It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

Hello there. Hope everything's going well with you. It's been pretty uneventful around here lately - kind of quiet really. You know, I've just been running errands, doing a little  shopping, and that sort of thing, and, uh, oh yeah, getting laid off for Christmas.. Other than that though....

Well, technically speaking, I didn't get laid off. What happened is that I came into work last Thursday, poured a cup of coffee, sat down at my desk, had a good yawn and a belly scratch, and then found out that the company announced we were going to shut down.

"Hey, look, no big deal but I just thought you'd like to know that as of 5:00 o'clock tonight we're all going to out of job".

"Ok, thanks. I appreciate your mentioning it. Hey, did you see the game last night?"

Well, it was sort of like that. You see, prior to the announcement there wasn't even the slightest hint that anything was wrong. Maybe it was naivety on my part or maybe I just wasn't paying attention, but the offhandedness of the shutdown was really weird. It was like the bosses just got up that morning and decided "You know, instead of our usual 18 holes, why don't we just close down the company instead."

Ho-Ho-Ho and a Merry Christmas.

Not that I'm feeling sorry for myself, mind you. Actually, I'm pretty lucky in that I'm a pessimist by nature and forever preparing for the worst. That means I've got no debts and some money in the bank, and with no dependents to take care of  I won't be going hungry anytime soon. Unfortunately, that's not true for everybody that lost their job last Thursday, especially the ones with mortgages to pay and young families to clothe and feed. I don't suppose anyone feels too good about that, but you gotta be prepared for the worst, you know?  These days Christmas layoffs seem to have become almost an annual tradition in the corporate world, and, after all, what better way to reward your employees than with a great big lump of coal for the Yuletide.

Yeah, ho-ho-ho indeed

So, anyway, it was strange being unemployed. I started going over it in my mind and the nearest I can figure is that I've been employed continuously since I was 19 years old, and for all those years not a day has gone by that I didn't know that a next paycheck coming. Then just like that, I found myself hung out to dry and the next paycheck I always counted on and planned my future around wasn't there anymore. Let me tell you. It's a weird, disorientating feeling. I didn't know whether to panic or just pretend it was all a bad dream.

And if all that wasn't bad enough, someone, who apparently subscribes to the theory that it is best to kick people when they're down, decided to prowl my neighborhood last Friday night and  break into my truck. As if I wasn't feeling bummed out enough already about being out of a job, I walked out to the truck on Saturday morning and found the doors wide open, the little change compartment completely emptied and the rest of the interior contents thrown into a big messy pile on the seats. Luckily it's an old truck and there wasn't that much change inside, and they probably would have done me a favor if they would have just stolen the entire truck, but it was just the sort of salt I didn't need rubbed into my wounds at that particular moment, you know what I mean?

So that was my uneventful week. I certainly hope yours was better. The good news is that I'm starting a new job in a few days and hopefully this next one will go a little better than the last. Being the pessimist I am, however, I'm not expecting all my troubles to be behind me. Not after the week I've just been through, and you can rest assured that I'll be squeezing my dollars pretty tight in the days ahead. I'm sorry to disappoint you Wall Street, but  my contribution to the greater economic good this Christmas season is likely to be somewhat muted, to say the least.

Which means there must be some lesson in all this. Well yes, there is, and for that let us turn now to that great folk economist Bob Dylan who once reminded us "Don't follow leaders, and watch the parking meters." 

And have a Happy Holiday .

The Quiet Man

"You know what the problem is, doc? The problem is that nothing has any value anymore. It's all just dollars and cents and how much someone will pay for something. Nothing has any real worth."

"How about family? Friends? They have worth, don't they?"

"Sure, but that's not what I mean. It's like...you know what happened? Rupert Murdoch bought Dow Jones. That's what I mean. It's all about money. It's not about prestige or importance. It's all about cheapening the product for the mass market and making a buck. I mean Rupert Murdoch, the world's biggest media pimp, bought Dow Jones!"

"Well, you may be jumping to conclusions here."

"Oh yeah, you just wait and see. Mark my word. Pretty soon they'll be putting Page 3 girls in the Wall Street Journal."

"I doubt that, and anyway, if that's what the public wants then who are you to sit and judge."

"The aesthetic is gone, doc. Whatever sells is right, and the cruder the better."

