The New Year is nearly here — the ideal time to reflect on the year that is drawing to a close. Looking back on 2011, it is the state of the economy that looms large in retrospect, and how the financial system has affected the lifestyle of Americans on a daily basis. To compute the figures, and to really understand what our dollars have gained us in recent years, we turn to a money chart from www.xkcd.com, which was published online in November of this year and can be fact checked through sources including scholarly works or government publications (at https://xkcd.com/980/sources/).So what does this money chart tell us? Well, for one, the median household income, after taxes, is $39,170. That’s certainly not enough for a growing family to survive on in today’s world, by any means. It’s especially difficult for the majority, who earn less than $55,000 a year, while the elite 1 percent make six-digit-plus salaries to support families and very comfortable lifestyles. The total of all household incomes in the U.S. equaled to roughly $10.5 trillion this year. Here’s the breakdown: About 1 percent (about 1.6 million households) earns roughly $400,000 or more. Eight percent (9 million households) earn between $150,000 to $400,000 annually. Sixteen percent (18 million households) earn between $90,000 and $150,000 annually. Twenty-three percent (27 million households) earn between $55,000 and $90,000 annually. A whopping 50 percent (about 63 million households) earn less than $55,000 annually. (The required poverty line is listed at $22,350.)The majority is clearly in the bottom half, but it gets worse. According to xkcd.com, when it comes to state taxes, the poor get socked.“Unlike federal taxes, state taxes are regressive — the poor pay a higher percentage of their income than the rich. This is because sales taxes, a large component of state revenues, fall disproportionately on the poor.”The website calculated that $642 billion was paid in state taxes in 2011, while $2.2 trillion was paid in federal taxes, (after deductions and tax credits).The typical household net worth, when adjusted for inflation to 2011 dollars, meanwhile, for those 34 years of age or younger, in 1984 compared to 2009, was $11,680 versus $3,710, respectively. For those aged 35 to 44 years old the difference between 1984 and 2009 was $72,090 versus $40,140, respectively.Here’s more: The average individual health insurance annual premium is $5,430. The average annual amount a household spends on food is $5,650. The yearly cost of car ownership is $3,650. Annual tuition at a community college on average is $2,580; at an in-state university it’s $7,230. Treatment for cancer, including chemotherapy, costs $117,260.Here’s a real mind-bender: When adjusted for inflation to 2011 dollars, in 1965 a production worker’s average hourly wage was $19.61; in 2007 that wage had risen by 10 cents to $19.71. In 1965 the average CEO was paid for the same period roughly $490.31; by 2007 that CEO’s pay had jumped to $5,419.97. Those wages are not exactly on a parallel track.Here are some other facts: According to xkcd.com, the amount spent on U.S. foreign military aid was $11 billion, with $5.8 billion going to Afghanistan, $2.41 billion going to Israel, $1.32 billion going to Egypt and $5. 8 billion going to “other.” Another $11 billion in U.S. foreign humanitarian and economic aid was also spent, going to Iraq, Afghanistan, the West Bank, Gaza, Africa and “other.”Then there is the cost of war itself; the Korean War cost $341 billion; the Vietnam War cost $738 billion; the Persian Gulf War cost $102 billion; the War in Afghanistan cost $321 billion; and the Iraq War cost $784 billion. The government has a track record of heavy spending when it comes to military operations, but that fits in with this country’s global role as peace-keeper and protector of democracy. But that role comes at a price (not to mention the sacrifices made by those serving this great nation).What does all of this mean? Well, certainly it’s interesting data and information we can all take with us as we go about our daily lives and make decisions for our families and our communities. But it also gives us something more — it gives us perspective. It’s an amazing gift to be able to understand what’s going on in the world around you from as many different standpoints as possible. Having a comprehensive understanding of how this country operates, and where we stand as individuals in the larger picture, is important. If this has helped to do that in some way, then mission accomplished.
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Greg Fricke and James Boehmer, co-owners of Peggy Mercury in Kent, recently launched their first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts.”
Provided
Fricke and Boehmer are not there to stock their shelves with the same products customers find at standard makeup retailers. They’re there to help customers find what works for them. That usually means asking customers about themselves and learning about their beauty habits, skin, style and the way they like to present themselves. Fricke and Boehmer believe it’s their job to help customers bring out the qualities that suit them and determine what works best for their look.
So much of the Peggy Mercury world is about emboldening people to become more creative, and possibly bolder, versions of themselves. Some of this comes through the store’s creative collaborations with artists, designers and stylists.
It’s part of an ethos that encourages them and their friends to use the shop as a kind of laboratory, trying out new creative experiments without knowing how they might turn out. Whether in fashion, painting, fiber arts or photography, the projects almost always turn out marvelously.
A line of sterling silver charms they sell started as a small project by their friend Nolan Percival. In the beginning, the pieces were for close friends and loved ones. But Boehmer and Fricke encouraged Percival to get a little more serious about the project and create a whole line for the store. Today, it’s one of their top-selling collections.
Classic styles, bold colors, and creative concerts make up the “Imaginary Concerts” line at Peggy Mercury.Provided
“Imaginary Concerts” has the duo taking their own advice.
The project started as a way for Boehmer to connect with his mother, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Taking old concert shirts from his own collection, Boehmer and his mother began cutting out the graphics with the idea that they would make a quilt together. Unfortunately, she died before they could complete the project in 2025. The pieces, which were ready for production, were put on the back burner as Boehmer and Fricke dealt with their loss and the whirlwind of projects that never seemed to cease at Peggy Mercury.
But the harsh winter of 2026 presented an opportunity to take some time and focus on themselves. Part of that meant revisiting and redefining the concert T-shirt project. This time, instead of looking to the warmth and comfort of a quilt, they turned to another passion — fashion.
Taking a page from their own book, they wanted to create something that felt comfortable to them. They took two disparate loves — one rooted in simple preppy style, with clean lines and classic silhouettes, and the other in the nitty gritty worlds of punk rock and pop — and blended them together to create something entirely new. Pulling from the staples of vintage Brooks Brothers and Charvet collections, they applied the graphic elements with bold stitching reminiscent of punk jackets of the ‘70s and ‘80s, but with a much more sophisticated air.
But the remixing isn’t just the pairing of prep and punk. The pieces are not canon. They take liberties with the realities of concert tours, combining one band’s dates with another band’s logos, mixing them all up until the reality is lost and imagination is the only truth.
Shirts from Peggy Mercury’s first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts,” hang on display.Provided
Adding to the mix is an element of perpetual creativity. Art can be messy, both figuratively and literally, and many of Fricke and Boehmer’s artist friends carry evidence of their work on them at all times. As a nod to these tireless creatives, the duo added haphazard splashes of bright color, giving the line an even more distinctive feel.
For them, “Imaginary Concerts” passes the “Peggy Test.” The mythical Peggy Mercury is a fictional figurehead for the company, a character who thrives on creativity and change. The name, much like the clothing line, is a mixture of interests: Mercury is a planet, a deity and an elusive, transformative element, while Peggy is the wonderfully stylish and boundary-pushing Peggy Guggenheim.
Everything Fricke and Boehmer put in their store has to pass this test: Would Peggy Mercury approve? For their first collection, the answer is a resounding yes.
Peggy Mercury is at 9 Maple St., Unit 2, Kent.
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