Nearly everything had to go. A few months after losing her administrative job in the summer of 2008, 23-year-old Brianna Karp got rid of her furniture, a beloved piano, and most of her books so she could move back in with her parents. When that didn't work out, she moved into an old trailer a relative had left her, settling into an informal homeless community in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Brea, Calif. By the summer of 2009, she was living without electricity, regular showers, home-cooked food, and most basic conveniences
Karp held tight to one appurtenance, however: her laptop computer. She spent hours at a nearby Starbucks, using the wireless network to surf for jobs. A friend suggested she start a blog about her life on the edge, which she called the Girl's Guide to Homelessness. It generated attention that helped land a part-time magazine internship. Then came an offer to write a book about her ordeal, which is due out in 2011--and might get turned into a movie. With some money from a book advance, Karp has upgraded to a better trailer, on a friend's property, and she's eyeing a Victorian fixer-upper she'd like to make her permanent home. Yet she craves few of the material things she's given up, while cherishing the friends and opportunities she's discovered online. "When you're in survival mode, you slash everything," Karp says. "That makes the online community that much more important. Online, somebody will always be there for me."
The grueling recession that began in 2007 has upended American priorities, with frugality now considered a virtue for the first time in decades. Despite recent upticks in spending, retail sales remain lower than they were three years ago. Sales of homes, cars, and appliances have plunged. Shoppers have cut back on toilet paper and cigarettes, once thought recession-proof. Even porn sales are down. Thrift, it seems, has no boundaries.
Yet Americans have clung dearly to a few surprising necessities, reflecting changes in American society that go far beyond penny-pinching. Food, clothing and shelter have long been the most obvious staples. But data that's finally rolling in as the recession winds down shows that we also require a bit of entertainment and a tasty beverage or two. Companionship is as important as ever--even if it's not human. And you can't even look for a job these days if you don't have Internet access. As we redefine what's really important, here are 10 new American essentials
Portable computers.
High-speed Internet access
Smart phones
Education
Movies
TV
Music downloads.
Pets
Booze
Coffee
Karp held tight to one appurtenance, however: her laptop computer. She spent hours at a nearby Starbucks, using the wireless network to surf for jobs. A friend suggested she start a blog about her life on the edge, which she called the Girl's Guide to Homelessness. It generated attention that helped land a part-time magazine internship. Then came an offer to write a book about her ordeal, which is due out in 2011--and might get turned into a movie. With some money from a book advance, Karp has upgraded to a better trailer, on a friend's property, and she's eyeing a Victorian fixer-upper she'd like to make her permanent home. Yet she craves few of the material things she's given up, while cherishing the friends and opportunities she's discovered online. "When you're in survival mode, you slash everything," Karp says. "That makes the online community that much more important. Online, somebody will always be there for me."
The grueling recession that began in 2007 has upended American priorities, with frugality now considered a virtue for the first time in decades. Despite recent upticks in spending, retail sales remain lower than they were three years ago. Sales of homes, cars, and appliances have plunged. Shoppers have cut back on toilet paper and cigarettes, once thought recession-proof. Even porn sales are down. Thrift, it seems, has no boundaries.
Yet Americans have clung dearly to a few surprising necessities, reflecting changes in American society that go far beyond penny-pinching. Food, clothing and shelter have long been the most obvious staples. But data that's finally rolling in as the recession winds down shows that we also require a bit of entertainment and a tasty beverage or two. Companionship is as important as ever--even if it's not human. And you can't even look for a job these days if you don't have Internet access. As we redefine what's really important, here are 10 new American essentials
Portable computers.
High-speed Internet access
Smart phones
Education
Movies
TV
Music downloads.
Pets
Booze
Coffee
Petikan di atas aku ambik dari yahoo,realiti hidup terkini masyarakat US (Amerika laaa ). Aku tak tau kita nanti macam tu ke tak. Hidup jadi semakin rencam beb...
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