$140-160 used to be common for 1/2 hour here in Chicago...these days I am seeing $80-100

Such as cars, tv's, houses? Not for me. I recently bought a new Lexus RX450h to add to my two existing auto's. Don't need another tv or house lol.

Hasn't had an impact on my hobbying, but I set aside about $1500 a month, sometimes a bit more, depending on which providers are in town.  Interesting phenomenom though; economy struggles but providers "cost of goods" remains the same or goes up. Theoretically it is all about supply and demand, so based on that, demand is still high here in the Washington DC area. $500/hour? Sure there are providers that charge that, but they can because the demand is probably still there and they want to ensure a particular group of clientele. Most of the providers I see are in the $260/hour range. I'm not a huge roller in this area like some of the other reviewers I have seen, but I'm happy with my hobby. I went through a period of three providers in five days...for me that was a lot, but just felt the urge to see those providers.

As far as opportunity? In the financial markets there are ALWAYS opportunities, it's just a matter of what you can stomach. There's money to be made in down markets...in fact if you hedge properly, you'll make more...faster in down markets. For those that have been sitting on cash, they're drooling at the mouth.

ZERO Debt... I only buy it if I can pay cash. Bad things are coming....

Of course... I've been saying that since 2005... LOL!

Has it impacted me seeing ladies? Hell No!!! I've seen more ladies in the past month or two then I did in the past couple of years.

NO debt = more cash in the pocket. My total bills are around $300 a month... LOL!!!

People need to stop bitching about their finances and get their finances in order.... Once that's accomplished then everybody will be just fine.... except for the "I need that check in the mail from D.C." crowd which will always be pathetic anyways...

Until then.....

Don't know if I am in a minority or majority but pretty sure I am not alone.
The economy has substantially effected my hobby activities.   I am down to just one "date" a month.  Surprisingly, the providers' rates have not come down at all.  So maybe I am the only victim of this recession.

my travel schedule has cut back as well and I don't hobby as much at home as I do on the road.  I would say the cut back has a direct correlation to the economy, but I'm doing less.  

For the girls I see regularly, pricing has remained consistent, however I have noticed some discounts creeping into some of the local BP/CV pricing.

I am harder pressed to fund all extras...   I only buy extras with spending money.   A few times I've had to extend the intervals but other times I've made up for it.