Be Scared, Very, Very Scared :o)

The market is enough to spook even the ghosts, goblins, and ghouls lately.

Wishing you all the best during these difficult times, and that you can enjoy the weekend. On a positive note, the market closed up 11% this week. Celebrate by having fun :o)

Halloween Quicky :o)

Get your minds out of the gutter :o)

Just a reminder to click the Wildcat's Lair link on my sidebar. He has a funny new Halloween entry.

My treat to you is the chance to start following the adventures of Wildcat and Frank.

Happy Halloween.

Generations Gaps :o)

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to attend M.E.E.T. training. The purpose of this training is to provide insights on how to deal with generational differences in the workplace (and frankly, can extend to situations outside of work as well). The acronym stands for:

M - Make time to discuss; There's something I'd like to discuss.
E - Explore the difference; This is important because...
E - Encourage respect; I really appreciate the way you....
T - Take responsibility; How about we agree to...

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate your need to meet!

What is in it for companies to take the time for this type of training? Provide a common language for employees and management. Provide skills to use leverage multi-generational differences. Improved morale. Enhanced teamwork. These attributes should then lead to improved performance, better recruitment and retention, and problem prevention (keep situations from escalating).

There are now four generations in the workplace:

Traditionalists, born 1925-1942, 75 million large, 10% of workforce
Baby Boomers, born 1943-1960, 80 million large, 46% of workforce
Generation X, born 1961-1981, 46 million small, 29% of workforce
Generation Y, born 1982-2002, 76 million large, 15% of workforce

Disclaimer: these are approximate numbers, the company we purchased the training material from uses these ranges. Cuspers are those born in the 3-5 years before or after a generational frame, and Cuspers tend to show characteristics of both generations.

OK, lets meet the Generations (via a few key terms, feedback preferences, and work motivators :o)

Traditionalist: Loyalty, Sacrifice, Patriotism. No news is good news. The satisfaction of a job well done.

Baby Boomers: Optimistic, Competitive, Workaholic. Feedback once a year with lots of documentation. Money, title, recognition, corner office.

Generation X: Skepticism, Informal, Self-reliant, Life-balance, Technology. Sorry to interrupt, but how am I doing? Freedom is the ultimate reward.

Generation Y: Realistic, Direct, Entrepreneurial, Value fun, Communicative, Internet. Feedback at the push of a button. Work that has meaning for me.

Bottom Line: State what you need and our willingness to help others with what they need. Communicate with respect. Acknowledge the similarities and differences that exist. Reach agreement. End on a positive note. Follow-up.

As we went through this training, and I balanced the terms and phrases, and looked at the demographics regarding our looming election, I can see why there is a divide between the older generations and the younger generations. The message is different, the target audience is different, and the response is different.

Financial Crisis Issues (complicated but necessary with 11/04 approaching :o)

The housing bubble

At a time of rising home values, the seed for the crisis was sown when risky borrowers were able to obtain home loans from mortgage lenders, which pooled mortgages together and sold them for a fee. The banks hired investment banks to package the mortgages as securities with different risk layers. To sell desirable risk loans, banks kept significant amounts of less-desirable loans -– typically lowest-return, highest-risk loans -– for themselves. The investment banks sold the rest of the securities to a wide variety of investors. In some cases, banks parked the securities in off-balance-sheet funds, called Structured Investment Vehicles, which the banks themselves sponsored. The securitization of these assets allowed banks to transfer credit risk to capital markets and focus on generating fees rather than interest income.

Insurance was purchased to enhance the credit rating, or hedge the value, of securities. The role of insurance companies, like AIG, in providing credit enhancement or protection made asset values on bank balance sheets dependent, in part, on insurance company solvency. For this reason, regulators viewed the potential bankruptcy of AIG as posing a systemic risk.

After peaking in October 2007, home values began to decline, with the pace of that decline accelerating through the summer of 2008. At the same time, over-extended home buyers began to default on their mortgage payments, and foreclosure rates began to sharply climb.

The Credit Crunch

Increasing mortgage defaults and excess housing supply led to the collapse of real estate values, which underpinned mortgage security values and caused a crisis of confidence in bank solvency. As the values of mortgage securities fell, banks recorded losses, now totaling more than $660 billion. The losses required them to raise new equity capital to reduce leverage as well as to tighten credit, which has forced down spending.

Consumers, tapped out on credit with declining home values and a lack of savings, have stopped discretionary spending.

In September 2008: Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson announced the federal government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Bank of America acquired Merrill Lynch. Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, the largest of its kind. The Federal Reserve lent AIG $85 billion in exchange for nearly 80 percent of its stock. Washington Mutual failed, representing the largest bank failure in U.S. history.
Secretary Paulson proposed a $700 billion rescue plan.

The Dow plunged. The bailout begins.

In October 2008: The President signed the $700 billion bailout bill into law. Wachovia agreed to be purchased by Wells Fargo for $15.1 billion. Hedge fund and mutual fund redemption's led to massive selling of equity securities.


