a comment from Buffet

“At 86 and 79, Charlie and I remain lucky beyond our dreams. We were born in America; had terrific parents who saw that we got good educations; have enjoyed wonderful families and great health; and came equipped with a “business” gene that allows us to prosper in a manner hugely disproportionate to that experienced by many people who contribute as much or more to our society’s well-being. Moreover, we have long had jobs that we love, in which we are helped in countless ways by talented and cheerful associates. Indeed, over the years, our work has become ever more fascinating; no wonder we tap-dance to work. If pushed, we would gladly pay substantial sums to have our jobs (but don’t tell the Comp Committee).”

Even auto repair businesses are getting hammered

an anecdotal story from a blog I read . . . . . "My 16 year old daughter recently decided to see how fast she can drive on ice in her brand new car and learned a life long lesson. I took the vehicle to a local automotive repair facility that is professionally run and a very large facility. I spoke with the owner at length and she told me business was down 33% over the last 12 months. She thought her business was recession proof but that is not the case with this latest recession. She has been in business for over a decade and has never had a down year. The trend is for people to take the insurance money and not repair their cars. She told me to look around and notice how many dinged up cars are on the road these days. She also noticed a major trend towards $1000 deductibles versus $500 in order to save premiums. She really hoped things would turn around because her margins were down to 9% and asked what I thought. I didn't have the heart to tell her what I thought. Good news is someone backed into my car last night so I'll be giving her more business."

Are the Greeks losing it?

"Greek opposition lawmakers said on Thursday that Germans should pay reparations for their World War Two occupation of Greece before criticizing the country over its yawning fiscal deficits.

"How does Germany have the cheek to denounce us over our finances when it has still not paid compensation for Greece's war victims?" Margaritis Tzimas, of the main opposition New Democracy party, told parliament."

This was during a debate in the Greek parliament on how to handle the Greek debt. And it was echoed by both the left and right political parties. Somehow they forgot about the German government paying 115 million deutschmarks in 1960, not a small sum back then. It seems that many Greek politicians are still in the denial stage of dealing with this crisis.

The important quote from Tiger . . .

“I felt that I had worked hard my entire life and deserved to enjoy all the temptations around me. I felt I was entitled. Thanks to money and fame, I didn’t have to go far to find them.”

Actions speak louder than words

“I cannot hear what you are saying because what you are doing is speaking so loudly.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Driving Safely???

The Highway Loss Data Institute data released in January is a study collected before-and- after crash rates in California, Connecticut, New York, and the District of Columbia, all of which ban the use of cell phones while driving. It also compared crash rates in nearby states without such bans. The data showed no significant changes after the bans were in effect, and no significant changes in states without the bans.
There are several possible explanations for these results, besides the obvious possibility that there is no connection between talking on a phone and driver attentiveness to driving. First, the bans may not be enforced very well, or at all. Second, there may be a ramp-up period before the word gets around that you can be penalized for using a phone while driving. But the study does raise concerns about the broader issue of driver distractions—and more of those are on the way.
Far more likely to cause accidents is texting while driving, given that most people need to look at their device while doing so. Nineteen states plus the District of Columbia and Guam now ban texting while driving—but those bans may show equally little effect if it turns out that enforcement is so difficult or spotty as to have practically no impact (as may well be he case for the cell phone use study).
Beyond texting is the growing proliferation of in-car devices to further distract drivers from keeping their cars in safe operation. Bill Snyder, in Computerworld (Jan. 25th) reported from the Consumer Electronics Show about “a new generation of devices that bring email, the Internet, and digital entertainment into our cars.” There were 380 exhibitors showing items such as mobile TV and high-speed Internet access for cars, some pitched to eager car manufacturers and others aimed at individuals, as after-market add-ons to their cars. In his article, “Dear Silicon Valley: Stay Out of My Car,” Snyder quotes University of Utah psychology professor David Strayer, as follows: “Listening to a short text message is probably okay. But trying to pay attention to a complex email is a bad idea; it overloads the driver.” Strayer’s research has found that only 2.5% of us are the kind of “super-taskers” who can carry out multiple complex tasks at the same time.

Gold

Today, IMF made a splash by announcing plans to sell the remaining 191 tons (about $7 billion' worth) of its gold.

Grubonics - Uppatacious

Uppatacious is a word Bill uses to describe someone who is way too found of himself and doesn't deserve to be that conceited. The person also does things to try to impress others for the sake of it and the behavior is obnoxious.

Is The FDIC Killing Short Sales?

Unbelievable true story about what the FDIC is doing with foreclosures and why it's costing us a fortune and enabling others to make fortunes. Click here

Super Bowls betting results

Each year, my friend Phil Norton and I bet as many of the Las Vegas betting options as we can on the Super Bowl football game. They number as many as 80 different bets from coin toss to most average passing yards by team to first play of game to most penalty yards, etc. We've been doing this for 20 years. This year there were 62 bets, 10 were draws and I won 27 and Phil won 25. This year we bet 50 cents on each wager so I won $1.00 . . . can't wait for the check to arrive. Oh yeah, I won't cash the check, that's the way we do it every year.

Grubonics

Yesterday I invented the word "Grubonics" to describe the style of speech that my friend and craftsman, Bill Gruber uses. We've been working together the last week on a couple of home improvement projects and just to listen to him is fun and educational and "rich". Anyone who's had Bill in their company for an hour or more knows what I'm talking about. I'll post a few Gruberisms soon.