Has the Economic Spring Sprung?

Just what we need to change the money climate as well

Spring has sprung in this part of the world and the warmer weather, the change to summer time and last week’s possible bottoming out of the stock exchange has put a whole new look on the world. Let’s use this change to transform our dark and dreary thoughts about money and the world’s finances. Enough with the gloom and doom.

Spring is Sprung

I took a walk through town this morning and marveled at nature. She’s optimistic – there are new shoots on the trees. The air is filled with the smell of orange blossoms (meaning money next winter), new little flowers on all the olive trees (meaning more money next winter). Nature’s not giving up and neither should we.

I may even fulfill a nagging desire and buy myself a digital camera so that I can email pictures of spring around the world. A new camera will mean a new Payday Loan, but that’s okay, I’m sure my optimism will keep my job going, although it’s not looking good at the moment.

What I do

I work as a sub-contractor for a contractor who works for Intel. It sounds a bit like a daisy-chain affair but the relationships are very professional. In good times this was a great arrangement and I have had constant work since the mid 90’s. Some years were frantic and I never got to bed at all at the end of the day, and other years were slack and I had to turn to other means to make money. The last such bad patch was in 2003 when I found myself completely unemployed for some months until work started to trickle again.

Then it took off in earnest and the last 3 years have been hectic. Now it has stopped dead while Intel regroups in the face of the recession. So I find myself an odd-job man again.

What the town does

I’m sure I’ll manage, but I’m not so sure about Intel-town. The main Intel plant is situated in a small town in the south of the country. It was a ‘Nothing-Town’ before Intel arrived. Then it took off. Contractors and visitors flooded in, restaurants opened, cabs rushed up and down, sandwich bars appeared, a small shopping center was built, then a larger shopping center, then a major supermarket. Then Intel built a second and larger fab, and the town settled down to its status as the semi-conductor center of the world.

Intel launched educational facilities for the children of the town and training programs for the adults and became a responsible and important part of the town.

There was talk that maybe Intel would expand or even build a third fab, who knows? With a company like this in town anything is possible.

What now?

In the face of the recession Intel has turned off the tap. Normal production continues but there is no new development work. Perhaps they’re working less hours in the production halls where the local men and women work and that’s good news. But there are lay-offs and casualties and that’s bad news.

Let’s hope that a touch of spring comes to Intel-Town soon.