"Again, who are you to sit and judge? Did it ever occur to you that maybe you're tastes might just be different from someone else's? That doesn't make a thing right or wrong."

"Well, all I can say is that there is more to beauty than botox and a boob job. You know what the poet said, 'Truth is beauty, and beauty truth. That's all ye know on earth and all ye need to know."

"And what is truth, then? How do you know the truth isn't  botox and a boob job?"

"I know that beauty isn't something you can buy, like a can of beans."

"Then you don't know much about women. There may be more illusion than you realize."

"Beauty, real beauty, is like a...a...I don't know. It's like a connection or something. You see someone and you just feel connected somehow, and that's all you see, you know what I mean. It's got nothing to do with hair, or makeup, or any of that. I mean, sure, that has something to do with it, but without that connection it's all just fakery. It's like if you feel that connection, then it's beautiful. And it doesn't have to be a girl. It can be a painting, or a car, or even a refrigerator. If that connection is there, then it's beautiful. Page 3 girls are just hormonal reactions. You can call them beautiful, but it's not the same thing."

"Ok, I'm not going to argue with you. So what else is going on? Have you started writing that opera yet?"

"Oh, the opera. Yeah, well I'm working on that."

"How far have you gotten?"

"Let's just say I'm still in the idea stage. Anyway, it's probably too late for me to start writing an opera now. Maybe if I was a little younger..."

"Truth is, you're the world's greatest procrastinator. Now that's what the truth is."

"Yeah, well, I guess I've lost my inspiration. You know I've been trying to do what you told me. I'm trying to live more in the real world instead having my head in the clouds all the time, but you know the real world is kind of boring. At least it is to me. Without my fantasies I just don't feel inspired to write. It's almost like I don't feel anything anymore."

"I didn't tell you to give up your fantasies, I just want you to focus more on separating the real from the imaginary. I know you know the difference, now you just need to work on not letting your imagination get away with you. We both know what kind of trouble that can get you into."

"..."

"How are you doing socially? Are you getting out more like I asked you to?"

"I bought a motorcycle."

"And?"

"I bought a motorcycle because I can get on the thing and ride and not have to deal with anybody except the other drivers on the road. It's like being in my own little world, and I like that."

"I see. That's not exactly what I ..."

"You see doc, I don't like crowds of people. I just like to do my own thing and not have to bother anybody else. Yeah, ok, I'm a dreamer and I know that's not healthy but it's who I am, and, frankly, at this point in my life I'm not much interested in changing."

"Yes, but that can lead to problems. You know that."

"What can I say? It's my bliss. I hear what you're saying, but if I could just ride my bike and write my opera, I'd die a happy man."

"Really?"

"At least I'd die happier than if I had to sit around at people's parties  making small talk for the rest of my life. That just ain't me, doc."

"Well, I appreciate your honesty but I'm afraid you're..."

"Excuse me. I think my half-hour is up."

"Yes, you're right. That'll have to do for today. Make an appointment on the way out, and try to get out more, will you?"

"Sure. I'll try. You know this would make a great opera."

Nanook's Got A New Ride

I noticed that the ride into work was a little cold this morning, so I shouldn't have been surprised when I took off my helmet and found ice crystals riming the edges of my face shield." No, that can't be" No, considering that the temperature was a chilly 35 degrees when I left home, and then factoring in the wind chill, it really shouldn't have come as much of a surprise, but it did.

So what is it that leads brave men to face such dangers, you may ask. Well, let me try to answer that. I believe it's either one of two things, or maybe a little of both. First, when riding a motorcycle you're usually sitting directly over the engine. That means the vibrations, although counterbalanced and dampened, often work their way through the handlebars, footpegs and seat to the rider. It would only seem natural to me, then, that more than a few neurons would shake loose in the process. Thus, such a marked decrease in IQ combined with the rapid onset of hypothermia would naturally explain why an otherwise normal adult would set out on a winter morning and choose a bone-chilling ride on a a bike over a  warm cozy automobile.

The second factor may be that bikers are just born stupid. I am coming to that conclusion, and, in fact,  what we may be dealing with here are stupid people with hypothermia and loose neurons choosing to ride their bikes in sub-freezing weather because they don't know any better. Yes that would explain a lot.

