Hope all is well out there in blog-land. Things are certainly interesting here. I will try and keep my head straight. This week is just nutso. Lots going on. Between scouts, swimming lessons, birthdays, recitals, etc. it is hectic.
So the fed announces a cut in the rate and the market goes up from being down. But it is short lived because there were a whole bunch of people who dumped their holdings for short term gains. So, what does this lesson tell us. Take modest gains where you can for the short term (if you are the active trader type) or sit it all out. These guys throw around millions like we throw pennies into a fountain. Don't try to beat them. Just take your mediocre gains and be happy. As for the market, there will be more money flowing in as people make more due to raises and bonuses. So expect a rise soon of gradual proportions. Stay the course. Remember the Alamo! (jk)
Seriously though, check out the shareholder wealth-building plans offered through Computershare.com. They are a service provider for investing directly with companies. They make it easy to search through their vast plan management system to determine which DSPP and DRPP plans are best for you. I happen to be using them for Bank of America (BAC) and ExxonMobil (XOM). Mostly because these are cash giants who pay great dividends. Their shareholder plans (offered by the companies themselves but using the Computershare system as a vehicle) also have no buy fees, auto. dividend reinvestment, and no maintenance fees. Plus, initial investments aside, you can invest small amounts every month to build over time and dollar-cost-average. As for XOM, look for them to kick ass on their earnings soon. But seriously, some of the plans through computershare don't require initial investment (or even on-going investment) if you are already a shareholder of the company. They may let you enroll to have your dividends re-invested for free. Not too bad a plan.
Anyway, those are like savings plans with an attitude.
Well, enough of my rambling for now. More to come soon.
-K
P.S. I think we should start our own class of funny icons for IM. Here are some examples:
3 this is my ass mooning you.
3< this is me farting in your general direction
:{)C=8 you can tell someone to s$#% it with this one
\n|m this is a modification of the you rock symbol: \|m| to have you giving someone the bird
>:) this is (in my opionion) a devilish, evil smile. Generally reserved for when you make a joke at someone else's expense
3C=8 this is what happens when you pay taxes
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Sunday, January 27, 2008
It's been awhile...
Sorry folks for the lack of blog updates. I have been pretty darn busy. Lots of stuff going on. First and foremost is kuntz-kid #4. Yup, we have officially lost our mind and are having #4 in July. I assure you that this will be it!! We don't know the sex yet but will be finding out, hopefully in July. For now, we have seen the kid and he/she is looking fine so far. We are pretty excited.
Its been a challenge getting much done, as I have been busy with my side project, Tiger Cub Scout meetings, pinewood derby, firehouse tour, etc. Plus, I am trying to keep my wife happy and content when her taste in foods shifts with the wind. I have run out so far (late at night) to retrieve: milkshakes, carvel ice cream cakes, mushroom swiss burgers (which there are none sold in the area), sour cream and cheddar chips, lemon drops, starburst jelly beans, dunkin donuts, and who can remember what else.
We have had no word from our lovely neighbors about our lawn, so I guess I placated their anger and embarassment with my 8 hours of yardwork. They can go to %$#^ for all I care.
As for the market, well, I think we will look back and find that this is a real recession or a mini one. Either way is irrelevant, right? One thing is for certain: now may be a time to buy. But don't go all in. Certainly there is room for downside. I think the fed actions will temporarily fleeting and that one should consider upping their ante in the next couple of months. It will pay off down the line. That's if you can of course. One needs to be able to eat now. I still think you should jump at these opportunities should they arise:
Well, that's enough for now. Let me know how you are all doing. Hope all is well.
Later,
-K
P.S. Check out these articles. Interesting reading:
iPhone: Mythical creature?
5 dumbest things on wall street this week This is a great article weekly to point out how our management are buffoons.
Its been a challenge getting much done, as I have been busy with my side project, Tiger Cub Scout meetings, pinewood derby, firehouse tour, etc. Plus, I am trying to keep my wife happy and content when her taste in foods shifts with the wind. I have run out so far (late at night) to retrieve: milkshakes, carvel ice cream cakes, mushroom swiss burgers (which there are none sold in the area), sour cream and cheddar chips, lemon drops, starburst jelly beans, dunkin donuts, and who can remember what else.
We have had no word from our lovely neighbors about our lawn, so I guess I placated their anger and embarassment with my 8 hours of yardwork. They can go to %$#^ for all I care.
As for the market, well, I think we will look back and find that this is a real recession or a mini one. Either way is irrelevant, right? One thing is for certain: now may be a time to buy. But don't go all in. Certainly there is room for downside. I think the fed actions will temporarily fleeting and that one should consider upping their ante in the next couple of months. It will pay off down the line. That's if you can of course. One needs to be able to eat now. I still think you should jump at these opportunities should they arise:
- Monsanto (MON) under $100
- ExxonMobil (XOM) NOW. They will release earnings soon and it is going to be HUGE. Did I say huge? I meant MONUMENTUS! Some analysts think XOM makes $100 Million per $1 in oil prices. You do the math. They have a distinct shot at beating their own record. They also have a slick online investor program through Computershare that is pretty much fee-less and has automatic dividend reinvestment!
- Big Banks. Think JPMOrgan Chase (JPM), Bank of America (BAC), and possibly even Citi (C). They will recover in a major way due to the lowering of short-term fed funds rates.
- Southern Copper (PCU). Good dividend and copper has a solid future in chop manufacturing. Commodity prices as of late have really depressed the value of this stock.
