Yes, it would be one of the catch-lines from “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy“, but it could hardly be more appropriate to the situation that we are facing both locally and nationally.  And there are two very different situations that we are facing right now…

Let’s start with the local…  Gas.  Or maybe lack of gas would be a better way to say it…

The Atlanta area in particular is facing a situation where many stations don’t have any supply of gasoline at all.  The problem is happening all over the Southeast, but especially here in the Atlanta area.  Over here in southern Gwinnett County, around Lilburn, we didn’t seem to be having problems earlier, but the last few days have been pretty rough.

And then there is the national…  the Credit Crunch.  And it isn’t just for sub-prime anymore…

It started with sub-prime loans and moved like a virus through the credit markets.  Now, largely because of the bad mortgage debt, banks don’t trust one another to loan money to each other… and oddly, banks move money back and forth a lot.  But so much of the debt was not only toxic, but moved off of the books through accounting tricks.  So, they don’t trust what their peers tell them.  And BIG banks like Washington Mutual and Wachovia are now units of bigger banks… just this week.  And let’s not forget the $700Billion bail-out that was sure to happen/not happen/happen/not happen…

But the message is the same…

Don’t Panic!

I am NOT saying to bury your head in the sand and ignore realities around you… but don’t freak out.

I seriously doubt that anyone has said… “Maybe I need to run to my bank and pay off all of my loans in case they go out of business.”

I also don’t think anyone has overheard…  “I’ll go to the gas station and give back the gas in my tank I’m not using.”

But, there are people that are buying up every gas can they can find to “stock up” on gas… and people running to their bank to make sure that they can withdraw their money.

Neither strategy helps.

Act casual.  Your money is guaranteed by the FDIC… and they aren’t going to fail… not yet.  Gas is coming into Atlanta, and unless you will be able to buy it in the few days.

But don’t act without thought…  If you are on empty (either gas or cash) you might want to remedy that.  Depending on your driving needs, you might be able to drive down to 1/2 tank… maybe even 1/4.  Depending on your spending needs, you might do good to keep an extra $100 or three hiding in your wallet. All of the places that took your Wachovia card Friday will still take it today… but it never hurts to have a little cash around in case there is a glitch in the system.

And don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.  Multiple bank accounts in multiple banks… and a tank of QT isn’t going to blow up your Corvette if you can’t fill up at BP.

Tactics and Strategy…

Think long-term.  Take advantage of short term opportunities.  Sitting on 1/2 tank and you see that there isn’t a line at Marathon… hit that thing.  If you are a cash buyer… you might find that real estate is pretty wide open to you right now.