Given all the dismal news on the economy, housing, gas prices and nearly everything else, I have to admit that I was expecting a rather gloomy winter markets cycle.

Imagine my surprise when I found not just busy halls and showrooms stocked with new products — but a lot of people in really good moods.

I attended five shows between January and early February, and each one of them boasted of healthy or even record traffic.

So this gets me to thinking … what’s the deal?

My theories:

• Retailers under-bought for the holidays given the dire sales forecasts beforehand, and were hungry to get their shelves restocked;

• The various market centers and show organizers went over and above in marketing their shows and offering incentives for buyers to attend;

• Buyers are realizing that even in tough times, you have to stay in the game. That means shopping for the newest and best and keeping your store the freshest on the block;

• Manufacturers and vendors stepped up to the plate by investing in their product development and bringing a lot of new stuff to market, despite the risks;

• Magazines like Home Accents Today presented so much new product photography and trend information that everyone just had to get out and see it for themselves;

• And, we are all tired of the bad news and being in bad moods. I sure am … aren’t you?

Now, I still think 2008 is going to be a very challenging year. But it sure was nice to see the optimism last month when the cold, snowy weather, endless travel delays and no weekends off somehow weren’t the worst of the things with the potential to bring us down.