Thursday, January 8, 2009

Show me the money (a'la Jerry Maguire..)

The current economic recession has been on everyone's mind from the last few months. Earlier it used to be more of a topic for debate and discussion but off late I have begun to see its impact from close quarters and it doesn't look pretty at all. Things have begun to look a little shaky at work what with the funding for our project being in jeopardy. I hear hushed whispers of how it would be better for all of us if we had "our options open". All kinds of rumors are being circulated and it is just adding to the uncertainty. For now,I am just glad I still have a job! I also see how some very close friends are grappling with their respective situations and it makes me feel very sad and frustrated.

A bunch of us had gone to the Winstar casino in Gainesville, OK, last weekend and for those 3-4 hours, it was so easy to forget about how bad the economy is and how it is impacting everybody. The casino is really huge and 80% of the area was filled with slot machines of different kinds.And every single one of them was occupied! People were merrily gambling away their money and each bet was a minimum of $100. We saw this guy lose $100 in less than 10 seconds at this high stake slot machine and he went on play for yet another $100 bet. We were not too keen on gambling as we were there to just have some fun and take in the sights so we decided to set ourselves a limit of a measly $10 each. The other seasoned gamblers had a good laugh at our expense! But then again it was our hard earned money and we were not willing to part with too much of it so there.

So yeah, its been a mixed start to the new year. There is some uncertainity but the possibilites are endless and I am determined to not get bogged down by the negativity and stay focussed. It is hard but I am sure it can be done.