Before I go any further let me just say that I wasn't the only biker out there this morning. I may be brain impaired, but certainly not without my peers. In fact I counted at least a half dozen other brave souls out on the road this morning, and if they give out medals for this sort of thing, then be it known that medals were earned today.

Of course, the other bikers I passed seemed much better equipped than I to deal with the cold. At the very least they all had windshields to keep the wind off of them, and a couple were riding Honda Gold Wings fully loaded with fairings and heated seats and all that other stuff which seems so silly in the summer and so practical in the winter. I should note that what I didn't see this morning were any badasses riding Harleys wearing nothing more than a t-shirt and a brain bucket on their heads for protection. Sure, they may be tough, but it's one thing to scraping bugs off your teeth in the summer and another to be picking snowballs out of your nose in the winter. Even toughness has it's limits.

But enough of that. After all, who cares?  I bet you weren't sitting on a bike freezing your tush off this morning. You're more sensible than that so let's see what else there is to talk about tonight? Hmmm....Hmmm...I know. I could talk about maniacs with guns going on shooting sprees, but which maniac should I talk about? Would that be this week's maniac with a gun or last week's maniac with a gun? It all gets to be so cliché after a while. Or, I know, I could talk about Barry Bonds. Oh, what for?  That's already old news. Let me just say this. Getting a San Francisco jury to convict Barry Bonds of perjury is about as likely as getting a Chicago jury to convict Michael Jordan or a New York jury to convict Babe Ruth. In other words, not very likely, and if I were one of you Barry Bonds haters out there (actually, I am), I wouldn't get my hopes up.

Tell you what, let's just call it a night and hopefully I'll something better to write about tomorrow. In the meantime, if you happen to be driving around tomorrow morning and see me out on the road, I'd appreciate it if you got out your ice pick and knocked a few of the icicles off my helmet. You might also want to shake me around a bit  just to be sure I haven't lapsed into a coma. Neighbor helping neighbors, that's what it's all about. 

Soul Music?

Although I'm not a geek, I've got to admit that I'm a sucker for a cool new gadget. I'm also a sucker for good music, so what better union of two disparate interests than a cool new gadget that plays music. No, I'm not talking about a new MP3 player, I'm talking about a gadget that actually plays music- in this case the violin.

Now, you know I love violin music, but has Toyota gone a little too far with this little contraption. Check it out and see what you think.

 

 

 

Violin Robot

 

Hmmm, I don't know. Could use a little more vibrato, don't you think. Well, maybe the violin isn't a good choice of instrument for a robot. A guitar would be better. Just teach it three chords and turn up the volume and it could probably rock out better than 90% of the bands out there nowdays. That would just be my opinion, of course.

Anyway, speaking of the violin, here's a new CD I got a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately, instead of a robot this one was made by a real, living, breathing human being by the name Lisa Batiashvili.A bit of a disappointment to all the geeks out there, but not a fatal flaw.

Batiashvili has been getting a lot of critical notice lately,and I'd never heard her play so I ordered her latest CD. This is her second release in the U.S. and it features the Sibelius and Lindberg Violin Concertos. After reading all the press she's been getting I have to tell you I had high expectations for this one. One critic even said the young violinist was already on a par with current violin stars such as Hilary Hahn.

Well, Mr. Critic, not quite.

Batiashvili can certainly play, and she is not just another one of the photogenic pretenders making the rounds these days. She's got some chops, but a lot of violinist's have chops. That in and of itself isn't gonna catapult you up to the elite ranks. No, you need more than chops and what Batiashvili lacks, at least in her Sibelius Violin Concerto, is purpose.she plays the piece as though she is overly concerned with how it's supposed to sound or how it's expected to be played, rather than with how she feels the piece and how she wants to interpret it for her audience.

At times she seems overdramatic, then hesitant, then wooden, only to fly wildly off the deep end. It's a very disjointed effort, and certainly not one that belongs among the best of the great violinists. It seems painfully obvious that Batiashvili needs to let go of her self-consciousness and find her own voice, and then she needs somehow to develop the  confidence to trust her own gut instincts and play from the heart. As it stands now, this Sibelius, is a bit of a mess.

