Employment situation

I work in a library where one of my jobs is to print out and place on economists' desks reports like the Consumer Price Index, the Employment Situation, Consumer Confidence Survey, etc. Yes I know I could e mail them but people above a certain pay grade like their documents in paper.

I've been surprised how emotional economists can be. "Dammit, you're killing me" I get some mornings when I give them some unpleasant numbers. "Gimme a break, will ya?" I've also gotten sometimes. Today the latest report is bad but not as bad as things have been. I didn't get a kiss on the cheek but I'm waiting for rosier numbers for that. I'll have to remember to shave that day.

Depression era music

When I was a youth I sometimes ventured over to New York and took the subway to Greenwich Village. There you could often hear folk singers in Washington Square Park. I remember groups with beards, banjos and washboards who didn't look like they were too familiar with Lifebuoy. The Felice Brothers sort of remind me of that type of group. Getting popular now, I heard them on WXPN in Philadelphia. Sort of a cross between Tom Waitts and an Irish fiddle band, their music is fun even though they sing about death allot. They got a good review recently in the New York Times.

Editor's note: The next blog will be on the economy. I promise.

Sneakers

They say when other stories push the financial news off of the front page, that it's a sure sign the economy is getting better. Now the latest news is the high class sneakers Michelle Obama is sporting. Note the slits in the pants too. The sneakers look like an old pair of Keds that someone dollied up with a red magic marker. Guess I'm getting old. Why in my day...

GPS in the car

Just came back from a Texas wedding. Never seen such folderol. Sparklers, matched tuxedos, limousines. I caught the garter belt.

I rented a GPS with my car to help me get from event to event. From airport to wedding rehearsal to wedding rehearsal dinner to wedding to wedding reception to wedding breakfast to airport in an unknown city required help. For anyone who has a lousy sense of direction like me, the GPS is the greatest thing since sliced bread. No more getting lost. You may think that the turn you are making makes no sense, but it always gets you to sites, at least in my experience.

I can remember as a kid planning trips my father with the AAA trip tix and maps. We would plan all the routes precisely. Maps all over the floor. Hours of planning would go into these trips.

On the trip though, we would still get lost. And then there would be the fights between dear Momma and dear Poppa over whose fault it was we missed the crucial turn. The GPS is a great marriage saver.

Back to the economy. Duh, I don't know. Some of the reports are positive, some not so positive. What the he--, a great time to buy a new home and a car.

The secrets of American culture

One of my guilty pleasures is watching shows on E! or Bravo. I enjoy the Kardashians because of the insights they provide into modern American culture. In some ways an update on Ozzie and Harriet, the show shows the real life interactions of a group of voluptuous ladies living with their mother in their multi million dollar digs and getting into mischief. Like Ricky and David, their wealthy well connected families eventually get them out of trouble at the end of each show.

I have also just discovered one of the most significant artifacts of our age. To think this show has been airing since 2007 and I am just now discovering its wonders. Chelsea Lately is a fascinating program. The round table is my favorite part, at least so far. Here current events and celebrity tidbits are discussed by her erudite regulars. The members are representative of all walks of modern life. There's a fat gay guy, a black gay guy, a hispanic dwarf, etc. What a great show! This program clearly demonstrates America's cultural leadership in the world.

The future

Today it's now April 1 of 2009, the day I predict the bottom of the economy can be experienced. I have other predictions for the future. If my predictions are true I will become famous and get a book contract. If my predictions turn out to be false, I can always say it all was an April Fool's Joke.

One year from today, ie. April 1, 2010:

The Dow Jones will be over 9,000.

The Standard and Poors Index will be over 1,000.

NASDAQ will be around 2000 and people will like Microsoft Windows 7.

The unemployment rate will be 6.5.

Obama will be unpopopular as a president. Fighting in both Iraq and Afghanistan will be heavy and things will not look well on the warfront. Hillary will have a mini scandal involving finance.

Housing and gasoline will be up 15% for the year.

Ugly Betty will be cancelled, but a movie will be planned.

Governor Steve Lonegan of New Jersey will be unpopular with Jim Gearhardt for betraying the taxpayers of New Jersey. Former Governor Corzine will announce his engagement to Carla Katz.

April Fools!

White House Victory Garden

Taking the lead from my other blog, Balcony Tomatoes, the White House is now starting an organic victory garden. An inspiration to all of us, soon we will be a nation of tomato and rutabaga growers, saving the environment and stuffing ourselves with herbivorous delights. Nice to see even former president Bush is taking part in the festivities.

On other fronts, a blog on the stimulus package is being presented on the New Yorker site. One of my favorite pod casts is the Slate Political Gabfest. Emily Bazelon has such a cute voice. On the latest cast, one of the men (probably David Plotz) proposed that there should be a way for average citizens to buy toxic assets in the package being offered by Tim Geithner. My suggestion is that one of the mutual fund companies could offer a "toxic assets" mutual fund.

Till that time.