- Diamond Offshore (DO). Big dividend, huge contracts for decades at a time, and oil shortage that won't soon abate translate into great earnings and solid growth.
- Gold. If you believe that we aren't even near the end of the recession, then there is some upside to gold. Perhaps $1000/oz? That's about a 10% jump from today. BEWARE: after the oil crisis in the early 80s gold went from $750 down to $250 in months. Don't lose your shirt. Pick an ETF for short term gains and then get out.
- Internet Initiatives of Japan (IIJI). They are a small cap company doing internet providing in Japan. Growth fro them is great because they are sponsored by govt. and because all the new game systems use online broadband. Plus, Japanese are fanatical about online and speed of online. They are severely depressed price-wise because of the crash of the asian market due to our own foolishness.
- Wamu (WM) is a play at $14-$15 because they will be bought here soon. Therefore, they're price will bounce with the announcement of an acquisition.
Well, that's enough for now. Let me know how you are all doing. Hope all is well.
Later,
-K
P.S. Check out these articles. Interesting reading:
iPhone: Mythical creature?
5 dumbest things on wall street this week This is a great article weekly to point out how our management are buffoons.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Friendliness
So yesterday, when my wife and I got home, we got this lovely note in the mail:
from one of our kindly neighbors.
So this person is chastising us for not mowing the lawn or raking leaves. My dad and I spent an entire Saturday raking leaves. I submit to you exhibits a and b, examples of the current condition of our yard at the time of receiving the letter in the mail:
Now, granted, our yard isn't the prettiest and I have tried to spruce it up (the bushes I bought from Lowes died). But I don't think it is disgraceful and certainly don't appreciate the cowardly way this person decided to mention this to us. Happy Holidays: you suck. Well, my wife is now paranoid that they are watching us. I figure I'll place a sign on the mailbox and video tape who looks at it. Catch the person in the act. On the sign it'll say something like "Thanks for the letter, smile for the camera!".
Maybe they like being watched. Why would someone decide to be such an informal person about it. If they have a problem, report me to the Civic association. Why do this cowardly act of bitchiness? I am constantly amazed at the lengths people go to be stupid. Why don't they tackle illegal activities in our neighborhood, like the people who walk their animals without a leash (there is a leash law in our state), or the people who let their animals poop in my yard, or the people who insist on walking in the center of the road while there is a very well maintained set of sidewalks on both sides of the road? Clearly this yahoo has nothing better to do. In fact, after getting this letter I took a look at other yards, and ours is on par. There are yards that are solid beds of leaves. Why us? Also, they don't know our condition. They could easily have been giving this to a person who was temporarily disabled. Or having medical issues. People suck sometimes.
At any rate, once my wife gets back from coaching my son's soccer game, I'll be out in the 20 degree weather raking leaves and then mowing the lawn. But I have proof that it wasn't bad before.
People suck. Tell me they don't.
On other fronts, things seem to be opening up for me to try and work me out of my boring job funk. I am not sure exactly which way to go for the future, but I imagine I'll know within a week or so. Many options seem to be appearing.
We'll see.
By the way, my wife happens to be friends with a board member of our civic association and forwarded a copy of the letter to her last night. It's good to have connections. I mean, we don't have a friggin rusty engine block in our yard or something...
Later. Thanks for letting me air this out. I am pissed off. truly.
-K
from one of our kindly neighbors.So this person is chastising us for not mowing the lawn or raking leaves. My dad and I spent an entire Saturday raking leaves. I submit to you exhibits a and b, examples of the current condition of our yard at the time of receiving the letter in the mail:
Now, granted, our yard isn't the prettiest and I have tried to spruce it up (the bushes I bought from Lowes died). But I don't think it is disgraceful and certainly don't appreciate the cowardly way this person decided to mention this to us. Happy Holidays: you suck. Well, my wife is now paranoid that they are watching us. I figure I'll place a sign on the mailbox and video tape who looks at it. Catch the person in the act. On the sign it'll say something like "Thanks for the letter, smile for the camera!".
Maybe they like being watched. Why would someone decide to be such an informal person about it. If they have a problem, report me to the Civic association. Why do this cowardly act of bitchiness? I am constantly amazed at the lengths people go to be stupid. Why don't they tackle illegal activities in our neighborhood, like the people who walk their animals without a leash (there is a leash law in our state), or the people who let their animals poop in my yard, or the people who insist on walking in the center of the road while there is a very well maintained set of sidewalks on both sides of the road? Clearly this yahoo has nothing better to do. In fact, after getting this letter I took a look at other yards, and ours is on par. There are yards that are solid beds of leaves. Why us? Also, they don't know our condition. They could easily have been giving this to a person who was temporarily disabled. Or having medical issues. People suck sometimes.
At any rate, once my wife gets back from coaching my son's soccer game, I'll be out in the 20 degree weather raking leaves and then mowing the lawn. But I have proof that it wasn't bad before.
People suck. Tell me they don't.
On other fronts, things seem to be opening up for me to try and work me out of my boring job funk. I am not sure exactly which way to go for the future, but I imagine I'll know within a week or so. Many options seem to be appearing.
We'll see.
By the way, my wife happens to be friends with a board member of our civic association and forwarded a copy of the letter to her last night. It's good to have connections. I mean, we don't have a friggin rusty engine block in our yard or something...
Later. Thanks for letting me air this out. I am pissed off. truly.
-K
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