Houston, The OIL Business & Shopping

the SUN is shining just like this today !!

most outsiders don't realize just how pretty Houston is.
we are SO green, beautiful trees everywhere,
the residential areas are some of the most beautiful in our country.

& the city itself, though spread out like Los Angeles, with many
different city "centers" is beautiful and CLEAN.

view of downtown Houston, shot from the West toward the East,

the green area is Allen Parkway with a tiny glimpse of Buffalo Bayou in

the right center foreground,

photo below is more close-up of the bayou

the bayou feeds into the Houston Ship Channel which is WAY East of downtown,

it's so far East I think I've only been there a couple of times in my entire life,

but we know it's there and it's the 3rd largest port in the USA, it's unique because

it's 50 miles INLAND from Galveston Bay.

that's right...some austute business men saw the possibilities almost 100 years ago,

and it was created by them.

one part of our famous Galleria Shopping Mall

the 7th largest in the US

Neiman's on one end, Sak's on the other,

2 hotels, 100's of designer shops.  if one can't find it here you don't need it.

it is not a destination us Houstonians love to go, unless it's to my beloved Sak's or to N-M,

which both have valet parking for the shoppers.

however, it's a mecca for international travellers, especially those extremely wealthy Mexicans who make pilgramiges to Houston, mostly for the Medical Center, but also for the shopping.

OIL BUSINESS

while working in the little couture boutique yesterday, the owner happened in to give us some

new merchandise and for a little chit-chat.  he is one of the most charismatic humans I've ever seen.

born in S. Africa of English parents, he's a world traveller and a true merchant.

in the store shopping were 2 lovely women, best friends.

one visiting from Kentucky and the other from Scotland but who lives in Houston.

the owner of our shops was discussing the economy with all of us,

and sort of pontificating his views of "why" retail is down a bit.

I had previously asked the Scottish lady in what area of the OIL BUSINESS her husband worked...

he is a senior executive with BP and in charge of worldwide development.

it seems, VERY SENIOR.

eventually, I thought another opinion should be voiced and I asked her what her husband

thought about oil prices. 

?????

she said, "they are not letting anyone go."

they don't want to lose their good people.

if necessary, they are reassigning them but definitely not losing them.

ALL the majors think this is a 2-year cycle, she said.

they will wait it out.

so the hypothesis is this:

none of the salaries have gone down, no one has been laid off, etc.

only stock prices are down.

& maybe some of the oilfield workers have been furloughed, maybe.

so the incomes of the Houston people hasn't changed.

that is a fact, because we all know that the wives of the executives know as much as the executives themselves, don't we, ladies?

SHOPPING




of course, with graduations, weddings, wedding showers, wedding parties
we have many women who come in and say, "we're been invited to attend
8 weddings, 3 of them destination weddings, and I NEED TO SHOP."

of course, there will be some of the same people at each event.
that's just life, isn't it?

an August wedding in Mississippi, black-tie, outside. 
yep.
what does one wear to that is a question I've been asked.

yesterday, we had shoppers with travel plans, holidays, events, etc.
& let me tell you...
not one of them seemed concerned with a budget.

now, to explain, the shop where I work part-time, has nothing over $600 for the most part.
so we are not speaking of true "designer" apparel.  you know what I mean.

but with collage-aged daughters also going to these functions it is expensive
to attire 2-3 women/girls.

but, it's fun for them,
and, know what?
it's FUN for me!
I feel like I haven't lost my edge.  I'm back !!

thank you to everyone who left prayers for our flood plight.
I am OK, the elevators are still out in our building, but compared to other's 
troubles this seems insignificant.

xx's