While it may be too soon to know whether the bailout of the nation's financial institutions alone will solve this crisis on a global scale, be assured that there will be volatility in the markets. If your are five or more years from retirement, this is the time to hang in the market, and keep following the practice of monthly purchases. Over the long run, you may come out ahead. If you are closer to retirement, or already retired, you need to watch a little more closely, the last thing you want to do is to panic, and lock-in recent losses. If you have a year or two cushion, then I recommend watching the market on a regular basis, and sell only when it makes sense (the market is so volatile, that watching the market daily if you have assets at risk can be beneficial).

Don't Be Scared

This entry was inspired by the following news headline: WASHINGTON (Oct. 27) - Two white supremacists allegedly plotted to go on a national killing spree, shooting and decapitating black people and ultimately targeting Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, federal authorities said Monday, and an entry made by Teresa at Shadows of The Moon. First is some demographic information from the 2000 Census, followed by my commentary in red text.

The United States is a diverse country racially and ethnically. White Americans are the racial majority and are spread throughout the country; racial minorities, composing one fourth of the population, are concentrated in coastal and metropolitan areas. The Black American or African American population is concentrated in the South, and also spread throughout parts of the Northeast and Midwest. Black Americans make up the largest racial minority in the United States.

White Americans are the majority in forty-eight of the fifty states, with California and Hawaii as the exceptions. The District of Columbia, which is not a state, also has a non-white majority. Non-Hispanic Whites, however, are the majority in forty-six states, with Hawaii, New Mexico, California, and Texas, as well as the District of Columbia, as the exceptions. The latter five have "minority majorities", i.e. minority groups are a majority of their populations.

Areas with the largest "American" ancestry populations were mostly settled by English, French, Welsh, Scottish and Irish.

██ German
██ American
██ Mexican
██ Irish
██ African
██ Italian
██ English
██ Japanese
██ Puerto Rican






A new report from the Census Bureau projects that by 2042 non-Hispanic whites will no longer make up the majority of the population. This is a revision of earlier projections which projected this demographic change to take place in 2050. Today non-Hispanic whites make up about 68% of the population. This is expected to fall to 46% in 2050. This, as a result of a much older white population, relative to minorities. The report foresees the Hispanic population rising from 15% today to 30% by 2050. Today African Americans make up 12% of the population, in 2050 they are projected to comprise 15% of the population. Asian Americans make up 5% of the population today and they are expected to make up 9% in 2050. The U.S. has nearly 305 million people today. The population is projected to reach 400 million by 2039 and 439 million in 2050.

People are scared of change, and scared of losing their perceived previous hold over what was going on. We have the illusion of control, and when we see or hear things that are different or challenge that illusion, then there is a negative reaction, and we push back. Psychology tells us that 10% will embrace change, 10% will actively oppose change, and 80% will wait and see. Unfortunately, it is the 10% extremes that get the attention and publicity, typically with the negative connotations getting more air time – because that is what sells. Until the other 80% truly become engaged in change, and I mean stepping up and making change for ourselves (which is much more than casting a ballot), then we are being prevented from moving to the new reality for this country of ours. We must change and care more – care for others in our country, care for others in less developed countries, care for our environment, care for displaced animals that cannot help themselves, care for ourselves enough to stop living beyond our means, as individuals and as a country. These must be OUR values, which is very different from religious morality.

NEW ELECTORAL COLLEGE MAP FROM ROVE & CO.

Note: this is a non-partisan entry from Karl Rove's Website.

The presidential race remained fairly stable over the weekend, with only one state changing classifications. Indiana (11 EV) reverted from Obama's column to toss-up status. Obama now leads with 306 electoral votes to McCain's 157, and 75 votes as a toss-up. Some national polls are now showing McCain closing ground with Obama, but he still has an uphill road ahead of him between now and next Tuesday. One cautionary note: from here to the end, these Electoral College maps will be slow to reflect last minute shifts in opinion since they are based on an average of state polls over a two-week period.

Civic Duty, 4 Acre Wood, Shopping Score

It felt cozy to stay in bed this morning (I did wake up at 3:00 A.M., but blissfully rolled over and went back to sleep). I slept in until 8:30 A.M., and while that may not seem like much, that is five more hours than I got the last two nights.

After getting caught up with our Spotters, we determined to head out to do our civic duty. We voted today, so I will start to tune out the political ads. Alas, methinks that my other half may still have a thing or two to say about the pending election. We only had to wait about 15 minutes, and then it was off to fill in the little ovals.

