It probably comes as no surprise to you that the “as-sold-on-TV” exercise program, promising flat stomachs in 90 days, works only for those who already have a six-pack, and cubic zirconium jewelry will never be mistaken for diamonds by anyone in the know. What’s advertised doesn’t always represent reality. My family’s recent West Coast vacation is case in point. A … Read More
A World without Oil
Unilateral truths exist in each of our lives. One of mine is that I don’t watch horror movies. No Jaws, The Shining, or The Omen. I read The Silence of the Lambs; three weeks of checking nightly under my bed and in the closets convinced me to skip the movie. So, when I had the opportunity to watch A Crude … Read More
Foreign Trade
I lead a very cosmopolitan life. Or, more accurately, the things that populate my life do. This morning’s grapes came from Chile, the bananas from Columbia. My Egyptian cotton clothes were manufactured in Indonesia, Bangladesh and Guatemala, my car comes from Japan and my spinning wheel from New Zealand. Even my stove is a bilingual Canadian. And lurking in the … Read More
Retirement and Social Security
Each spring, as tax season comes to a close, I am reminded of my own mortality. The physical toll of too many hours at my desk, sleep deprivation and a weary brain elevates the simplest tasks, those that were inconsequential in November, to huge endeavors by early April. At this time of year, everything hurts. If the death throes of … Read More
Hello world!
What can anyone say about a person who quits a good, well-paying (if slightly overwhelming) job for the uncertainty of self-employment in a new place, far from family and friends? I think I’ve heard it all – from questions over my sanity to expressions of envy to concern over the absence of any sort of business plan. There’s no question … Read More