Archive for November, 2008
« Previous EntriesMy best lame advice for investing in the stock market — or not
I’m not much of a financial guy. I HATED the mandatory “economics” class I was required to take those many years ago in high school. (Oddly, I loved history and almost completed a master’s degree in history.) As an investor, I’ve only lost money, even before this horrendously bizarre stock market of the last few months.
So when I hear about anything financial, even something as simple as 0% balance transfers, I tend to go slack-jawed. Throw in even a little touch of such terminology as “futures options,” and you’ve already lost me when it comes to pretty much any finances and investing. I’ve learned how to pay some of my bills online, as has my wife, and that’s about all I do online financially.
But my son, happily, has become quite the investor. Unhappily, he’s lost — as have millions of Americans — a lot of money in the recent stock market debacles. (See? I understand the world “debacle” but like millions of others, it’s “stock market” I really don’t get.)
One thing my son has explained to me regarding stocks and evaluating stocks is the concept of the “book value” of a company. That’s pretty simple, really, if I got what he told me. It means this: If a company were to shut down today and sell off everything, pay all its debts, whatever is left over is the “book value” of the company which would be split up among the owners, in this case the stock holders. When a company has a “negative book value” that’s very, very bad for investors. That means if it sold off completely, it would still owe money — and stock holders would get NOTHING.
So my advice for you today, and it really isn’t worth much but, what the heck — stay away from buying stock in negative book value companies.
Now go out and do something with your day. Step away from the computer and LEAVE that stock alone for a few days, will ya?
Seems to me that Bush, Obama would both prefer moving now
I’ve forgotten now which public official — maybe a Senator? Congressman? — I saw in a news clip on CNN yesterday, but he was actually suggesting we might want to pass some sort of emergency measures, change the Constitution, whatever, to get President-elect Barack Obama into office as soon as possible instead of waiting for his January inauguration.
I don’t think the guy was kidding.
And I also don’t think either President George W. Bush or Obama would resist the idea.
I’m not suggesting Obama is overstepping his present role. I’m not suggesting Bush is shirking any of his present role. But whenever I’ve seen the two men on television, Bush always looks relieved that the end is almost here — and Obama always looks eager to get started.
Given the incredible situations we face economically and politically right now, perhaps there ought to be some special emergency declarations that would accomplish the changeover as soon as possible — say, maybe YESTERDAY?
Time for a memory upgrade? No, I don’t mean your computer
Ever have one of those days when you think you really need a memory upgrade — I don’t mean more RAM in your computer, necessarily, but a real-life “memory upgrade,” is what I’m talking about.
Cheer up. Such situations happen even more as you get older. I was thinking about memory and how I may be losing mine after a conversation I had yesterday with my wife. It involved some freelance proofreading she’s doing this week. I was sure this particular company paid her in the past at a rate that was $10 an hour more than what she’s getting for this gig.
I mean, it was one of those details I was absolutely sure I was right about. She showed me where I absolutely was wrong. (She’s much better at keeping detailed work logs than I. I call it obsessive.)
Each year I put on my Old Guy mind always makes me a bit more concerned when I mess up on such details. A buddy used to tell me I had a mind like a steel trap. Of course, he then followed his comment with “Full of rats.” I’ve always known, of course, that he meant my Big Brain was skilled at grabbing details and never letting go of them.
Uh, well, maybe that ability to hold onto details really has turned into something closer to a rat trap. Excuse me for now. Gotta run … it’s just about time for my meds.
When does clothing stop being funny and become ‘disruptive’?
When do funny t shirts become “disruptive or inflammatory”?
The county I live in has decreed that people wearing “clothing, apparel, or other accessories containing distruptive or inflammatory language or content” will no longer be allowed to enter county buildings. I’m not sure about the entire ordinance, so I don’t know what will happen if someone shows up for court wearing such apparel, or if they simply need to go to the county courthouse for a necessary permit, to pay taxes, look up property records, etc.
Let me say upfront that I rarely go out in public in just a T-shirt or so casual that any of my clothing or “accessories” would put me at risk to be hit by the new county law. But I think you’re on a real “slippery slope” when you pass such laws. Indeed, I’ve seen people wearing very expensive clothing that I personally thought was at least tasteless and perhaps downright vulgar. But I’ve never really thought it was my business to be the Social Police and call them on the matter.
Sort of if you want to make a fool of yourself in public, I’ll get over it, but will YOU?
I guess it rankles me a bit anytime the government decides to be Head Nanny. What do you think about the matter?
Holidays mean more travel — which may mean more luggage fees
Have you flown much lately? Are you planning any flights for Thanksgiving weekend travel, or perhaps a bit further ahead for Christmas and New Year’s?
I haven’t flow in awhile, but I would be very interested to know any recent experiences and your reaction to all the extra bucks most airlines are now charging for checking your luggage. When I first heard several months ago that most major airlines were charging $15, even $25 to check a second piece of luggage, I was appalled. Then when it reached the point that some were charging that much for ANY piece of checked luggage, I was stunned.
Why on earth don’t they simply charge more upfront on the ticket pricing? Do they really think most people travel without checking ANY luggage and so would feel angry about over-all ticket price increases? I, personally, would feel less like I’d been somehow “scammed” if they simply charged me more for the ticket and allowed me to check two or even three pieces of luggage without extra fees.
How about any of you reading this who fly frequently? How has the extra costs of checking luggage affected you? Or has it? Leave a comment and sound off about it here!
