2008 is nearly over, But will all be fine in 2009?...

So another year, another hangover - but how long wil it take us to shake off our post 2008 blues and get back on the circuit?

Our ‘recovery period’ seems to be getting longer and longer - either because we’re spending more during the festive period, or there’s simply nothing worth coming into town to see.

Don’t know what I’m talking about? - Well, here’s something that’ll hopefully shed a little light…

We all know that during Christmas and the New Year, once we’ve counted down the last seconds of the previous year, the fireworks have finished and we’ve all shook each others hands and given out the complimentary drunken cuddles to our friends and drunken randoms, there’s usually a slight delay before people venture back into town. We’re also somewhat lighter in the financial side of things and naturally, the British weather does’nt help either as one often finds that as soon as the calendar hits January, that once highly sought after ‘White Christmas’ decides to show up, usually as we’re trying to get back from our first days at work - thus grinding the whole country to a standstill in the process.

Anyway, back to my original point - over the years, it takes roughly on average, about 3-4 weeks before people start showing up in our town centres, with their hard earned cash back in their wallets, and an eagerness to get completely wasted on drinks fortified with E-Numbers and cheap spirits.

Back in 2008 though, I did notice that, some of the bars and clubs were’nt picking up until at least February - some still looking a little vacant even beyond February, which when you think about it, that’s over 2 months. Is it because the bars are too expensive, or there’s simply not enough entertainment value in the bars anymore, or could it just be that everyone pulled last year, and there was really no need to go out until Valentines day?

A lack of bars making it past the Festive period did’nt help either - by the time we’d hit February, The Theatre Nightclub had gone under, Silvers was closed, Apollos/Nemesis was shut down and Xess didnt even exist - all before this credit crunch we’re currently experiencing…

All I can add now, is either thing’s will get better this year, or I can’t really be optimistic about seeing our regulars in Halifax until they’ve finished paying for their Easter Eggs first…