Good Morning,

When I was a boy, my father took me to see the Golden State Warriors. My first basketball game stands out in my mind like the smooth grooves on a record.

Dad quietly asked me, “Go get your coat.” I said, “OK and should I get John and Anne too?” (my brother and sister) “Nope,” he said, “just get your coat.” “Where are we going?” I asked. “It’s a surprise,” he said.

Such quality time with Dad, he bought me a hot dog and everything else I could eat and a Warriors pennant. That pennant hung on the wall in my bedroom for years. I had such a great time that I still get goose bumps to this day when I see a kid at the game with his dad.

I went to two of the last Warrior games recently. We lost both. If you’ve read my column for any time at all, you know I’m a devout optimist. But even with my positive attitude, the Warriors are so bad it’s hard to watch. In the game against Portland the Warriors were down 48 points in the third quarter. Never before had I seen a pro basketball game where one team trailed by 48 points in the third quarter.

I feel the same way about the Warriors as I do about the economy. I want to be positive, but things look so bleak. Last month we had a net loss of more jobs in the US than in any other month since 1991. The drop 86,000 of 86,000 Jobs was the largest since November 1991, when payrolls plummeted by 94,000. Some sectors of the economy lost jobs, some gained, but overall, there was a loss of 86,000 jobs.

I want the economy to do well, but right now, like the Warriors, it’s hard to watch. I think I’ll go on a TV and newspaper diet. Every time I pick up the paper or watch CNN it’s like a layoff parade, and when Oracle, Cisco and Intel are laying off you know everyone else is at risk.

Things will get worse before they get better and remember we are not “technically” in a recession until we have two consecutive quarters of decrease in GDP but who was the genius technician? Venture Capitalist John Doerr was asked if he thought we were headed for a recession and he said, “We are IN a recession. I don’t know how long it will last.” I agree. If we lost more jobs than any other time since 1991 and if 1991 was the worst recession since the Great Depression then we are in a recession! Let’s admit it so we can move forward. My name is Joe Pelayo and I am in a recession.

While at the Warriors game it dawned on me that I am probably older than all of the Warriors except for possibly Chris Mullin who was born in 1906 but he has a great work ethic so he looks slightly younger…

Just in case you weren’t feeling old enough today, this will certainly change things.

Each year the staff at Beloit College in Wisconsin puts together a list to try to give the Faculty a sense of the mindset of this year’s incoming freshman. Here is this year’s list:

• The people who are starting college this fall across the nation were born in 1982.
• They have no meaningful recollection of the Reagan Era and probably did not know he had ever been shot.
• They were prepubescent when the Persian Gulf War was waged. Black Monday, 1987 is as significant to them as the Great Depression.
• There has been only one Pope.
• They were 11 when the Soviet Union broke apart and do not remember the Cold War.
• They have never feared a nuclear war.
• They are too young to remember the space shuttle blowing up.
• Tiananmen Square means nothing to them.
• Bottle caps have always been screw off and plastic.
• Atari predates them, as do vinyl albums.
• The statement “You sound like a broken record” means nothing to them.
• They have never owned a record player.
• They have likely never played Pac Man and have never heard of Pong.
• They may have never heard of an 8 track. The Compact Disc was introduced when they were 1 year old.
• As far as they know, stamps have always cost about 33 cents.
• They have always had an answering machine.
• Most have never seen a TV set with only 13 channels, nor have they seen a black and white TV.
• They have always had cable.
• There have always been VCRs, but they have no idea what BETA was.
• They cannot fathom not having a remote control.
• They don’t know what a cloth baby diaper is, or know about the “Help me, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” commercial.

Feeling old yet? There’s more:

• They were born the year that Walkmans were introduced by Sony.
• Roller skating has always meant in-line for them.
• Jay Leno has always been on the Tonight Show.
• They have no idea when or why Jordache jeans were cool.
• Popcorn has always been cooked in the microwave.
• They have never seen Larry Bird play.
• They never took a swim and thought about Jaws.
• The Vietnam War is as ancient history to them as WWI, WWII and the Civil War. They have no idea that Americans were ever held hostage in Iran.
• They can’t imagine what hard contact lenses are.
• They don’t know who Mork was or where he was from.
• They never heard: “Where’s the beef?”, “I’d walk a mile for a Camel,” or “De plane, de plane!”.
• They do not care who shot J.R. and have no idea who J.R. was.
• The Titanic was found? They thought we always knew.
• Michael Jackson has always been white.
• Kansas, Chicago, Boston, America, and Alabama are places, not rock bands.
• McDonalds never came in Styrofoam containers.
• There has always been MTV.
• They don’t have a clue how to use a typewriter.

Do you feel old yet?

Pass this on to the other old fogies. But please don’t send it back to me, I feel old enough.

That’s all for this month. I hope you’ll think of us when you are hiring, feel free to call me direct.

Warm Regards,
Joe Pelayo

Joe Pelayo, C.P.C.
Joseph Michaels International
Global Recruiting Solutions
800-786-1099
Email: jpelayo@josephmichaels.com
Website: http://josephmichaels.wpengine.com
One of the top 75 Recruiters in the United States ~ Recruiter Life Magazine