When I was 11 years old, my mother set me down at the kitchen table. She had a piece of paper, a pen and a pile of bills. This was my first lesson in personal finance. She put my dad's income and her income on the top line then began by subtracting the rent, the electric bill, etc. When all those were paid, whatever was left would be used to buy food. If there was anything left, some could go for fun, some had to be set aside for future needs like new clothes.

For a lot of people. this is real world economics. They are getting by paycheck to paycheck.This is the blog for them. We will talk about the big picture and the big economic news but we will bring it down to the kitchen table level.

Here is an example:

This week The New York Times reported that Sears, which has been struggling over the last few years lost the backing of a major lender. Sears has been around for over a century, starting out as a strict mail order company. In 1984, it was the largest retailer in the country; today it is number four.

So my question to you, my reader, is do you shop at Sears? Why or why not? What do you think Sears could do attract customers?

I look forward to your comments

T