January 2008
47 posts
3 tags
Volcker-Obama
Personally, I think this big. Or maybe more accurately, could be big. Paul Volcker has a tremendous amount of economic credibility; something he earned while destroying inflation and rescuing the US economy in the early 80’s. Volcker is no market/economic push-over like our current Fed Chairman and he has not endorsed anyone before. I think that if Obama plays this right, he can appeal even...
3 tags
Morning Commute: Lost
I have to say I’m pretty giddy with excitement over tonight’s season four premiere of “Lost.” Its been a really long time since last season’s jaw dropping season finale and I’ve been anxious to see, not only what happens to the characters but also, how the narrative/storytelling style changes. Once the announcement came out that they had a set end date, I knew...
4 tags
Bar Trivia
Victorious. One hiccup, who would have thought Dan Quayle ran for President after four disasterous years as veep and 3 years out of office. Nelson Rockefeller, I hardly knew ya. ————————————- Sent using BlackBerry Wireless
3 tags
Morning Commute: Florida
I don’t even want to talk about HRC, the DNC delegate controversy and potential lawsuits. The whole thing has been handled pretty miserably and, unless there is a brokered convention, those delegates are going to be seated anyway. No, I’m interested in the R results and what the media coverage will look like going forward. First, let me say THANK GOD that Giuliani got smoked and is...
2 tags
"Strikeout Machine"
News has been coming across the wire all afternoon stating that the Mets have agreed with the Twins on a trade to acquire Johan Santana. The Mets will part with four prospects, including Carlos Gomez and Phil Humber. They now have 48 hours to negotiate a deal. I can hear all of my Yankee and Red Sox fan friends saying in unison, “That’s it!? That’s all it took!?” I say...
2 tags
Don't Be Fooled
From The Plank: Who Would McCain Appoint to the Court? Apologies if you’ve seen this already, but John McCain’s recent comments on Supreme Court appointments seemed worth a blockquote: McCain mentioned that Sam Brownback would play an advisory role in helping decide who he should nominate for the Supreme Court. As models of who he would select, John McCain pointed to Justices...
4 tags
Morning Commute: Straight Talk
John McCain gave a very strange interview to Anderson Cooper post SOTU last night. Now, I’m a Democratic partisan, but to me it illustrated exactly what would make John McCain the most dangerous president (now that Giuliani is on his way out). First, McCain clearly knows little to nothing about the economuy. Now, I’m the first to say that I think very few presidential candidates (or...
3 tags
Thick Skin
Man, what happened to me? I spent four years wandering around Cambridge and rowing on the Charles, all the time freezing my ass off, solely in hopes of developing a thick skin for the cold. I used to go out on the river in little more than a short sleeve CoolMax and an extra pair of socks. When I first moved to LA, I used to run around in shorts and a t-shirt in the 45 degree winter weather,...
3 tags
Harvard
Now almost 6 years removed from college, I have yet to give any money directly to the University. I have given to a couple of school related organizations and I gave in support of my fifth reunion, but have been extremely unhappy with Harvard’s financial aid system. The system has saddled lower and middle income students with large loans while ever growing its endowment (through both...
3 tags
Markets
I think we could be in for a massive market meltdown next week. Futures market are currently pricing in a 100 % probability of a Fed cut on Wednesday, which I don’t believe is going to happen. The markets (except for yesterday) have been unable to sustain any rally. No one wants to step in and buy stocks while unsure of economic figures. Microsoft (MSFT) blew out numbers and raised...
3 tags
Morning Commute: Weeknight Drinking
I think there is a very intuitive way to overcome going to work hungover when you want to go out for (many) drinks after work: don’t go out for drinks after work. Its not so much how many drinks you have or how drunk you get, but more of a function of how late you will be out and how early you have to get up. Last night we hit Parish Cafe, maybe my favorite spot in Boston. I got there at...
2 tags
Routine
How come I can get into some routines and not others? And how come I can’t break the ones I want to the most? I guess the second kind falls more into the “habit” category than the “routine” category, but really, what’s the difference? Why am I eating dinner from the same place nearly every night of the week? Grummings would say its because one of the girls...
3 tags
Morning Commute: Sleep
I used to be one of those kids who could sleep for like four hours a night and still run around bursting with energy all day. And when I say kid, I don’t mean five years old, I’m referring to my years as an (awkward) teenager. I would stay up until 1am or 2am (for no real reason) and then get up at 6:30am to get ready for school. As an aside, I can’t believe high school started...
