as time goes by

2008 is over. history. in the books. what a year, right? wow. that was something. what am i looking forward to 2009? a couple things.

1. adventure- i'm ready to change my environment. my current environment is starting to weigh me down. i'm ready to see something new. to live in a new area, to experience new people and new ways of doing things. i'm ready to hike, to bike, to take the bus/train. i'm ready to get out of the endless loop of eating out and drinking.

2. new president, new ideas- i certainly hope mr. obama and the brain trust he has assembled will come up with new, invigorating ways of salvaging our way of life. our current means of living is fouled up. it's over leveraged. it's outdated and it's obscene.

3. wilco's new album- nuff said right?

4. 30 years- i will turn 30 in 2009. i accomplished many things before turning 30 and several took me by surprise. so that milestone will not be one of regret and self-loating for being lazy. it will be one of celebration and motivation to continue.

5. health- 2009 will be all about health. mental health. physical health. the ideas i started putting into action in the latter part of 2008 will be heavily implemented in 2009. it's time to start living life to enjoy it, not to defeat it.

so those are a few things i'm looking forward to in 2009. obviously, i'm really excited still about being married and living my life with my wife. she has been such a positive influence on me. i look forward to continuing to live our lives together and laughing and enjoying our lives.

one of my close friends is having a baby in january of '09. i wish her the best in her endeavor. i wish all my friends and family the best of luck. i know some of you have huge things in play for 2009. and the rest has no idea, which is good too. leave it open. you never know when success/love/joy will come along and knock you in the throat.

i really cannot wait for obama to take office so i can start posting articles again. happy new year.

my favorite buildings

i really hate new year's eve. i always have. i don't enjoy the holiday at all. it's really quite a letdown. you stand around and count down to this moment and then everyone gives each other a smooch and then it's over. and it really sucked the whole time. and usually i spend it with a bunch of people i don't really like. so i'm starting off my new year with lame surroundings. i hope i do something different in 2009.

here are some albums that should come out in 2009. the avetts and wilco are listed. sweet.

i have my picks for the nfl postseason:

1st round
baltimore over miami
indianapolis over san diego

philly over minnesota
altanta over arizona

2nd round
indianapolis over tennessee
baltimore over pittsburgh

new york over philly
atlanta over carolina

Conf. finals
indianapolis over baltimore
new york over atlanta

Super Bowl
new york over indianapolis

eli versus peyton. it's going to happen.

have a safe and happy new year. i hope you're doing something cooler than me.

therapy car noise

i'm back. christmas is over. had a good one. got to spend time with family and friends, which is what i look forward to; that and eating a lot, which i did that as well. i seriously put on 30 pounds in two weeks. never been done. i am now larger than a desk. in fact, i know eat desk-sized portions.

niall ferguson has a six part series called "the ascent of money." i watched part one last night and loved it. each episode is about 45 minutes. you got to check it out. good back history on how banking was created and where and why. it's great.

here are some scenarios for 2009's economic outlook. i am no expert, but i'm banking on the double dip scenario.

here is a video detailing iceland's situation.

7 winning industries for 2009. video games are included as one. i don't quite understand that since video games are crazy expensive and so is their gear. the rational thought is, well spend money once on a video game console and save money by playing at home and not going out. that makes sense, but the up-front cost is large enough to be put off in harsh times. that's my thinking. it also includes education institutions like devry, which is lame. when hard times hit, people enroll in schools, in institutions of learning, like universities. they get master's degrees and law degrees. they don't learn how to weld two bits of metal together and then sell mattresses out of the back of the van in the early evening when mattress selling is at its peak. they just don't.

by the way, how great is it that the cowboys got rolled by philly and missed playoffs. i made a bold prediction before the season started. i said the cowboys and the patriots would not make it to the super bowl. it's amazing that i could have said that neither one would make the playoffs and i would have been right. wow.

it's the end of the world as we know it.....maybe

i'm not ready to concede the 2009 baseball season to the new york yankess. yes they signed mark teixeira. yes they signed cc sabathia. yes they signed aj burnett. they signed nick swisher too, that poor guy is beyond yesterday's news.

