It’s good to get perspectives from those that work in the field for those of us who don’t. Thanks for the education...: )
The entire economy of Texas at the time was much more tied to oil more than it is now (I hope). While the rest of the nation was doing OK during the Reagan Revolution, our economy was in tatters.
As for me, I was grasping at straws for a job and wound up a fireman.
I have friends and kin in the oil patch today and they are scared for the future. Many of the little service companies here in the Barnett field in north TX have already pulled up stakes or moved on to the Bakkan or Permian.
Life was good when natural gas peaked at $15/million but not so good when it went back to in line with its historical price in the $5 range.
I met a guy one day when I was building buildings that had been a driller prior to the 86 bust. He said the bottom line of his 1040 was over $1 million the previous year. He was mowing and bailing hay. Ouch!