4 tags
Data Entry
It fries my brain and consumes massive quantities of time. But honestly, it’s the best way to learn a lot of these numbers. It’s not like I’m just dumping numbers into a sheet, I’m building a comp table/consensus model for about 150 different companies, so there is definitely some value being added…theoretically by me.
2 tags
Heath Ledger
So it came across the wire a little bit ago that Heath Ledger was found dead in an apartment (its unclear at the moment whose apartment it was). He was apparently found naked and surrounded by pills, so the authorities aren’t ruling out suicide. I’d read a few interviews with him lately in which he seemed less than thrilled with where he was in his life. I hate to think that his role...
2 tags
Superbowl
Its pretty insane that the 18-0 Patriots will play the winners of 10 straight road games Giants in the Superbowl. The Green Bay loss should ensure relatively even-handed officiating in what I assume will be the most watched Superbowl ever. ————————————- Sent using BlackBerry Wireless
2 tags
Elisha
Have to say I’m pretty impressed with Eli Manning’s 1st half performance. He’s one Burress drop away from heading to the locker room with a lead. Too bad his full name is Elisha. ————————————- Sent using BlackBerry Wireless
5 tags
BlackBerry
I can be careless. Or as some like to tell me (and as I’ll admit) I am an idiot. “The dumbest smart person I know” has been used as well. I usually don’t argue with this moniker. In truth, my common sense died a quick death following the slow death of my attention span. Its a sad story, really. Why do I bring this up? Because like an idiot I lost my BlackBerry on Friday...
3 tags
Amtrak
I don’t really have as big of a problem with Amtrak as some others. While its not as cheap as I’d like, the amenities between Boston and NYC are actually pretty good. I’m speaking specifically about the Acela Express, which is business and first class only between the two cities. Firstly, unlike the regional, once outside of Boston, it makes few stops: Providence, New Haven,...
4 tags
Morning Commute: Romney or Uncommitted
Wow. Congratulations to Mitt Romney. Once again, the press got a little ahead of itself calling a candidate essentially done. Not nearly as egregious as the early NH Clinton obituaries, but they had surely written him off. I wonder when they will finally realize that VOTERS and not “journalists” decide the candidates. Had I lived in Michigan, I’m not sure who I would have voted...
3 tags
Morning Commute: Rain
Snow can be many things. Snow can be fun (to ski on or play in). Snow can be beautiful (if you see it on a mountainside). Snow can be tasty (snow cones…mmmmm, tasty). Snow can be wet (ok, snow is always wet). Snow can be annoying (like if you get stuck in traffic). But in Boston, snow is none of these things. Here in Boston, snow can only be described as one thing: dirty and long-lasting....
4 tags
Electoral Compass
This was pretty fun. I remember something similar on ask.com back in 2000, which confirmed for me back then what I already knew (pre-Noble/Oscar winner Gore was my best choice). I guess the results here were a little surprising. As I’ve said before, I’d be happy with pretty much any D in the White House (certainly among the two front runners, I am (and have been) neutral). But I...
3 tags
Morning Commute: Umbrellas
Typically, at this time of year, in Boston, you don’t need an umbrella. Usually in mid-January, if there is precipitation, it comes in the form of big white flakes. When its snowing out, you just need a warm hat, a thick jacket and some decent boots. This is not a typical January…your father’s January (or Oldsmobile, if you will). Three days ago, it was 50 degrees and sunny....
2 tags
Kerry Endorses Obama
Okay, so the 2004 standard bearer gives a boost to a 2008 front runner. Hmmm. In 2004, the 2000 standard bearer (Gore) endorsed the 2004 front runner (Dean), and it was downhill for Howard from there.
4 tags
Earbuds
I have a pair of Shure E4C earbuds (earphones for those who aren’t familiar with the term…the kind you stick inside your ears). I love them. They are absolutely fantastic. When I first got them, I was a little uneasy about spending $300+ for a pair of headphones, but friends assur…promised me I’d be pleased. I listen to my iPod nearly everywhere I go. As I’ve...
2 tags
Was It the Ballot that Killed Obama?
From the Washington Post, by way of The Plank: From the WaPost:The New Hampshire ballot rules may also have played a role. In previous contests, the state rotated candidate names from precinct to precinct, but this year the names were consistently in alphabetical order, with Clinton near the top and Obama lower down. Stanford professor Jon A. Krosnick, a survey specialist, has estimated the impact...
