8 Recession Road Trip Games

Even with the emergence of the “staycation,” many families will be hitting the road this Labor Day. So after the Harry Potter series ends on the DVD player, we suggest some timely car games to keep the fun rolling along. Print this guide and take it with you.

Spot a Sign
This one’s easy. In the wake of mortgage defaults and foreclosure-o-rama, for-sale signs dot the landscape like a new mutant weed. In a twist on “punch Buggy” or “slug a bug”—in which you punch the person next to you when you spot a VW Beetle—tag (we prefer it to a punch) the person next to you to signal you spotted a for-sale sign first…

Screwed: 900 at UNC System Schools

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s Total: 2,400

UNC System schools announced plans to cut 900 administrative staff members… 380 employees at the Maui Prince Hotel in Hawaii received layoff notices following the announcement of foreclosure proceedings against the hotel… TTM Technologies will cut its staff by 347 as it closes two plants in Los Angeles and Hayward, Calif… American Airlines will lay off 228 flight attendants this fall… Nadeau Poultry Farm will lay off 175 workers after the close of their slaughterhouse in New Brunswick, Canada… The city of Cincinnati will lay off 166 full-time workers… Wackenhut will cut its Miami-based staff by 158… The Superior Court of San Mateo County, Calif. will cut 28 employees in October… Miami County will lay off 10 Corrections officers… The city of Elyria, Ohio will cut 8 firefighters and close the jail…

Recession Briefing 9.2: The Peril of Jury Duty

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

Few people like jury duty. But for many people squeezed by the recession, a jury summons holds a new fear: financial ruin. (New York Times)

American manufacturing expanded for the first time in 19 months, and pending sales of existing homes rose more than forecast, indicating the recession has ended. (Bloomberg)

We’ve all met 20-somethings who’ve been coddled by their parents and seem to expect everything to be handed to them. But the economy might just be changing Gen Y’s outlook. (Marketplace)…

Is it a Mancession or Isn’t It?

A few weeks ago we wrote about the reasons we shouldn’t be crowing about the “mancession”—among them, single moms are hurting and women have less choice about their jobs.

A new survey by Decitica offers new evidence that women are worse off than men in the downturn. Sort of. The market strategy and research firm says that their poll of more than 1,000 people showed that “more women than men are depressed, scared, worried and stressed.”…

The Recession Will End… When I Can Afford College

Says who: College Board, the not-for-profit responsible for the SAT, the PSAT/NMSQT, and the Advanced Placement Program

“Our studentPOLL study, a random national sample of high school seniors who registered and/or took the SAT, found that the recession is having a considerable impact on two-thirds of these students and their families. Nearly one-third indicated that their parents’ income had declined, 23 percent reported that their family had fallen on hard times, and one in six revealed that the current economic circumstances have forced them to change their college plans.” (via College Board)

Why it might be false: In a recent Gallup poll commissioned by student loan provider Sallie Mae, more than half of U.S. parents indicated that they plan to pay for all or part of their children’s college expenses with their current income and are confident they can continue to support them despite the recession…

Recession Briefing 9.1: Natalie Portman Sees Recession’s Silver Lining

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

“I think it’s kind of an exciting time,” says actress Natalie Portman of the recession. “All of a sudden, people are doing jobs that they hate and they’re not making as much money as they thought they would or they’ve lost their jobs entirely. I’ve started to see people looking more toward their own passions and what really excites them.” (Heeb)

Contrary to the common assumption that the stress of dealing with a recession is bad for your health, studies of population trends in developed economies have revealed that during economic downturns, mortality rates decline rather than increase. (Time)

PennyMac, a firm founded by the former president and COO of Countrywide — which is blamed for some of the loans which triggered the financial crisis — now stands to receive up to $6.2 million in taxpayer money to modify distressed home loans. (ProPublica)…

Screwed: 554 at Farmer’s Insurance Group

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s Total: 679

Farmer’s Insurance Group (FIG) plans 554 layoffs by the end of this year… Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSC) is laying off up to 40 employees… Raven Software is laying of up to 35 employees… The University of Illinois is laying off 32 Global Campus staff… Another 18 workers will face layoffs in the city of Chicago… Real estate investment trust Cousins Properties Inc. has cut its corporate staff by 10 percent…