Also included on the CD is a wonderful concerto by the contemporary Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg. I've never heard it before and what a amazing piece of music it is, and played exceptionally well by young Batiashvili. I can hardly describe it, except to say that it explodes with sound, including one point in the piece where Batiashvili's violin makes these weird sounds that reminded me of  a plastic slide whistle. It's really very cool and what I'd call a virtuoso or show piece, but then I'm not a violinist so what do I know. I loved it though, and maybe it's this type of playing that has earned Batiashvili her renown in certain critical circles.

However, if you buy the CD you're probably going to buy it for the Sibelius, and that would be a mistake. Far better to wait until 2008 when we finally get the Sibelius Violin Concerto CD  we've all been waiting for, and from a violinist who truly merits her critical acclaim. Until then, I guess the Batiashvili will have to do.

So there you go. A little geek news, a little music news - not too bad for a rainy night in California. Think I'll go pick up my axe and do a little picking now, You don't mind if I start singing, do you. 

Rainy night in Georgia, Oh, it's a rainy night in Georgia, I believe it's raining all over the world...

I Wasn't Born To Follow

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are making history here tonight. A bipartisan presidential debate before the first primary has even been held has never occurred before in American presidential politics. But that's precisely what we propose to bring you tonight. On this stage we will be presenting candidates from both of the major parties to debate the issues of the day. It is our hope that by doing so we will offer the voters watching at home a broad perspective of the differences not only within each party, but within the broader context of American society as well, So candidates, if you're ready, let us begin.

"My first question goes to you Senator Clinton. Everyday Americans turn on their TV's and see yet more carnage, more sectarian violence, more lawlessness, and more innocent victims caught in the crossfire. If elected President, how will you bring an end to this bloodshed and restore peace and civility?"

"Thank you Mr. Moderator, I'm glad you asked that question. I too am troubled by what I see happening in Iraq and let me..."

"Iraq?"

"Yes, you were asking me about Iraq."

"Actually I was talking about West Oakland."

"Oh, I misunderstood. Well, West Oakland and some of our other urban areas are certainly in trouble, and let me assure you that as President I am committed to taking on this problem and remaining strong in my conviction that this sort of criminal behavior is wrong and must be dealt with on every level - local, state and national. We cannot let these criminal gangs take over our streets and terrorize our citizens, and I will see to it that our brave men and women in law enforcement receive the resources they need to combat these thugs. But let us not deceive ourselves into believing that law enforcement is in itself enough to accomplish the task. It will also take the involvement of community groups, educators, business leaders and all the rest of us to help our young people turn away from crime and to live productive live. To make that happen it will take the kind of vigorous leadership that I have shown in the past to make sure the job gets done, and in a Clinton presidency, the job will get done."

"Thank you Senator Clinton. Mayor Giuliani, your thoughts?"

"Unlike most of the other candidates on this stage, I have actual experience dealing with the kinds of problems your seeing in West Oakland and Richmond and South Philly. I was Mayor of New York and I've been there. How do we deal with crime in our inner cities? We don't tolerate it, it's as simple as that. Zero tolerance is the only way for cities to take back the streets, and as President it will be my first priority to hire 100,000 new police officers and make sure our cities have the resources available to do the job. An I can tell you what we don't need. What we don't need is a lot of interference from Washington or a bunch of bean counter bureacrats. We'll spend the money, we'll hire the officers, we'll build the courts and jails and we'll get these thugs off the streets. That's my promise to the American people. We did it in New York, and we can do it in Oakland. All we need is the will and determination to get the job done."

"Thank you Mayor Giuliani. How about you, Senator Obama. Is law enforcement the answer?"

"No it's not the answer and let me tell you why. What we need is a new approach. The old way of doing things simply hasn't worked. We've tried law enforcement in the past and yet the street gang problem still exists. We've involved the community, we've talked to business leaders, we've tried to improve our schools, and those things are important, but the same old way of doing things that Senator Clinton advocates just won't work anymore. We need to reach out to our young people, get them involved in the solution. These are their neighborhoods too. We should listen to what they have to say. Do they need jobs? Well ok, let's provide them with the education and skills they need so they can go out and get those jobs. Do they need a stable home environment? Ok, let's get some counselors in there and intervene in some of these dysfunctional families. This has to be a two-way street. As President I can't just dictate solutions to our young people. I need to hear from them, and we need to get the parents involved as well."

"Governor Romney, we haven't heard from you."

