Our downhill economy

Spouse and I, like many others, have been talking a lot about the current state of our economy. I overheard one person say they anticipate things improving by this summer and then others say we shouldn't expect any improvement until 2010, if then. I personally don't know what will happen, but I have a feeling things won't get better for awhile, if at all. So for our family, we're trying to do the best we can providing for our needs and not over spending. Having a car that runs, a roof over our heads, food to eat, and clothes to wear tops our priority list. While I could check current life insurance rates and look into ways of investing our money, I can't. Those things, while they are important, have to be on the back burner until we get a better hold on our finances. If things do improve, and soon, I'll be happy to hear it. But for now, we'll keep doing the best we can.