With the demise of our local second hand exercise equipment sales store, we figured we had three stops to make. We were lucky to miss the rain (this morning), the blustery wind (late morning and early afternoon), and the hail and sleet (while we were at the mall). Yesterday, the wind was blowing so hard off the lake that we needed to have walk downs at the plant to secure equipment and material (flying material and power lines do not mix well). I was kidding some of my coworkers about it being like 100 Acre Wood. Beth and I were discussing this last night, and with our grass area (about 3 acres) and our marsh (about 4 acres), we figure we have a 4 Acre Wood :o)

Our Journey: First was a discount sporting goods store, Dunhams Sports. They carry a lot of one-off merchandise, that is, a new model comes out to replace the old model, and discount sporting goods stores such as Dunhams carry the older models. We perused their selection, then headed to the local Mall, with a twofold mission, get our wedding bands inspected and cleaned (a free service when you purchase at Rogers and Holland jewelers) and to check out the exercise equipment store. The first part of our mission was uneventful (and Beth's little rock sparkled), but the second half was thwarted by yet another exercise equipment store closure. I feel there may be a conspiracy (or is it more an symbol of what we no longer value). Our last planned stop was at Dick's (keep it out of the gutter here folks :o), another sporting goods store. We found their selection to be very limited for such a large store (that has a huge Internet selection by the way) and overpriced. I did have a $50 gift card from a work sponsored wellness program drawing that I was selected for, and picked up a multi-position all-purpose bench (sitting for shoulder workouts, angled and flat for chest workouts, and reverse inclined for abs).


After our planned stops, it was back to Dunhams to purchase the best selections we came across. We got a multi-purpose weight machine, that uses weight stacks that are easy to adjust simply by moving the pin. We learned last week that when there is a 12" difference in heights, it is important to actually try the machines, because the Pro-Weider machines as Sears do not accommodate those of a smaller stature :o) It has enough variety to get good workout in. We already have a recumbent bike and a treadmill, so we wanted to round out our aerobic equipment with an elliptical machine (it is easy to get bored doing aerobic workouts, so having a variety is important). All told, we only spent $800 today, because everything was either on sale or on clearance. A health club membership would eat that up in less than a year, so I feel we were very frugal today.

The trickiest part of the day was getting it all in the back of Blue. The elliptical machine was on clearance, meaning that we had had to take the floor model, and that does not stand up in a truck with a cap on the back. I worked up quite a sweat getting the elliptical machine and boxes for the weight machine in. I had to leave the tailgate down and tie the box upright. We drove home with the flashers on. Rant Alert: What kind of &#%@#$ idiot, instances of both male and female drivers mind you, tailgates you when you have a box hanging out the back, the flashers are blaring, and you are going no faster than 30 mph? End of Rant.

Hope the start of your week was smooth as silk :o)

Weekday Boy :o)

Another long day today, same as yesterday (12+ plus the commute :o)

We ate during the third quarter, of the Penn State vs. Ohio State (yuk!) last night, because ND was doing so well, that the second string was in [doing the happy dance]. Sorry Mark - I am happy to say that Penn State pulled out the victory.

This morning, after only four hours sleep, I headed off to work with my glasses vs. the contacts (eyes were still asleep :o). We are early in our outage, so we are not paying for Sunday (double time for the craft), and it was very slow. We counted off the hours (hey Chuck, only 5 hours to go, Ken - stop it LOL, you get the picture). I actually got a lot of work done today.

So, as you head into the beginning of your work week, I head into a two day off situation. So, I applaud you in advance as you get up when the alarm sounds, and I will read you when I get up in the morning :o)

Quick Post - Happy Weekend

Have to admit, I am a little dismayed with the weather forecast and the the temperatures in the morning. They are predicting the possibility of snow here, but I remain optimistic :o)

I had my 12+ hour day today, plus the 45 minute commute each way, but luckily I am still feeling fine, and have made it 1/2 way through the Norte Dame game [Go Irish!] They are doing well. Alas, my Illini loss today, but Beth's Alma Mater BALL STATE remains undefeated. Who would huv thunk :o)

Have a great day tomorrow :o)

Today, the agenda was simple. Go look at some laptop computers, go to look at some exercise equipment at Sears, go to the bank, and go to Lowes :o)

It may seem like a full agenda, but the stores are all within a few miles of each other. The computer (purchased today) was courtesy of American Express Points (allows me to not cart my work computer home every day, and I got a 4G flash drive to allow me to bring work home versus the computer home LOL).

The Sears trip was a bust - they only had one strength training machine, so we quickly exited. After an online search, it seems that Dick's Sporting Goods has a great selection of equipment, so after we vote on Monday, that is where we will be heading.

Bank - mission accomplished, a minor deposit made :o)

Lowes - Beth was amazed when I got back into the truck (Blue), she said "twelve bags," I said yeah; six for Blue for winter traction, 2 for Slick (Beth's Mustang), 2 for Blacky (My Mustang), and two for the water softener. We will need little salt in the Spring and Summer, because we use the bags from winter driving.

Note: the salt is all in the garage, not staged in the vehicles, I want to do nothing to call in the winter weather.

Hope your day went well today, and that you are ready for a great weekend :o)