"When I was Governor of Massachusetts it's true I had undocumented workers employed on my property. I can see now that I was wrong, and as the only true conservative in this race let me reassure the voters that I am strongly against this practice."

"Thank you Governor Romney. Yes, Senator Edwards, you had something you wanted to say?"

"Thank you Mr. Moderator. As I listen to the other candidates give you their answers I must say that I'm astonished at the lack of vision shown here on this stage. Law enforcement is not the answer. Building jails is not the answer. The question is what can we do as Americans to combat crime in our inner cities, and the answer is that it is clearly the government's responsibility to see that our citizens are safe and that our youth find a place in our society where they can lead happy, productive lives. As President I will propose legislation that deals directly with problem. That means job training, health care, family crisis intervention, afterschool programs, mentoring...the list goes on and on. There is no reason why any child in America should ever suffer hardship, and I believe it's government's responsibility to see that no child ever does. The first thing I will do as President is withdraw our armed forces from Iraq and use those monies to fund the kind of social programs we need to affect the lives of everyday Americans. We are still the richest country in America, and the real crime is not redistributing some of those riches to our societies most vulnerable citizens. Government can do that, but only with strong Presidential leadership."

"Would that be your approach Senator Thompson?"

"No, and let me tell you why. Crime is not a new problem in America, particularly in our inner cities. What we should be concerned with is containment. Let's be brutally honest here, black communities in America have always been high crime areas, and as long as we can contain it to those areas then I think most Americans will be ok with that. If it starts to go beyond those borders, however, then we've got a problem. I don't know why Americans care more about carnage a half a world away than they do about the carnage just up the freeway, but that's the reality of the situation and we've go to deal with that. Containment is the key strategy here. That is where we should concentrate our resources, because, mark my word, if we don't then this stuff can get out of control."

"Thank you Senator Thompson, and that was a great movie by the way. Congressman Paul, how about a word from you. This is the internet, after all."

"Thank you Mr. Moderator. If there is a crime problem in West Oakland, then I say why is that the government's concern. If I'm not mistaken, the Second Amendment of the Constitution stills grants to each citizen the right to bear arms, and an armed populace is far better than any government solution as far as I'm concerned. As President my first action would be to put an end to all of this wasteful spending and legalize crime. Legalize crime and the crime rate will go down, I guarantee it."

"Ok, Governor Huckabee it's your turn."

"Why are our young people so lost? It's a lack of faith, that's what I say. The Bible is a far more powerful weapon than the Glock 19, but is sadly missing from our society today. I think the President should be more than just a political leader, he should be a moral leader as well. What I want to ask the citizens of Oakland is 'where are the churches in all this. What role does prayer play in the daily lives of your children'.As the only candidate up here who truly represents the values of the Christian Right I think you know where I stand. The problems in Oakland are the same as the problems I see across America. We need to restore faith in our lives and emphasize family values. Only through faith can our young people battle against the forces of evil we see all around us. Yes, we should punish the sinners, but always with a sense of love in our hearts."

"And finally Senator McCain, you get the last word."

"Huh?"

"Senator McCain? Are you awake sir?"

"Yes, I'm sorry. I'm afraid the lateness of the hour has taken it's toll. The important thing to remember is that defeat is not an option. Our young men and women who have fought so bravely deserve better than..."

"Senator McCain, we were talking about Oakland."

"Yes, I understand, but defeat is still not an option. What this country needs is discipline and the courage to see the fight through. And, uh...I forgot what I was going to say."

"That's fine Senator McCain. I want to thank all of you candidates for attending this debate, and I want to especially thank you viewers at home for tuning in and listening so patiently and carefully to their answers, for in the end it's you who will decide the course of this great nation in the year's to come. Think about what you've heard tonight when you step into the voting booth to cast your ballot, and remember democracy depends on an informed and involved electorate. With that I bid you all good night, and ask you to please stay tuned for the network premiere of 'Laundering With The Stars' immediately following this broadcast. Tonight four celebrities air their dirty laundry and reveal the secrets hidden in some of their most intimate apparel. What's hiding in your clothes hamper? That's 'Laundering With The Stars' immediately following most of these --- stations. From the Silicon Valley, this has been the Bipartisan Presidential Debate. Thank you all, and good-night."

