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Subscribe to RSSHere’s another thing to blame on the weak economy: The transition of the humble garage sale into an extreme enterprise.
This week at Life Inc., we wrote about communities that were cracking down on extreme garage sales, in which people are hawking goods every weekend or selling so many items the streets are clogged with traffic.
Some readers complained that law enforcement officials who are trying to curtail such extreme yard sales are ruining a good thing.
“That just goes to prove the government is trying to take over our freedoms whichever way they can,” one reader wrote on our Facebook page.
But others lamented that clogged streets and the constant presence of appliances on the front lawn can’t be good for anyone’s property value.
“No one needs to have a yard sale every weekend. I wouldn't want that in my neighborhood. These people are taking advantage of the situation. If they are doing it weekly then they are running a business. … Really, it's the old case of a few morons ruining it for everyone. Don't blame the city governments for actually doing their job,” one commenter said.
Speaking of jobs, here’s yet another thing to pin on the weak economy: The rise of extreme job interviewing.
In another Life Inc. post this week, we wrote about companies that are asking people to interview as many as 10 times for the same job.
Some readers defended multiple job interviews, saying it sometimes takes time for a company to assess whether they’re picking the right person for the job. Others said it shouldn’t take that long.
“10 interviews is just plain stupid- if the company isn't sure by about the 3rd interview then what's the point?” one reader wrote.
The job interview issue may be vexing in part because we all seem to want it all: A successful career, great kids, a strong marriage.
We also reported this week on a survey finding that young women now are more likely than young men to place high importance on a successful, high-paying career. But 18- to 34-year-old women don’t appear to be willing to sacrifice the personal for the professional; they also were more likely than men of the same age to place high value on kids and marriage.
More than half of the nearly 6,500 readers who took our poll said they place equal value on marriage, kids and career.
“To feel complete, I needed all of the above. And I was fortunate enough to achieve them all. Go for it!” one reader wrote.
But some readers noted that having it all sometimes means making sacrifices along the way.
“As a female professional with kids I've made professional and financial sacrifices to be a good parent. Just too much to do both full scale,” another reader wrote.
Leave a Comment:
You don't have it "All" if someone else is raising your children eight to ten hours a day for 250 days out of the year. I wouldn't trade all the years I had at home with my kids for all the "ALL" in the whole world, not for money, not for prestige, and not for whatever it is women get when they farm their children out to someone else to raise.
I'm not talking about women who have to work for the family to survive. I'm addressing only women who work because they want it "all". No, I'm the one who had it all, raising my own children. Our children are now grown, college educated, happy, responsible and well balanced. We are not rich now, but rich was never our priority.
How about a fair day's work for a fair day's pay...no weekends...no evenings unless they are included in your "fair day." It is ridiculous that making a decent wage requires a form of hours slavery by demanding more than the hours negotiated to be worked because a position is "exempt" from overtime. Either say - this is a 60 hour job and then pay that good wage for all 60 hours...or hire two 30-hour people, but stop sucking the hours and quality of human life from workers because you don't know want to pay what it really costs for your management tasks.
The complaint addressed in this article might better be, why are we accepting an unhealthy work culture for women and men. Why don't our norms and laws incorporate respect for the health of our entire culture, one that includes a priority for the maintenance of healthy family and individual lives, rather than lives that eke out some kind of humanity on the fringes of exploitative employment. Other countries manage this. It's time we relooked at ourselves and our cultural priorities.
My ex wife wanted it all. Marriage, I married her. Job/career, I worked day shift, she worked evening shift. Kids, yep, but she neglected to say she just didn't want to have them with me. Now, I could be wrong there. I don't think she realized that to have kids, you had to have SEX!!! Well, at least she had two out a three. I think she married me because someone told her I was loaded. She didn't find out until after the wedding, I was just drunk a lot.
Jobs! Time was when you applied for a job, The interviewer would ask you where you worked last. Why did you leave. Could they call your last employer and ask about your work etc. Today it seems they want to know what do you think is your greatest strength and greatest weakness. How high is up, and can you jump that high. And if you can't, why not? And do you really need to be paid for the work they want you to do. Don't you know the cost of doing business is going up? Everyone take care, and keep the faith.