstylist to make a house call?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2020 14:19:26 GMT -5
So, what kinds of businesses had to completely shut down other than sit down restaurants, local bars, and "personal care" salons? Off the top of my head from our town, all the dentists, optometrists, chiropractors, the sporting goods store, the book store, all the stores that just sold clothing, dog groomer, the phone places (Sprint, Verizon), the music store, theatre, car dealerships (service is open).
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Opti
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Post by Opti on May 14, 2020 14:22:38 GMT -5
So, what kinds of businesses had to completely shut down other than sit down restaurants, local bars, and "personal care" salons? Not a business per se, but the libraries are all closed. A local gas station closed probably due to the lack of traffic.
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pooks
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Post by pooks on May 14, 2020 14:25:27 GMT -5
I like to go to concerts and shows. I was supposed to see Emma at the outdoor theater this summer, but haven't bought tickets yet, because the first 2 shows of the season are already canceled. I can't imagine wanting to be in a filled venue for concerts, even if one came to town.
ETA: I also usually plan some type of vacation and we haven't planned anything.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 14, 2020 14:27:50 GMT -5
So, what kinds of businesses had to completely shut down other than sit down restaurants, local bars, and "personal care" salons? Casinos, museums, the zoo, stores that sold only clothing, make up or other non essentials, the library, bookstores, music stores, the schools, churches. Chiropactors, day spas, massage parlors, tattoo parlors, malls, dance studios, karate studios, gyms, dog groomers (though PetSmart just started up again by appointment only and they come get your dog from the car). That's what I can come up with off the top of my head
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on May 14, 2020 14:28:03 GMT -5
I'm not sure that our dog trainers business will survive. Or what it will look like when the dust settles.
We're still paying for martial arts but not sure when they will open or when we will go back. I would be crushed if they didn't reopen.
Saw a craft business put up a last call plea for diy kit sales, figure they'll go under. There's a repurposed store I love to buy from that I don't know if they'll make it. Get doors, Windows, live slab wood, antique fixtures from them. Saw my favorite diner has closed up shop.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on May 14, 2020 14:30:16 GMT -5
Seattle Opera and ballet season is pretty much toast. As we have season tickets for both, we have taken a beating on those. They did offer to reimburse the ticket costs, but also asked us if we would consider our tickets a charitable donation. I think we lost 3 tickets from each (so about 12 tickets and around $1200 in ticket costs). Our local symphony season is also toast and guess we lost 3 shows there too. Those tickets were not quite so costly.
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haapai
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Post by haapai on May 14, 2020 14:31:42 GMT -5
My New Year's resolutions were to catch up on a whole lot of non-emergency healthcare services, get a haircut, get the dog groomed, and buy a damn smart phone. I started with my teeth and I think that I deserve some sort of congratulations for starting with the most painful stuff but I sure didn't get very far. I'm not doing so well on that resolution, so my spending on those categories has been pretty normal. I neglected this basic upkeep for years and now I can't do it even if I wanted to.
I desperately want to. My molars hurt. My glasses are badly scratched. I braid my split ends and tuck them under a hat. The dog is unkempt and under-vaccinated. I walk him mostly at night and search for his droppings by the light of a flip-phone.
So in other words, my spending hasn't changed much and this is not a good thing for either myself or the economy. I really want to start spending on non-emergency healthcare and veterinary services and have my mother (78) patiently teach me how to use an i-phone but none of those things will happen anytime soon. 'Tis frustrating. This was supposed to be the year when I caught up on a whole lot of deferred self-care and now I'm basically the "I want a haircut " lady with dingier teeth, cloudier specs, no clue as to how to take a picture on my phone, and a very dirty canine companion. I don't want to be wanna-haircut lady but I sure do sound like her.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 14, 2020 14:32:47 GMT -5
The Broadway tour season is completely bust. The symphony is still clinging to shows at the end of the year. Pretty sure the playhouse and Chanticleer's seasons are bust.
Supposedly Alice Cooper is coming in November so no refunds on tickets at this time. Not sure how that is going to work but if they can make it work I hope dad goes. He's playing a smaller venue so I suppose depending the number sold they won't open up sales for the rest of the floor. You could space people out in that venue pretty decently.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2020 14:36:21 GMT -5
Ashley for the Arts, a big music festival in WI that I always volunteer at was cancelled. No huge surprise there at all, and completely understandable because it's like 50,000 people together at once, but it makes me sad because it raised SO MUCH MONEY for the area schools and arts programs. Just our band would get about 15K donated annually.
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on May 14, 2020 14:38:58 GMT -5
The zoos are in a pretty scary situation. Even when things reopen, they won't sell tickets to the same amount that they would have, and the cost to keep things running is insane.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 14, 2020 14:39:23 GMT -5
College World series, Summer Arts Festival. Maha music festival and a few others I can't recall have been canceled. I am not sure at the moment about smaller things like Shakespeare on the Green and Jazz on the Green I think those have also been canceled.