Dead Cat Offers His Expert Opinion

"Hello everybody. Welcome to Weekly Business Roundup. I'm Katia Pond. On the show this week we'll be talking about the rapidly declining housing market with my special guest - billionaire investor, political insider, and all around raconteur Tony Myers, author of the wildly popular Dead Cat On A Mountain blog. Has the housing bubble burst, and how much further can prices fall? Find out what my guest thinks, and get his views on what's to come in the year ahead. But first, let's find out what happened this week on Wall Street. As you can see, first the market was way up, then it was way down, then it went way up again, then the bottom fell out, and finally we took a little breather on Friday. For the week the Dow was unchanged, while the Nasdaq ended up in the bathroom feeling a little nauseous. Why all the volatility? Many believe the housing market's to blame, so please welcome my guest Tony Myers and find out what he thinks lies behind the market's malaise. Tony Myers, welcome."

"Thanks Katia. Good to be here."

"So what about this housing market? Foreclosures are up, credit is tight, and now Secretary Paulson is talking about freezing interest rates. Are we headed for a recession?"

"I'm afraid it's much worse than that, Katia. Back at the blog I've been looking over the historical data and running the numbers and I believe that not only are we looking at a recession,  but it's becoming clearer and clearer to me that sometime next year we're all going to die."

"Die?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Well, that's a pretty strong statement. I mean, well, yeah, sure, we're all going to die someday..."

"No, next year."

"Next year? What are you basing that on?"

"A lot of things. For example, have you ever heard of Lester Ziffren?"

"No, I can't say I have."

"Well, Lester Ziffren died last week."

"I'm sorry to hear that but..."

"Lester Ziffren was the reporter who broke the story about the start of hostilities in the Spanish Civil War. What do you think of that?"

"I'm not sure I follow your point (but then I've read your blog so that's hardly surprising)."

"Outside of University History Departments, how many Americans do you think have ever heard of the Spanish Civil War?"

"Well I have. That was in Pan's Labyrinth, wasn't it?"

"Ok, outside of Pan's Labyrinth what do you know about the Spanish Civil War?"

"Um, let's see. There was Teddy Roosevelt and the charge up San Juan Hill, right?"

"No, that wasn't the Spanish Civil War, that was the Spanish-American War...At least I think that was the Spanish-American War. Wasn't it?"

"Aha, so even you don't know for sure."

"My point is this. Most Americans don't have a clue about the Spanish Civil War, but if you ask them the name of Paris Hilton's dog..."

"You mean Tinkerbell?"

"That's what I'm saying. Any society that knows more about some clueless TV celebrity than they do about the rise of fascism in the 20th century deserves to die."

"Oh, yeah, good point (?). I'd like to return to the housing market for a moment if I could. You're from the Bay Area, aren't you?"

"Yes that's right."

"Are you seeing the same trends in Northern California as we are seeing in the rest of the country?"

"That's an interesting point, Katia. No, we're not seeing the same trends. We've definitely seen a slowdown in sales, particularly in the entry-level sub-$700,000 market, but the multimillion dollar end of the market is still managing to hold together, although sales are hardly brisk. So far that as kept the median price fairly stable, but as the lower end becomes more distressed we could see that start to change."

"So multimillion dollar homes are still selling."

"Yes, so far. Understand, of course, that in the Silicon Valley no one is very impressed by a million dollar price tag, not when employment is strong and wages remain good. You know, if you tell someone in the Silicon Valley that you made $150,000 last year, rather than be impressed they're more likely to say something like 'Oh, don't worry. I'm sure things will start to pick up'. "

"I see. So being from the Silicon Valley you're actually living in some kind of bubble and really have no clue about  what's going on in the rest of the country, do you?"

"Look Katia, the bottom line is this. As long as credit remains tight and mortgage lenders aren't wiling to lend, it's a no-brainer that housing is going to suffer. And until that changes, the housing market will continue to limp along. What housing needs is more first-time buyers to grease the wheels and keep the engine turning , and as long as there is nobody out there willing to lend to them then there's nothing to drive up prices. That means sellers are either going to have to sit on their properties for a while, or use some creative means like seller carry-back loans to sell their houses. It's as simple as that and everybody knows it. There's no magic bullet for housing. You need money to buy a house, and outside of the Silicon Valley and a few other upper class enclaves, most people don't have that kind of cash laying around."

