Monday Madness

Time to learn French!

And português y español. As our dollar withers and real estate prices collapse, we can count on our good neighbors to the North and South of us to take fresh interest in our lovely County and Country. Their fortunes are on the upswing as ours are fumbling and they’re already buying like crazy.

Did you see on the news the bus loads of Canadians headed to the US for Black Friday- possibly the busiest shopping day of the year? Can you hear them tapping at their computer keyboards while shopping at our online stores?

Consumer goods are only the beginning. The ordinary citizens of the world and the US haven’t fully awakened to the problems and opportunities presented by recent economic turmoil. When they do, you can count on seeing them in local real estate offices and then next door in their new vacation homes.

Some of us, of course, will have to move to New Jersey, Arkansas or Mexico in search of income, affordable homes and fellow Americans as our West Coast is taken by the middle class of Latin America and Canada, to be followed by India, China and the rest.

The rich who care to have already moved in from Europe, the Middle East and the Orient. They’ve been here a while and taken their share of the pie and now the hordes will join them.

What a boon for the real estate industry! Those who speak other languages and have international connections in particular. Here are some tips on dealing with our new overlords with home buying cash:

• 1 Posso eu lustrar seus carregadores?
  • (May I polish your boots? – português)
• 2 Est-ce que je peux garer votre voiture ?
  • (May I park your car? – français)
• 3 ¿Usted necesitará a criada para su casa nueva?
  • (Will you need a maid for your new house? – español)

If they do need a maid, butler or boot polisher; don’t be too quick to turn the job down.

[translations thanks to Babelfish ]