I would have attended this event if not for my wife’s surgery. My past life’s profession as well as passion. I enjoyed my time as a financial advisor, but this was my passion. I was gone so often, my wife and children never complained, but 19 years of coaching was enough.
EDINBURG — The UTRGV Hall of Fame and Hall of Honor ushered in its newest class Saturday recognizing the achievements and legacies former Pan American and UTPA student-athletes built in the Rio Grande Valley. The Hall of Fame...
Going for a bird-seeking walk with the mrs, will replay track when I get back. I will call your cleaning with some furniture oiling! mmmmmm, the teak oil smell, synonymous with high quality😂
How did that aapl short worn out? lol yeah I know it ain’t over ‘til it’s over.
But it’s never over, you know?
Maserati,
No, I didn’t short AAPL, instead the index. Lost some money, sold bought back in short, lost some more money. I still have a short position, probably 50% less than when I posted to you. I have tried to manage the risk by selling and buying back at lower prices. Just doing the reverse of what most posters here are doing.
By the way, Berkshire has their shareholder meeting this weekend, and Buffett said some good things about AAPL. Both great companies, my view still remains no bargains. Hope you did well, and do well on AAPL.
Thanks. The aapl is ultimately for gifting, so whatever.
The highlight of my day was finding a Screech Owl on our walk. What a nice, FREE leisure activity.
So we get home, and my wife immediately starts surfing real estate in and around Geneva😬. Of course she finds a place she loves, and of course we know it already. It is a bit away from the lake, but is stone, huge, and has room for a giant garden with lots of land. I draw the line at horses. There are wild boar on the property, I would have to put up one hell of a wall/fence to keep them out.
I can feel myself overextending as we speak, omg. I think she is somewhat serious about it😬😬😬😬😬. omg omg omg omg. Soooo effing expensive. I will HAVE to grow my own food, because I won’t have any money left to buy any.😬😬😬
Always fascinated with Switzerland. Our family surname is Swiss and German. Zurich for the Swiss side. Father’s classmate in college was Swiss. He and his family traded visits with my mother and father over the years. Unfortunately my brother and I were left at home.
Dinner was good by the way. Tried to do the dishes and wife wouldn’t let me.
IMO there’s absolutely nothing fascinating about Schweiz. It is the exact opposite of fascinating: it can be downright soporific.
Yes there are some good things about it, depending on your perspective. Some of the geography is nice, some of the bridge engineering semi-interesting, some of the architecture is ok in a Swiss-modern kind of way, and the skiing can be impeccable.
But the food? Yummy😂
The people? Exciting😂
The wine? Complex😂
The attire?😂
etc. Boring af. Loser watches, loser cars, loser model trains, loser gold bullion, etc.
The train system is great, however.
Things can be needlessly expensive. I once spent €105 on a Nicoise salad! No schit. There is a total immigrant underground in certain cities, and it can be the only source for actually flavorful, lively food—rather than effing boiled vegetables etc.
They love to engineer schit, they can’t help themselves—whether it is worthwhile or not. They’re technocrats who specialize in myopia, a dangerous combination. There are some vestiges of romantic pre-war Schweiz remaining, and if you find them, you’re good to go. The most interesting parts of it are imo the Italian parts, once you scratch the surface and reveal the Italian under the Swiss.
The good thing is that they always know where the hidden hot springs are, and will tell you if they trust you.👍
Oh, and Beat Feuz is great, but I have always thought that Lara Gut had man hands.
I grew up along the ocean in Southern California. In the 1960s we took one of the Swiss gentlemen to the beach close to our house. He was wearing a men’s bikini. I was totally embarrassed. Totally out of place when all the other men were wearing jams, if you know what that was (just above the knee, thick material swim suit).
On the markets, Russian Ruble looks to be down huge; 83 to the dollar Friday, some banks exchanging today at 170.
I was certain Russia would occupy Donbass. 100%. But, I thought it would stop there, with selective strikes at farther Ukrainian installations.
I was wrong. There are many possible reasons for the broader incursion, some possibly obvious and some subtle.
Now Europe is destabilizing, and a few of the companies I just bought are there. They are potentially very vulnerable to both scared investor sentiment and actual operational difficulties—like BASF and DANOY. A larger bunch are British, and also Swiss, and they could also be affected as a result.
Great timing. Thankfully only a very few are in the EU proper, and my total investment remains low. But geez.
In my admittedly tremendous ignorance, it occurs to me that there is ample room here for mutually-beneficial negotiation. Ample! What if Russia agreed to limit their presence and actions to Donbass and continue to pump gas through Ukraine, even at an increased rate, in exchange for Ukraine leaving Donbass alone, and agreeing to the operation of better flow tracking equipment to eliminate the dispute over whether Ukraine is stealing gas or not?
