Up and Down, and After All It's Only 'Round and 'Round

Wheeeeeeeee!!!!!!

Hey there, I'm back. Yeah, I know it's been awhile, but it's not like there's a huge crowd out there waiting for this blog to hit the internet. At least I hope not.

Wheeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!

Don't mind that noise in the background. No I'm not out at the Boardwalk watching the roller coasters go by. It's just that I've got the TV on and right now I'm watching the latest stock market news.

Wheeeeeeeee!!!!!

And you thought all that stocks and bonds stuff was boring, didn't you? No way, dude. Broke one minute, rolling in the dough the next - that's the life of the investor, although I'd be eternally grateful if the stock market would quit making all this front page news and go into hiding for a while. Believe me, the last thing any investor ever wants to see is the market become the lead story on the evening news. You just know no good can come from it.

Luckily, our government is ever vigilant and stands ready to shield us from these slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. What they've come up with is something called a stimulus plan. You've probably heard about it. Apparently, what we need is some kind of stimulant to get us past all these "crises" we're facing. Let's see, there's the housing crisis, the credit crisis, the energy crisis, the Mideast crisis, and out here in California we can add the budget crisis to the pile. Our aging infrastructure is collapsing, our airports are overcrowded, our ports are unguarded, our borders are unsecured, our planet is heating up, our politicians are deadlocked and corrupt, our currency is in freefall, our banks are bleeding money, our schools are falling apart, our athletes are on drugs, our Hollywood celebrities are in rehab, our health care bills are climbing, our real estate values are sinking, and our TV shows are being held hostage by a writers strike. So, in our time of need, our government has bravely decided to give each of us a check for $800 bucks.

Gee that's swell of you, Uncle Sam, and I'm sure that the fact that this is an election year has nothing to do with your decision to hand out treats. No, of course not, and all cynicism aside, I can see the point of what you're trying to do. The fact is that U.S. consumption accounts for 20% of the world economy, and if we aren't down at the mall spending, it's not just Americans who are going to suffer, but dollar-a-day sweatshop workers in China as well. Our humanity itself demands we do something.

So, have you decided what you're going to do with your check yet? I figure with all these "crises" we're have surrounding our doorstep, the first thing I'm gonna do with my check is go buy some guns and ammunition. Maybe some canned goods and bottled water too - it could be a long siege. Other than that I think I'll just watch the Fed lower interest rates and watch the monthly earnings from my savings accounts slowly dwindle to nothing.

Thanks a lot, Ben.

But I don't want to finish this post on a down note so here's something totally unrelated. This is actually a little item out of Germany that I thought you might find interesting. It concerns a sensational German violinist named Julia Fischer that I've blogged about in the past, who recently did something that I thought would be impossible given her grueling schedule of concerts and recording sessions. I think I mentioned once that Fischer was not only one of today's top violinists, but was also rumored to be an accomplished pianist as well. I also offered the opinion that we would never know how good a pianist she was because of all the demands and challenges that lay before her in her career as a world-class violinist. I simply didn't think she would ever have the time to put together a piano program in the middle of her very busy violin schedule.

Well, I was wrong.

According to the article, on January 1st of this year, the remarkable Julia Fischer, Gramaphone's Artist of the Year, not only played Saint-Saens Violin Conceto No. 3 for a concert audience in Frankfurt, but came back after the intermission to play the Grieg Piano Concerto in A-minor on piano as well. I know most people don't follow classical music that closely, but I think even the most jaded hipster has got to stand back and take pause at an accomplishment like that. Most people would need a lifetime to master just one instrument, but two, and at the age of 24, is unbelievable. It may not be your kind of music, but how can you argue with the talent.

Now if I had just one word of advice for the German wunderkind it would be this: Take it easy for a while. No, I certainly can't live her life for her, but I've been thinking about celebrity a lot this past year and trying to imagine what it must be like to live under the constant scrutiny and glare of strangers. On the one hand it must be exhilarating and fun to receive all the accolades and applause, but on the other hand it must be a tremendous burden to be so public and carry the weight of conjecture and expectation with you wherever you go. We audiences seem so needy sometimes (especially the frustrated musicians among us) and it seems like the best thing an adoring audience could do for these great musicians is just pay the money, enjoy the concert, and then back off.

And maybe the best thing that a Julia Fischer could do is back off a little as well. Just a little, mind you. I believe she recently got married so why not take some time off to be with her young groom, and then come back relaxed and ready to go for her next season or project. That would be my advice, anyways, and if she heard it I'm sure she would say that I don't know what the hell I'm talking about.

Californa On 38 Million Dollars A Day

Are you watching the Sugar Bowl? Yeah, I know what you mean. Before the game everyone was asking if Hawaii really belonged there, and now after watching the first half the only question is how much more of this rout can I sit through before I turn the TV off. The hell with this. It's like watching Pop Warner vs. the NFL. I think I'll do some blogging instead.

Let's see, when last we talked  the company I formerly worked for had just gone  belly-up and I was out of a job. I'm happy to say that I'm now working for a new company, and it's going ok except that like a lot of people starting new jobs I still feel like an orphan at someone else's family reunion. On the one hand it's nice to be employed, but on the other hand it's a bit of a drag to have to start at the bottom again and work to regain all that I had built up. Even worse is the feeling that I'm not so sure I even want to do it all over again, you know? I keep wondering if maybe I should have just taken some time off and tried to figure out where I want to go from here instead of jumping right back in. I mean I've still got some time left to try something else, don't I?

