What a trip through time... Dec 2009 thru Jan 2011
2,471 posts. 9,843 to go. Read every post, bypassed very few links. My eyes are crossed but the read is well worth it.
Kudos to one specific post which had everything to do with reality & I'm glad someone finally "told it like it was". MMCiastro (Tony, no?) post #55234.
What have I done since November, 2009? Since it is Sunday, the market is closed, this OT answer would be okay, no?
Let’s see…
Went (as you know) 100% metals—crazy, thrilling, ride—no stocks, no bonds.
I am a better person for it & wouldn’t change a thing. It was probably the best thing I ever did.
Weathered the Great Recession & lent a helping hand to those that didn’t or couldn’t weather it.
Lived through (literally) the Bad Health Bug biting family members for 3 critical years. Big emotional toll. The worst thing that happened to me was a cavity but this whole experience has lightened the bounce in my walk; I appreciate life & blessings a whole lot more, and am confident that positive thinking is, without a doubt, a mainstay.
Became proficient at every word game or brain teaser in the App store. Would kill to stay in the top 5%.
Read volumes of “multiple book series” that I had NO IDEA were ever published. Evidently, I was looking too closely at the financial world. Great books.
Nailing down my 30rd year at work, my 40th year with JW. Would not change a thing on either front.
Watched every meaningful measurable economic indicator get skewed, become un-meaningful; witnessed HISTORIC warping in every financial quadrant; am watching Fed intervention with horrible future consequences; and the debt bubble globally has compounded to levels beyond validation or imagination. Every educated bone I have tells me that this debt will unravel ‘worse than unpleasant’ even if unraveling is fractional. The higher the fraction, the more profound the ripple effect. Then again, I guess you are living through it too!
Regardless of reports, the economy (from my perspective) is moving at a snails pace. Folks are touting an illusion of recovery and, during the entire “tout”, are wondering if the illusion is real or fabricated. The data we are fed does not mirror the landscape whether it is financial or employment data.
We should have a “Scratching their head in Wonder & Confusion” graph? my guess is that it would be at a historic high.
A GDP growth “initial” stat gets revised repeatedly for 24 months after its first print. Historically after a recession (much less the “Great Recession”), it is revised DOWN 2-4%. In my book, that’ll put us close or IN negative data territory.
So, what we are experiencing is the look, feel, & touch of a recession but when we look at the scoreboard? hey, we got game! And, over time when the previous scores are revised, we find that we’re saying ? hey, we ain’t got game?! All that head scratchin’ was a valid clue???
So there you have it. A one page synopsis of nearly four tough years. Very glad to participate again and very pleased to catch with longtime friends. I truly want to finish reading so that I can catch up to your present without being redundant!! :)
