This is what I get for gloating. I was just reassuring my family that my work area, DJing and various audio production gigs, is so specialized that it’s generally immune from economic ups and downs. Plus, holidays can be good for DJs, and I typically pick up a couple well-paying gigs for company holiday shindigs. I’d already booked a few, but I just got this e-mail:
To: partyben@yahoo.com
From: [person at event planning company]
Subject: URGENT: [company] Holiday Party
It is with regret we advise you that [company] has cancelled their holiday event scheduled for [date]. We were really looking forward to it, but due to the current economic conditions, it couldn’t be helped.
Things are so bad out there that our workplaces’ annual celebrations of Jesus are being scrubbed, putting our nation’s, uh, guys who are willing to throw on “Play That Funky Music White Boy” when the trashed sales exec demands you play it, out of work? Wow, this is a real recession!
After the jump: Bono feels my pain!
It turns out, though, that I’m not alone in my suffering: a group of investors including the band U2 has been forced to shelve their plans for a 350-foot skyscraper in central Dublin. The mixed-use building would have been Ireland’s tallest, and was to house a new recording studio for Bono in some sort of ridiculous, egg-shaped construction perched on top.
The Dublin Docklands Development Authority (DDDA) said on Friday it had suspended negotiations over the tower for up to 12 months due to uncertainty in the property and financial markets. “The objective is to see this landmark project completed,” the DDDA said in a statement. “However, given the current unfavourable economic environment, more time is needed at this juncture.”
Okay, this all looks pretty bad, but you’ll know things have really gotten scary when Kanye suspends recording his new album to focus on the economy.
