Residents of the Wood River Valley are in the same boat no matter what their level of wealth. Longtime locals have been through this before and always seem to get by. Some newcomers are having a little more difficulty.
(A suit and a local at a Ketchum bar)
Poor Local: "I haven't seen you in here before."
Fat Cat: "At $3.50 a pop, you're going to see a lot more of me."
Poor Local: "Rough time?"
Fat Cat: "You might say that. I lost everything when Wall Street torpedoed, the bank's calling in my mortgage and I just lost my job."
Poor Local: "Ouch! I know what you mean. I've been laid off for the last two weeks and my rent went up to $750."
Fat Cat: "Seven-fifty a month? That's nothing. What do you live in, your car?"
Poor Local: "No, I live in a house about 14 miles south. Kinda' small, but it's got a big yard."
Fat Cat: "You got a house and a yard for that kind of money?"
Poor Local: "Well, yeah, but it's been tough comin' up with it each month."
Fat Cat: "Tell me about it. Not only can I not come up with the mortgage payment, I can't even afford a choice piece of rib eye anymore."
Poor Local: "What's a rib eye?"
Fat Cat: "You know—steak."
Poor Local: "I had one of those in 1993. It was good."
Fat Cat: "What do you eat now?"
Poor Local: "Eat? Well, you know—chicken, hamburger, veggies, salad and such. Lately I've been having a lot of Ramen noodle dinners."
Fat Cat: "What's a Ramen noodle?"
Poor Local: "Noodles in a packet with assorted flavors. It's not really bad when they're six for a dollar."
Fat Cat: "Six for a buck? Where can I get them?"
Poor Local: "Oh, any grocery store carries them. There's a lot of bargains out there if you know how to shop. My trouble is fitting everything into my car."
Fat Cat: "What are you drivin'?"
Poor Local: "'92 Suburu. It's great in the snow. What do you drive?"
Fat Cat: "'08 Escalade. But I might lose it. The payments are killing me, you know?"
Poor Local: "No. My rig's paid for but still I'm going to have to sublet my spare bedroom and sell my old truck to get by."
Fat Cat: "Spare bedroom? Truck? How much?"
Poor Local: "Oh, I'd probably need $150 a month for the room and $450 cash for the truck."
Fat Cat: "I'd like to buy you a drink. You're amazing. You're like a super hero to me! What are you, Batman? I'll take the room and the truck. Now, tell me a little more about those Ramens."
Poor Local: "Well, thanks. It's a deal. It's been nice talking to you."
Fat Cat: "No, nice talking to you ..."
