Archive for October, 2008

Thursday, October 23rd, 2008

The Big Picture: June 24, 2006 – Do The Math!

Well…well….well….. I was going over some very old posts and I came across this comment I made on The Big Picture on June 24th 2006: Well my math calculations weren’t wrong, the assumptions were skewed. So perhaps the article shouldn’t have been called DO THE MATH but rather DON’T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS. My assumptions were based [...]

1 Comment » - Posted in Observations,Watch Out by

Thursday, October 23rd, 2008

Creating Your Own Personal Finance Hedges

There are many approaches to saving, investing and cash flow operations on a personal level that I’ve read over the years.  Most center on tight budgets, frugality and self-deprecation but I prefer to focus on capital investment and hedging. In hedging, I often calculate and create investments to offset anticipated expenses to realize a net [...]

2 Comments » - Posted in Money Management,Slow Wealth by

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2008

I Won’t Cry For You Argentina or Mexico or New Zealand

Iceland, Pakistan and now add Argentina to the list of growing countries going bankrupt really fast.   Mexico is on the watch list too.  Bloomberg reports: Oct. 22 (Bloomberg) — Argentina’s stocks headed for their biggest drop since 1990 and dollar bond yields topped 30 percent as a planned takeover of pension funds heightened concern the government is [...]

2 Comments » - Posted in Financial Safety,Observations by

Tuesday, October 21st, 2008

Second Stimulus? I’m Still Waiting For The First One

Bernanke wants a second stimulus package but I’m still waiting for the first stimulus.   Not only am I waiting, I am boycotting purchasing anything other than basic goods until I get my bloody check or until the year ends. If things go down the way the first stimulus package went down then I’ll get [...]

2 Comments » - Posted in The Fed by

Tuesday, October 21st, 2008

What’s Going On With Walgreens?

Walgreens has been a staple of our family for decades.  We primarily buy all of our prescriptions there for one primary reason: their stores are usually open 24 hours.   This past week we’ve seen the Walgreens in our area convert from open 24 hours to open till 10:00 p.m. at night. There is no reason [...]

1 Comment » - Posted in Observations by

Monday, October 20th, 2008

Pakistan Near Bankruptcy

First Iceland, now Pakistan just when you thought it was safe to get in the water; Rediff is reporting that Pakistan is near collapse and it won’t be good when it happens for anyone. Pakistan’s woes seem to have no end. After years of terrorism and bad governance spread havoc, the country is witnessing one [...]

3 Comments » - Posted in Watch Out by

Monday, October 20th, 2008

We’re Telling Our Family NOT To Give us Gifts This Holiday Season

Our kids still have unopened presents from last year and we have a stack of gift cards sitting on our dresser that we’ve been trying to spend these past 12 months.   My trip to Costco yesterday reminded me that Christmas is just around the corner.   Costco has Christmas trees out and the toy section was [...]

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Sunday, October 19th, 2008

Overheard At Costco

Overheard two gossiping hens over at Costco this weekend and the conversation went something like this: Girl #1, “Oh my god, I feel so sorry for her.” Girl #2,”Yeah, her husband works for…….and he got laid off like everybody else.” Girl #1, “I heard she’s in therapy over the stress…….” I’m guessing the conversation was [...]

1 Comment » - Posted in Observations by

Friday, October 17th, 2008

Hawaii Drops Universal Healthcare

Hawaii was the only state in the union that offered government universal health care but the state recently announced they are dropping universal health care.  What was the main reason? “People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free,” said Dr. Kenny [...]

1 Comment » - Posted in Evil Profits by

Thursday, October 16th, 2008

Hoarding Food, Iceland Will Run Out In 3 To 5 Weeks

The poor chaps in Iceland are running out of food.  The credit crisis has left importers with an inability to procure & purchase food stocks from abroad.   I’ve long encouraged that people keep adequate food stuffs at home and not assume that the local grocer will have ample supply. If the credit crisis continues, and [...]

5 Comments » - Posted in Financial Safety by