before they signed teixeira, i knew they wouldn't win the division or the wild card. now i think they might. they have to overcome defensive liabilities at 2nd and short, with cano and jeter, both whom declined offensively last year. they have to overcome a weak, and declining outfield. but here's the catch. i don't believe they're done. i think they'll sign manny ramirez. i really do. put manny in that lineup with rodriquez, teixeira and jeter and it's done. they will have the division and my yankee hating rage will achieve new levels of absolute hatred.

we'll see though. anything can happen. they started buying free agents with jason giambi back in 2001. and they haven't won a world series yet. hopefully that will continue.

but hey, the astros signed aaron boone!!!

lump sum

i checked my grades yesterday and i am officially a summa cum laude. i got the one A i needed for the fall semester and knocked it out. that feels good.

yesterday was freezing and wet and cold. and the office was freezing and wet and cold. now today it's not that cold out, but the office is still cold. what's the deal?

i don't really have a lot of great articles. this time of year focuses on the year that was and things start grinding down until the new year kicks off. there's no baseball right now and there's only one football game left before the playoffs.

today is my wife's birthday. she's older than me, but i won't say how much older. i'm taking her out to dinner tonight and then we're going out to a performance at jones hall. hopefully that will be sweet. then tomorrow is christmas eve. i love this time of year.

i have been sweating alot at night when i sleep. i don't think that is a good thing.

i don't believe in new year proclamations. they never hold up. i've started certain changes in my behavior in 2008 and in 2009 i plan on hitting them big time. my physical/mental behavior need to continue to improve and fight the natural aging process.

in addition, i will be watching all 6 rocky movies at the same time sometime in early 2009. that will be an amazing feat. and probably my biggest triumph of the new millenium.

everybody have a great christmas and be safe. and be patient with loved ones and be kind.

can i graduate?

my title is in reference to the great third eye blind. i use to take the title to this song and switch it with "can i masturbate?" which was a lot funnier and a lot more of a real question.

so i did it. i graduated this past sunday. i sat in cold, damp minute maid park for something like five hours (i had to be there two hours early) and waited for my turn to walk across the stage and shake someone's hand and move along. the first time i graduated, i looked forward to that moment, that end moment. i think that's a change that's happening as i grow older, hopefully more mature. i'm recognizing that the big finale is really only one more moment in that long journey. focusing too much on it or obsessing about it is unnecessary. i'll remember so many other things about these past three years in school than that moment on stage. but it was a nice moment. my wife was able to see me graduate and she deserved it. she was a huge part of my success. she celebrated every triumph with me and picked me up every time i was down and stressed. she bought christmas/birthday gifts for me for family members/friends when i didn't have time. she practically planned the entire wedding herself because that semester was terribly difficult. she's amazing and half of my degree belongs to her. i'm grateful and thankful that i am exposed to her brilliance.

now i'll take a month off, read a few books, workout a lot and then start my next journey. life is wonderful.

i did have a strange moment saturday night when i drove home. my wife was snoozing and i suddenly realized how many times i had driven down memorial from downtown and that i would probably never do it again that often. i realized i knew every crack in the road, i knew every bump. i knew the way the lights changed and where to expect to see cops and where to expect to move over because no one else knows what they're doing. i knew that road backwards and forwards and it was time for me to separate from it. it was a strange feeling.