Supposedly Iowa is determined to hold the State Fair. I don't have any freaking clue how they think they are going to pull that off. We will be skipping it this year if they do.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2020 14:43:47 GMT -5
Not much has changed since you said "excluding travel". I'm probably spending less on snacks "on the run" since I'm home most of the time and not confident about how safe it is to, say, swig down a bottle of pop from the convenience store shelves. Subway was always my favorite for road trips but if it's drive-through only I can't watch them make it and make sure they include enough jalapenos. When I feel it's safe to go to Des Moines to visit DS and family I'll probably bring my own food. I'm looking forward to my next haircut and dental cleaning. I'm well overdue for both. The zoos are in a pretty scary situation. Even when things reopen, they won't sell tickets to the same amount that they would have, and the cost to keep things running is insane. Yeah, I'm really wondering about some of the favorite places my granddaughters and I used to visit. The Des Moines Zoo? Maybe, but I'm sure the playground will be closed. The wonderfully hands-on Chicago Children's Museum? How do you germ-proof and virus-proof that? The Chicago Transit system, which my older granddaughter loved? Not for a LONG time. When I'd broached the idea of using that instead of Uber, DDIL's question, "Do you think it's safe?" seemed like the charmingly country-bumpkin question of someone raised in a tiny town in N. Iowa. Now it's a serious one for all of us. We're going to have to make some new traditions.
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stillmovingforward
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Post by stillmovingforward on May 14, 2020 15:03:46 GMT -5
Well, since I lost my job, I'm not using anything. So no: *haircut (I'll get one when they reopen, hard to get a job looking shaggy). *Lawn guy - I struggle to mow my yard but right now DD1 does it for me and I don't charge her rent 😁. *eating out - we used to go out once per week. Now we just talk about it. *dog bath - it should be warm enough for the hose soon.
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dannylion
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Post by dannylion on May 14, 2020 15:11:50 GMT -5
Our historic district has a lot of little shops catering to tourists and local people looking for interesting or "artisanal" stuff. There are, of course, several antique shops, a custom home decoration shop, several shops selling all kinds of handmade stuff like ceramics, jewelry, furniture, home decor, garden tchotchkes, vintage clothing, quilts, etc. There is a brewpub, a shop that sells brewing supplies, a bakery, candy shop, and similar types of establishments. Many of them had just started to recover after being wiped out (some for the second time) by a flood. They are all owned by individuals or families (no chain stores or national brands). Most of them are closed. Several of the restaurants are doing fairly well with takeout/curbside service, and the wine shop is doing virtual happy hours and wine tastings. The butcher shop and the bakery are still open.
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haapai
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Post by haapai on May 14, 2020 15:12:01 GMT -5
College World series, Summer Arts Festival. Maha music festival and a few others I can't recall have been canceled. I am not sure at the moment about smaller things like Shakespeare on the Green and Jazz on the Green I think those have also been canceled. Supposedly Iowa is determined to hold the State Fair. I don't have any freaking clue how they think they are going to pull that off. We will be skipping it this year if they do. That's kinda a trend. There are so many institutions announcing that they will find a way to pull it off or something like it off. Oftentimes, when someone starts thinking about what will go into making something like the original event or service happen, they pass.
I've been pretty shocked, so far, on how many folks are willing to make fools of themselves and burn up decades of trust and good will by making claims that patently unsafe events can happen.
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wvugurl26
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Post by wvugurl26 on May 14, 2020 15:12:27 GMT -5
They rescheduled one of our Broadway shows to August I don't think it is going to happen. Two have been cancelled. I credited those to next season's payments. I will make a donation to their foundation once the dust settles. Right now is a time of big payments for everything we typically attend.
One more show they are trying to reschedule. Baseball gave me a credit or refund option for March, April and May. I opted for the credit. I will take a refund on my suite deposit. That was for June so I'm still waiting on them to acknowledge it's not going to happen.
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teen persuasion
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Post by teen persuasion on May 14, 2020 15:14:07 GMT -5
I'm with you, Tiny - not much has changed for us, because we're not consumers, and everything is too damn far.
Things we've missed out on doing revolve around DS5's extracurriculars - no track meets, no Spring String Fest, no concerts. Other things are community events - no village wide garage sale (book sale for library), no parades, no duck derby in the canal. Then there's the larger regional events that won't happen this summer - no Celtic Fest, no Shakespeare in the Park, fireworks (already cancelled)...
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on May 14, 2020 15:38:23 GMT -5
Yeah, I had one regular season Opera and then the "Broadway/Opera" crossover show that didn't happen. The Broadway/opera show will go on next year (along with next years broadway/opera crossover show.). I had a Ring Cycle week planned in April that was a bust. I opted to donate the full amount of the tickets for the regular opera show I missed and the week worth of Opera and opera related things (for the Ring Cycle). That was all money I spent in early 2019 when I signed up for all of it. So, it didn't feel like a big 'loss of money'. I also donated the theater tickets I had (I have been taking advantage of the online content and video the Opera and the theater have been providing/producing.) I did re-new for the 2020/2021 season (starts in October 2020) so hopefully there will be performances again. In theory schools (and churches) are still "working" - e-learning and online mass? All the teachers I know in 3 states are still employed and getting a paycheck. I wouldn't be surprised if churches did 'donation by mail' kinds of drives for income. Oh yeah, a friend teaches Karate (or something like it) as a side gig. He tech savvy so he did an online weekly class meetings for his 4 groups of students. They just finished a 'session'. I'm not sure if he will do another round of it on line or not. He usually takes a break for the summers (since the kids all disperse and do summer stuff).
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nidena
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Post by nidena on May 14, 2020 15:41:32 GMT -5
Well, I had just arrived to my new state six weeks prior to all this. I hadn't yet taken the cats to the vet, gotten my teeth cleaned, seen my new PCM, signed up for Tai Chi or Archery or Ballroom Dancing. I also haven't started house hunting, yet, but that wasn't in the plans until late this month, at the earliest, anyway. I haven't been able to seek out a local business to print advertisements for my bra-fit workshops. And I haven't really been able to be a "tourist" in my new town.
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