"So does that mean falling prices?"

"Falling prices make for nervous lenders more unwilling than ever to make new loans. That leads to even lower prices and so on and so on and so on. That's not a good scenario and I think we'll see some kind of intervention before things get out of control"

"Like what? Could we be looking at a government bailout?"

"Well the current Congress has decided in it's wisdom to put even more restrictions on new loans as a way to punish lenders. It doesn't make much sense to me, but then, these are democrats. They've even put a provision in the new law that outlaws 'predatory lending', whatever that's supposed to mean. I'm afraid what it's going to wind up meaning is that everyone who falls behind on their mortgage will now be able to hire a lawyer and sue their lender for 'predatory lending'. Tell me that won't have a chilling effect on the housing market."

"So you don't expect the government to come to the rescue of these distressed homeowners?"

"This isn't a job for the government. By intervention I mean market intervention. What's probably going to happen is that some of these lenders are going to fail, and others will be bought up or merged, and sooner or later the balance sheets will improve and things will start getting back to normal. After all, lenders need to make loans in order to make money. In the interim, though, residential real estate is in for some rough times."

"How long do you think it will take?"

"More than a year, I suppose, and by that time we'll all be dead."

"And on that cheerful note we'll have to draw this interview to a close. I want to thank my guest Tony Myers, and please be sure to join us next week when my guest will be Paris Hilton who has just returned from Africa and will be sharing her insights on oil and the energy markets. Until then, I'm Katia Pond. Have a great week everybody."

Joyeux Noël - A Christmas Card

Has it been a year already? Geez, time just flies on by and then all of a sudden it's time for another depressing Christmas. Seems like only yesterday...

No, that's not right.  I've got to quit being so negative. I've got to be of good cheer and find the "true meaning of Christmas" and all that. Except that after reaching a certain age I have to wonder what's the "true meaning of Christmas" anyway. Christmas is Christmas. You eat, you open some presents, you eat some more, you take a nap, you eat some more, you go home, and the next day you go back to work again.

Well, that's how Christmas seems to me. For most normal folks, I suppose, the "true meaning of Christmas" is something different. It's making plans and decorating the house and hitting the mall to burn up what's left of their available credit and, if everything comes together as planned,  it's having it all come together for a perfect "Christmas with the family." That's how it is on TV anyway, and in the real world I guess most people just try to do the best they can. I doubt anyone's Christmas is as perfect as the ones on TV, though. Have you seen the commercial where the husband takes the wife outside and surprises her with a new Mercedes sitting in the driveway. Was that like your Christmas? Seems to me if you can afford to buy your wife a new Mercedes then you're probably too busy counting your money to spend much time worrying about the "true meaning of Christmas", but then what do I know.

Anyways, I don't want anything for Christmas this year, and that's kind of depressing. I mean if you're not anticipating a new bike or a race car set, then Christmas is pretty much like any other day, isn't it? Well, except for the extra pounds you'll have to lose come the New Year. Sure, there's the joy of perfunctory giving, but that has more to do  with  expectation than spontaneous feelings of peace on earth and goodwill to men if you ask me. In "the true meaning of Christmas" giving should be earnest and heartfelt, not a new toaster. Damn, I must be getting old.

At this point, all I really want for Christmas are the things I can't have. Like a younger body, for instance, or the woman of my dreams. Of course, the reality is that if I had a younger body I'd just abuse it, and if I had the woman of my dreams she'd always remain beyond my grasp. That's why dreams should just stay dreams and not be allowed to intrude on life's thousands of other little heartaches. After all the woman of your dreams probably has dreams of her own, and none of them include you. What then? Either you go on your way or you become a stalker. I say it would be best to just leave dreams to the imagination and not torture yourself over what never was and never could have been.

Which means that at this point  I don't even know what I'm talking about anymore. Maybe I should end this post instead. Yes, Christmas can be so depressing sometimes. All I ask is that you leave me here with my music and my books, and please don't ask me to be merry. I don't have the heart for it. Now that the cold weather has started I'll be spending more time inside, and that means more blogging time and plenty of opportunities for me to exorcise my inner demons. In the meantime, enjoy your Christmas (or not) and I hope there's a new Mercedes sitting in your driveway on Christmas morning. I'll be on my computer, dreaming.