10 stock picks by fortune from early 2008. see how they did.

the chinese growth fantasy.

i've been thinking of what constitutes a "safe" investment if i determine stocks are a raw deal. here are fours places where money can be "safely" deposited.

say it outloud: wow

year in photos. there is some amazing stuff.

furr

pitchfork and i finally agree on something. they think the fleet foxes debut album was the best album of 2008. i agree. here is their whole list.

hearya has their top 50 list for 2008. the title of this blog is in reference to their number 1.

deep throat is dead.

there's not alot going on right now. the auto industry is being bailed out. i got my last two cds in the mail today from birthday monies: the department of eagles and i'm from barcelona. both excellent albums.

i rode the elevators four times today. there was a fire drill. i guess it wasn't a fire drill, the alarm went off and we all went outside and waiting to be rescued. then a DHL van pulled up and i yelled, "they're here to save us!" and we all piled into the back of the van, waiting to be shipped to safety.

i went home for lunch and watched two episodes of arrested development. i also let the cat lay on my stomach and paid for it with a white, hairy shirt. because even if i don't pet him, he stills wiggles and rubs off tons of hair on me. i had a dream last night that we didn't feed him for several days and he got really upset and starting bucking like a bronco. and he got really high in the air and was meowing like crazy. it's funny now, but in my dream i was really thinking the cat had gone mad.

i found a ruler today. that's going to make me very efficient.

my car almost exploded. that's a daily event lately.

sunday is graduation. i'm going to party the next two nights. i haven't partied in a while, so i'm probably not going to feel too good the next few days.

recap of 2008:
1. married
2. honeymoon in reykjavik
3. graduate from college again
4. found new auditing job
5. got lots of new albums
6. discovered a love for coffee
7. went through a hurricane. or i guess the hurricane went through me.
8. went to my first texans game. actually 2.
9. watched many banks implode
10. took a nap

the appliances have gone berserk

something about jeremy piven cracks me up. he's got that face of a lovable loser, but even when he plays an arrogant jerk, he still seems like somebody i would want to hang out with. he's currently doing a stint on broadway and the only way i know this is because he had to quit due to a strange medical condition. he actual tested positive for mercury poisoning. so that's terrible right? but check out david mamet's (the playwright) quote about piven:

"it's my understanding that jeremy is leaving show business to pursue his career as a thermometer." that freakin' cracked me up. the dude is in serious medical condition and this guy is cracking jokes about being a thermometer. that's funny.

apparently madoff's auditor, doesn't actually audit. pretty sweet gig.

pitchfork is counting down their best albums of 2008. here is 50-26. tomorrow, the rest.

here are some facts about global warming. if you don't believe it is real by now, i really don't think you're a functioning human being.

i can't believe oil is tanking so hard. i knew it go down from it's meteoric high, but this fall is amazing. opec keeps cutting and the price keeps falling.

wow

there is actually a christmas song called "please daddy don't get drunk on christmas." that is hilarious. john denver covered it.

i stop thinking about a family sitting around a fire singing christmas songs and then this one comes up and everyone is singing with a slight grin towards daddy and he's looking back smiling with this awww shucks grin as if to say, "i know, i know. i probably shouldn't get drunk again this christmas." and it's all a big joke.

that is some funny stuff.

school's out, pt. 2

i am done. i have the possibility of graduating summa cum laude, but if not, then i will definitely be graduating magna cum laude.

i can't believe i'm finally done. i'm done with step 1.

step 2 is acquiring my cpa license. this will probably take another few years.

step 3 is an amalgamation of differing scenarios. they all involve public action. we'll see.

but for now, i'll concentrate on celebrating finishing step 1.

school's out

in 12 hours, three years of busting my ass will be over.

war is over

we have a little more than a week to go until christmas. it feels different this year. people are hurting financially, but amazingly, it seems to have helped them rediscover the real joy of christmas. not gifts and fancy gadgets, but family, friends and miracles.

my favorite christmas song is "happy xmas" by john lennon. if you hear it this holiday season, turn it up and think about it. then call your family and tell them you love them. here are the lyrics:

So this is Xmas

And what have you done

Another year over

And a new one just begun

And so this is Xmas

I hope you have fun

The near and the dear one

The old and the young

A very Merry Xmas

And a happy New Year

Let's hope it's a good one

Without any fear

And so this is Xmas (war is over)

For weak and for strong (if you want it)

For rich and the poor ones (war is over)

The world is so wrong (if you want it)

And so happy Xmas (war is over)

For black and for white (if you want it)

For yellow and red ones (war is over)

Let's stop all the fight (now)

