In 1921, Richard Whiting, Gus Kahn and Raymond Egan wrote the hit song "Ain't We Got Fun." Today, whenever I read the news, I find myself humming that happy little tune ...
An article in The New York Times connected our current consumer spending slump and tightening credit markets to a "widening wave of bankruptcies in American retailing." Even retailers not facing bankruptcy are shutting down some of their stores. Thousands of closings are expected.
In anticipation of a "long economic downturn" and wanting "to preserve cash," Foot Locker plans to close 140 stores. Ann Taylor will shutter 117, and Zales will close 100. It's understood these closings will change the face of "suburban malls and downtown shopping districts across the country."
Two days later, another Times article covered notable store openings and offered a "Top 10 list of boutiques" located in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Paris. At these stores, a hooded sweater costs $297, Bermuda shorts are $172, and "St. Kilda's diamond star stud earrings are a steal at $198."
That's apples and oranges, you say. It's business page vs. style magazine. It's chain store vs. "concept boutique." It's Zales vs. St. Kilda's.
Apples and oranges, indeed. And that's what the song is about.
"Landlord's mad and getting madder, ain't we got fun
Times are bad and getting badder, still we have fun
There's nothing surer, the rich get rich and the poor get laid off
In the meantime, in between time, ain't we got fun."
On, ever on. This past week, a good friend told me about the Environmental Working Group (ewg.org). In celebration of Earth Day, I pass the information along.
EWG, a non-profit organization founded in 1993, helps protect public health and the environment by providing useful resources to consumers while pushing for national policy change. Their Web site is handy for those of us who feel we can no longer depend on the FDA.
So far, I've downloaded a copy of "Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce," and I've gathered information from "Skin Deep," a safety guide to cosmetics and personal care products.
"Skin Deep" pairs ingredients in more than 25,000 products against 50 definitive toxicity and regulatory databases. We can search by product, ingredient or company, learn what's in personal care products and act accordingly.
Anyone with allergies or a preference for organically grown ingredients, anyone wanting to avoid "fragrance" or products tested on animals can use an advanced search to create a list of products that meet these criteria. How smart is that?
EWG's Web site has valuable information about children's health, pet health, consumer products, energy policies, our environment, etc. There is much to learn ... and it's good to know what we're up against.
Last but not least, meerkats, those small burrowing animals from southern Africa, get a high ranking on my cuteness scale. Everything about them is cute: their little rounded heads, their pointy noses, the intelligent look in their eyes.
Imagine my delight when I learned that 11 of those furry brown bundles of energy have arrived at Tyler's Caldwell Zoo. Their enclosure is located across from lemur island in the South African section of the zoo. (I've been assured that the bottom of their enclosure is meerkat-proofed. Escape is not possible.)
Caldwell Zoo (caldwellzoo.org) is one of the special places in East Texas. It has given me hours of delight. And it just keeps getting better.