Something like taking a nice long break and going down to Australia or something like that. I was watching the Travel Channel a couple of years ago and they had this special all about Australia, and it looked pretty nice. I don't know if you know this but everywhere you go down there they've got these empty tropical beaches with no one around except buxom, bronze-skinned bikini babes. I'm not kidding - I saw it on the Travel Channel. The Travel Channel wouldn't lie, would they?

"Meanwhile, just 250 kilometers up the coast you'll find a pristine tropical paradise called the Polynesian Heaven Resort. With it's luxurious cabana style accommodations and endless miles of unspoiled beaches, the Polynesian Heaven is a must-see for any vacationer taking a trip down under. There's plenty of outdoor fun to be had with one of their snorkel or jet ski rentals, or perhaps a romantic candlelight dinner in one of their four star restaurants is more your style. Even if it's just a casual stroll on an empty beach with nothing but buxom, bronze-skinned bikini babes to keep you company, you'll find exactly what you're looking for at this hidden getaway. Located less than an hour's drive from blah, blah, blah..."

(I used to love watching the Travel Channel. I wonder if they're still on the air)

Well, I'm not going to Australia. Not now, anyway. I'm still here in California, and the beaches are cold and nary a buxom, bronze-skinned bikini babe is in sight. Plenty of news, though, I guess.

The big story, of course, is the collapse of the California real estate market. Not the entire market, mind you,  but significant portions of it. Mark my word, Californians may say we care about clean air and good schools and all that other stuff, but what we really care about above all else is the value of our homes. Without that, we'd have nothing else to talk about. We'd all just stand around and stare at each other as we fingered the avocado dip. 

Now, with housing prices declining the state is in a decidedly glum mood. There was a poll I saw recently that said that around 50% of Californians were feeling pessimistic about the future, compared to around 20% who were feeling good.  I don't know what that implies (probably not much), but if misery loves company then I guess Californians can at least feel pretty good about that.

The fiscal situation, however, is a little more dramatic. Since he took office, Governor Schwarzenegger has made it clear that there will be no new taxes on his watch, and to that end he gambled that by borrowing the funds California needed to continue operating now, he could wait for the economy to recover and pay back those loans later. Given both the state requirement to balance its budget and his pledge not to raise taxes, he really had no other choice. The bad news is that meanwhile, back at the economy, the housing market has tumbled and tax revenues have come up a little short. About leaving  $14 billion short, so far, and the Governor is now looking more and more like a spend-happy George W. Bush in a muscle suit. Oh well, so much for that whole balanced budget idea.

Which means that as we head into 2008 things are looking pretty feisty for the Governor and the state's Republicans. They are expected to hold the line on taxes, and that means some kind of showdown with the Democrats is inevitable. You have to understand that when we talk about a budget we aren't talking about how to spend California's tax dollars. The truth is most of our tax dollars have already been spent through entitlements and guaranteed spending levels, and less than 25% is actually left in the so-called "discretionary" portion of the budget. So when Californians talk about budget fights, we're really just talking about nibbling at the margins.

And that leaves us with only one choice. I hate to say this Mr. Governor, I really do, but it looks like we're going to have to raise some taxes to make up this shortfall. Like it or not, our options are very limited and we can't just keep floating bonds and putting off the inevitable - we have to start taking some responsibility now. As to whose taxes to raise, I say that guy's over there. He's got plenty of money and he can afford it, and besides, I already pay enough taxes as it is.

And in one last bit of fiscal news, it seems the City of Santa Clara (my neighbor to the west) may be building itself a new stadium. If you haven't been following along, and why would you, Santa Clara has been trying for the longest time to get a professional sports franchise to move in to town. For years the object of their affection was the San Francisco Giants, but when the Giants built their new stadium up in The City, Santa Clara was forced to look elsewhere. Finally, though still unable to find a professional team willing to relocate, they decided to try the San Francisco Forty-Niners instead. And, lo and behold, the Niners said yes.

So far, that is. Problem is that money thing again. Specifically, about $62 million which the city needs to raise in order to complete the deal. Details, details...You would think that with all the money sloshing around this valley that $62 million would be a drop in the bucket (hell, Larry and Sergey probably have that much just jingling around in Google's spare change jar), but it looks like the city is going to need to come up with some sort of revenue plan (i.e. taxes). The latest proposal I heard was a new Hotel Tax, which suits Santa Clarans just fine, but doesn't do much good for the tourist trade (and lord knows how many tourists are flocking to Santa Clara). Nothing is final, though, so stay tuned.

Hopefully, the money will be found and in a few years the Forty-Niners will be calling Santa Clara their new home. No word yet if they'll be the San Francsisco Forty-Niners or the Santa Clara Forty-Niners or the Santa Clara San Francisco Forty-Niners or whatever, but everyone involved in the deal seems pretty excited.  I'm sure they'll sort it out and then the Santa Clara fans can finally sit in their brand new stadium and watch their Forty-Niners and shout "We payed $62 million for this?"

Hmm, maybe they should have gone after the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors instead.