A very Merry Xmas

And a happy New Year

Let's hope it's a good one

Without any fear

And so this is Xmas (war is over)

And what have we done (if you want it)

Another year over (war is over)

A new one just begun (if you want it)

And so happy Xmas (war is over)

We hope you have fun (if you want it)

The near and the dear one (war is over)

The old and the young (now)

A very Merry Xmas

And a happy New Year

Let's hope it's a good one

Without any fear

War is over, if you want it

War is over now

Happy Xmas

favorite waste of time

as you can tell, i'm in a picture mood.

here is paul kedrosky's list of best financial books of 2008.

the u.s. was positioned as low-risk, high-return. that's not really the case.

list of industries with strong hiring potential. accounting is listed. i think my move was a smart move. my next move will be ever better.

people, big people, are losing big on madoff.

have you seen jennifer aniston on the cover of some magazine wearing a tie? wow.

the money hole part II

the actual onion link for the money hole.

the money hole

"if you love america, you throw money in its hole."

christmas on mars

wowie zowie

ex-nasdaq chairman arrested on what might be biggest scam in history. bigger than the federal reserve.

the street knew he was cheating, and that's why they invested with him. smart.

various people sound off on madoff scam.

this guy says a trillion dollar deficit is a good thing.

some reading material for the weekend.

i don't really like mates of state. i saw them in concert and found them cute, not kind of lame. but i do like the fact they're husband and wife who play together.

obama is a smoker. he's trying to quit, but until he's totally quit, no one here and there, he's a smoker. we should let him smoke.

white winter hymnal

here are some lists of best albums of 2008 from various websites:

-the onion avclub

-rolling stone

-time

-paste magazine

-pitchforkmedia (site is down right now)

-thatbirdhouse

open letter to cc sabathia

mr. sabathia,

i hear you are going to sign with the new york yankees for seven years, $170 million dollars. maybe you didn't notice because you had your head buried in a bucket of nachos, but the yankees are dying. they're as good as dead. your presence will not resurrect them. the franchise, blinded by success and adulation, maneuvered itself into obscurity by doing precisely what you and the franchise engaged in, signing free agents to hilarious deals before they actually pitch in new york. carl pavano comes to mind. so does kei igawa. so does jaret wright. so does randy johnson. the yankee model is a relic of bloated baseball inventory. if you didn't notice, the tampa bay rays won the division with youth, speed and team chemistry. you have jeter as your captain, but with every new free agent signed, his influence is diminished. your team is a bunch of a-rods. high paid, hollywood stars that wilt when the time comes to produce. when the "team" needs a leader, there is no leader to found.

and those of us with a memory do remember you started horribly in 2008 with the cleveland indians before being dealt to the inferior national league and racking up big wins, mr. sabathia. that did not go unnoticed. now you've signed into a division that bleeds rivalry. you will have to stand tall against the red sox. can you do it? you did not in 2007 championship series. you will have to stand tall against the entire american league. we'll see if you can handle the pressure. the pressure of new york. the pressure of this contract. the pressure of being the ace of the staff because that's what you signed to do.

you might wonder why i would have such a visceral response to what is a common occurannce during the baseball offseason, the signing of free agents. it's because baseball players don't get it. the world series featured the tampa bay rays versus the philadelphia phillies. both teams featured highly paid players, but both teams had exactly zero big name free agent pickups. they grew their players from within. then they filled holes through free agency. the yankees did not even make the playoffs last year. it's amazing to see that baseball's "greatest" team still does not know how to succeed after being as dominant as they were from 1996 to 2001. during that period, they grew their players from within and signed guys like paul o'neil and scott brosius to fill holes. then they started signing guys like jason giambi and alex rodriguez and they got worse.

but they're stuck in this holding pattern. it makes me smile. because i love watching people/teams who think they are entitled to succeed fail. they think all they have to do is show up and they'll win because the other team will vanish into oblivion out of fear. it doesn't work that way. every team wants to win. and every team will fight to win. so good luck this year yankees. i'll see you when you finish in third place.