[fogarty]

Sorry to hear about your job losses. And you are right - it hasn't been this bad in a long, long time. My brother was laid off last week from a semiconductor equipment manufacturer - and he's got a master's degree and 8 years experience under his belt. I wish him the best and pray for him, but I am realistic when I say he probably won't find a job until spring time next year. He was fortunately able to pay off most of his student debt, but he's going to be eating his retirement funds soon enough.

My wife and I are relatively young, so kids are still in the future. No car payments - both our cars are 8-10 years old and we will drive them until they die. We are making extra payments on the mortgage so we can pay the debt off early.

Regardless of how 'unpatriotic' some people make us out to be, we are clamping down on any and all unnecessary spending. God has given us this time to save and be good stewards. We are being frugal because we are not fools.

[Gorzaloon]

My wife and I are relatively young, so kids are still in the future. No car payments - both our cars are 8-10 years old and we will drive them until they die. We are making extra payments on the mortgage so we can pay the debt off early.

We were in the same place in the '70's. Paying down debt turned into the smartest thing we ever did.

If you make $100,000, and owe $500,000, you can live the same way with a lot less stress and fear by making less and owing still less, and are a lot more flexible in adjusting to setbacks. And if the career gets back on track in the future, you are way ahead.