Useful holiday gift ideas for real coffee lovers
Having just posted about the wonders of “real man’s” coffee and made fun of “hoytee-toytee” specialty coffee, I hasten to add that I drink espresso and an occasional latte when I can find a good one. It’s just that where I live the espresso and lattes I find are mostly poor and watery. Unlike the wonderful, heavenly shores of Seattle, Boulder, or even Denver — it’s really hard to find great specialty coffee here in good old Springfield, Missouri. My apologies to all in this town who THINK they offer good specialty coffee, but they just need to get out more to discover the truth.
Being culturally and geographically limited, I therefore have come to prefer just a really good, strong cup of home brewed coffee to any of the coffee shop stuff around here. (Although I DO frequent a place for coffee and bagels many mornings for breakfast. Won’t say which place. Those who know me know they can find me there. LOL!)
With all that in mind, I found a wonderful website which sells some intriguing Capresso coffeemakers and coffee supplies. I am not real familiar with Capresso, but the goodies they offer look wonderful. Go over to that website right away, find something nice, and get it for yourself or all your coffee loving friends.
Just a thought. Just a possibility to help with your holiday shopping and gift giving. Especially if you’re a coffee devotee like me! (Now excuse me while I put on a new pot myself.)
Good news for coffee lovers: Brazilian crop looking pretty good
I’m sitting here looking out at a drizzle on a chilly day in the Ozarks. We’re being told we might see our first mixed rain/snow of the season overnight tonight. Okay, maybe you live in more northern climes and laugh at those of us who haven’t had snow by mid-November. (Or maybe you’re in southern California or Florida and long for snow?)
Just look at all that chilly drizzle and those clouds makes me long for a good, fresh cup of coffee. I’m not talking about the fancy Starbucks stuff, I’m talking Folger’s or Maxwell House here. The kind of coffee my dad and granddad drank and raised me on, you sissy! (I kid.)
The good news I just saw is that the Brazilian coffee harvest and processing is off to a good start, according to a story I just saw on the Internet. Good for all of us! Get busy, wonderful Brazilian folks and all the rest of you who bring in that crop.
I’ll be sitting near my coffeemaker just waiting for more good news. And more good coffee! (What’s your favorite coffee? Leave a comment and let us know.)
Instead of products — how do you shop for SERVICES?
Continuing with the consumerism theme — do you value or price services in the same way you consider products? Or do you look differently at buying a service?
If you were shopping for cheap auto insurance, for example, what’s the most important thing you would look for? Would you simply buy the minimum legal insurance for wherever you live at the cheapest place you could find it? Or would you think about the possible consequences of buying the least and cheapest insurance available?
I’ve thought about this one a lot, because I spent three years doing office work for a major property insurance company. They sold homeowners and auto insurance, and my job was to transcribe and proofread tons of letters from insurance adjusters to policy holders. Mostly claims DENIAL letters.
What have I learned from that? I’ve learned that I would look very closely at the agent or agency from which I was buying my auto insurance and probably less at the price I was paying for it. Cheap auto insurance is a great idea — but it’s even better to know there will be a trustworthy agent behind the insurance if you need to use it!
How about you? Whether it’s auto insurance, some other insurance, or educational expenses — how do you evaluate your purchases when you’re buying a service instead of a product? Any comments?
Price or quality? Which is more important to you as a consumer?
Just how do you and I, as consumers, put “value” on items we purchase? From automobiles to faucets, why are we willing to pay considerably more money for one item than another similar item?
I live in a very old house, and there always are plumbing replacement and repair items high on my shopping list. I was looking around the Internet earlier and found a site marketing Grohe faucets which, to be honest, I’d never heard of. Most of my replacement or repair plumbing stuff comes from low-end home improvement stores or, uh, well — Walmart. Would I spend significantly more money for a high-end faucet if something more “off the rack” would do the job? Absolutely I would if I could afford to spend the money.
Why? Why spend significantly more money for a Grohe faucet than something from my neighborhood hardware store? Because of the features and benefits I see in the Grohe — assuming I need a new faucet and find a way to pay for it.
So why are U.S. automakers or other U.S. manufacturers losing business to foreign manufacturers? Is it just price?
It’s probably MOSTLY price — but, very importantly, it is the perception consumers have of quality and benefits. Given two faucets or pickup trucks, if money were no object, would you buy the cheapest? Probably not, right? Probably you’d buy the more costly faucet or pickup truck because you would perceive it as more valuable.
What do you think about all this? Leave a comment and share with us all.
Who’s going to bail out U.S. automakers now?
If it’s true that tough times call for tough people, then I hope those who work in the U.S. automobile industry are high on the toughness scale. Amazingly, the government bailouts to the financial/credit industry doesn’t appear to be going into the auto industry — the nation’s “Big Three” automakers (GM, Ford, and Chrysler) have so far been denied aid by Congress. I’m not sure why, but I do have a theory.
My theory would be this: True or not, U.S. automakers have gained a reputation of making overpriced, poor quality cars and trucks. It’s no secret that Toyota and Honda have been stealing huge numbers of car buyers away from the Big Three. Many people believe (maybe for good reasons, maybe not) that a Toyota or Honda or Hyundai or Volkswagen are more dependable and a greater value than a Chevy, Ford, or Chrysler.
I do not personally have an opinion in the matter. I’ve never owned a new car. Most of the used cars I buy are VERY used, i.e., near or over 100,000 miles, and I’ve had both U.S. made and Japanese used cars. I’ve never had a lot of concern about which cars were better — they’ve all been a struggle to own and maintain by the time they got down to my price range!
I’ve heard various opinions by my son, my son-in-law, and others who I trust. They are split pretty evenly between U.S. made and foreign made vehicles.
But until the Big Three automakers change the perception of consumers and offer car quality and prices they are looking for, bailouts won’t solve the problem, only delay it.
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