I'm sure most cities, especially the big cities, there is a person named Joe who is a plumber.
It didn't long to find a "Joe The Plumber" here in the South Bay.
Joe Castro has run his own plumbing company for 30 years in Santa Clara.
Lately, business hasn't been that good.
He blames the economy.
He used to work 50 hours a week. Now he's lucky to get 10 hours.
"It's nice to slow down, Castro said. "But not this slow."
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Four of his contractors have already gone out of the business.
"I got two that are left that are still alive and still going and it's not enough to keep me and my two guys who work for me busy," Castro said.
Castro says it's tough being a plumber these days because people are not willing to fork over money to fix leaky faucets during this financial crisis. So they just let it drip.
"I work in Los Altos, Los Gatos and areas where these people aren't poor, but they're watching their money just as much as poor people," Castro said.
Castro says his business has survived recessions and economic downturns in the past, but he says this year is the worst.
He recently took on a second job to make ends meet. He's plumbing for another company while running his own.
"I've never had to worry about it before. Business has always taken care of me, because I take care of my business," Castro said.
As for all the attention on "Joe The Plumbers" nationwide by Senator Barack Obama and Senator John McCain, Castro says it's nice, but believes it may not matter who is in the White House.
"They're going to talk and talk and talk but if they don't do it which there is no guarantee, I have to rely on what I do and what I know," Castro said.