Win-win, maybe. Russia gets money, Donbass independence, and gets to claim victory. Ukraine gets money, effectively “sells” Donbass to the independents/Russia, and gets to claim victory. The flow of gas to Europe actually increases. NATO finally gets Germany to spend 2%. France has more justification for a Euro army. Hungary and Poland have more support for border fortifications. US crude supplies are maintaine, and Biden can claim victory in Ukraine and at the pump, and potentially over the rising CPI. Belarus keeps the points it won in support of Russia.
Britain and maybe Canada seem like the odd men out. So what, f’em. The money flows again to the Rothschilds, China continues the silent takeover of Europe, and the US has a great justification for telling the Euros that they need to buy more US military gear.
There are many options. Yeah nukes and NATO could be a big deal, but there are many other dimensions to this, that might be used effectively. It all started with money, the whole Rothschild bank thing in Russia, and what it means for sovereignty.
OTOH if this really is a “principled conflict”, then we are in it for the long haul, and will have to figure out how to navigate a new landscape.
And by “navigate a new landscape” I initially thought “pivot to Asia”, but if China enters Taiwan, then all bets are off. There will be nowhere to hide.
Biggest surprise to me is some of the reports on the Russian army: poorly trained conscripts, outdated equipment, inability to control the air, supply line problems, etc. I expected that to be the characteristic of the Ukrainian military.
Mas I did offer to share more if you’ll recall, but not on here. And that ship has sailed.
Things are evolving fast and unpredictably. I think all bets are off and most anything might happen. Third and final gentle suggestion to tuck away some cash, just in case. And strap on a strong VPN and practice good data management to protect yourselves.
anyone notice a subtle change in tone how Putin is mentioned in public pronouncements from the west? The clue is in the way I’ve just done it.
There is an awful lot of sabre rattling and provocation on both sides, and in the middle of it an unstable evil demented childlike genius with his finger on a big red button.
I’m a little (pleasantly) surprised at US resolve so far given how deeply entrenched Putinophiles have placed themselves in the establishment around the big orange buffoon.
I think this will be an interesting week for the markets, and a difficult week for Europe, tragic for Ukraine.
Biggest surprise to me is some of the reports on the Russian army: poorly trained conscripts, outdated equipment, inability to control the air, supply line problems, etc. I expected that to be the characteristic of the Ukrainian military.
Igy, I was told when in the Ukraine that a key difference between ethnic Russians and Ukrainians is resilience and willingness to stand up and fight, rather than just moan and accept one’s lot. They are certainly not rolling over. They are surely the underdog in this fight but the favourite doesn’t always score a knock out.
Yeah but you know it’s better if I don’t avail myself of that. Plus, it hasn’t cost me anything...yet. And I only bought stuff that I would be ok with holding for 20 years or more, should I live that long.
It was because I didn’t have much faith in my own prognostication in such an unstable situation, that I didn’t make a huge investment. So now, the question is what to do, with cash rapidly devaluing. I wonder what will happen to RE prices in international markets, as a result of this turmoil. I FEEL well-hedged, and it has played out very well so far—but I am still really nervous about what will happen.
It’s pretty trippy that all this is happening, huh idiot? It’s like a blast from the past for me. Weird, I thought I had moved on, now my mind is being dragged back into an earlier state, and I’m getting emails and calls from people I haven’t seen in 30 years.
Biggest surprise to me is some of the reports on the Russian army: poorly trained conscripts, outdated equipment, inability to control the air, supply line problems, etc. I expected that to be the characteristic of the Ukrainian military.
Igy, I was told when in the Ukraine that a key difference between ethnic Russians and Ukrainians is resilience and willingness to stand up and fight, rather than just moan and accept one’s lot. They are certainly not rolling over. They are surely the underdog in this fight but the favourite doesn’t always score a knock out.
the irony, of course, is the mirror of WW2.
Hitler invaded Russia, thinking its people would surrender like the Poles and French. Didn't happen. The German army went into Russia and was beaten up by 100% dedicated to the death fighters. And not just young men - everyone pitched in, grabbed a rifle and a shovel and went to work against the Germans.
You see where I'm going here...Putin thought the Ukrainians would roll over, but they did to his army what the Russians did to Hitler's army. just a neat echo of history.
And who would have thought the RUSSIANS would forget the lesson not to start a land war in Asia. Of all people. Expect Russian generals to be arrested soon, if they can be found.