4 tags
3 tags
Moron, er, More On the Press
It was much remarked upon last night and this morning how Hillary’s campaign framed the scene for her speech last night, with many young people behind her and no Bill (except for a perfunctory hug before she spoke), Madeleine Albright, Wes Clark, etc. - an effort (if you’re a cynic) to match Obama’s picture of enthusiasm or (if not so much) to demonstrate her breadth of support. ...
2 tags
“Frank Foer of TNR has a theory that the caucus format worked against Hillary...”
– I would agree with the McCain statement. If you are an independent voter and leaning towards Obama, doesn’t an 8% to 13% poll lead heading into the primary give you confidence that you can vote for McCain and still have Obama win? I saw some interesting stats that the polls correctly...
2 tags
Secret Ballot Versus Caucus:Two Theories
Frank Foer of TNR has a theory that the caucus format worked against Hillary Clinton in Iowa because a voter has to openly declare his/her support:If you’re a Hillary Clinton supporter, it must not be easy to admit in public. You risk the ire of the omnipresent Clinton haters; you look like an establishmentarian square. And it must be even harder to admit in a social forum like the Iowa Caucuses....
3 tags
Morning Commute: Clinton Victory
I think some pundits are overlooking their own role and a simple attitude that played into Hillary’s victory tonight. While I am an undecided, the over-the-top response from the press over the last few days made me consider supporting Hillary just to tell them to eph off, they don’t know what we want for our party. In the span of three days, Hillary went from “aggressive”...
2 tags
New Hampshire
Just curious if Clinton or Obama will end up with more votes than McCain and Romney combined. Also, hoping that Paul finished ahead of Giuliani (not because I like Paul, but because I think Giuliani has the biggest potential for disaster for our country). Definite potential for both of these things as the college/younger/close to Vermont precincts report. Fun! Now can the other 200mm of us has...
4 tags
Adult Sports Leagues
When I was younger, I never could have predicted how many opportunities I would have as an adult to play organized sports. Currently, its only indoor soccer during the week. This is the “winter” season for our indoor league. It follow the fall season and the summer outdoor season. These leagues are all organized by the Fun Sports and Social Group: Boston (FSSG). They have a ton of...
2 tags
Morning Commute: Economist
So dense, so dry, so delightfully full of world news. ————————————- Sent using BlackBerry Wireless
2 tags
2 tags
She's Already Making Me Want to Eat My Words →
2 tags
Standing Up For Hillary
Look, my favs were Dodd and Biden, so I’m searching. While I prefer Clinton to Obama, it isn’t by a wide margin (unlike Edwards, who ranks not only behind Richardson in my book but even Kucinich and McCain). Why, even at this late date, though, is she still getting uneven treatment on her demeanor? Saturday night, she aggressively defended herself (sorry, can’t find the video) and she’s being...
4 tags
3 tags
Morning Commute: Standing in the Aisle
Why, when people get on the bus, do they stand in the middle of the aisle? Its clear that there is a ton of space on the back of the bus and at busy times, people are pouring onto the bus. Why do you have to make me shove past you with my bag whacking everyone so you can stand in the aisle at the very front. Hey, if the bus is packed, I get it, there’s nowhere to go. But when the entire...
2 tags
BlackBerry Breathalizer
I’ve seen the joke cell phone/computer breathalizers before, but I could really use a BlackBerry version. Since I use my BB as my cellphone, its a triple threat: drunk dial, drunk text and drunk email. The extra bonus on that last one is that if I’m dumb enough to send out a drunked email (which we all know I am)n it comes from my corporate work address. Yes, I’m a complete...
2 tags
Weekend Protocol
What are the “rules” when it comes to Saturday and Sunday afternoons? Is there a certain code or something I have to follow with regard to moving/activities? My preference is really to sit around and do nothinh; to relax. When I was a kid, I was made to do stuff on the weekends. And I’m not talking about the standard, “grill, its nice outside. You should go outside and...
4 tags
A Bunch of Degrees of Awesome Music Separation
I’ve recently become obsessed with my iPod (though it is a Gen3 and probably getting close to death). I’m fortunate enough to have friends who constantly keep me up to date with amazing new music. After hitting ACL in the fall, I made it my goal for the rest of 2007 and all of 2008, until I return to Austin, to see as many concerts as possible. Thanks to the use of my trusty volvo,...
3 tags
G.O.R.P.
I’ve been eating a lot of GORP (that’s “Good Old Raisins and Peanuts” for the uninitiated) lately. We have a small pantry in our offices and I’ve found myself wandering into it at various times during the day to mix myself up a serving. Well, to be fair, I shouldn’t call it GORP, since it is not GORP in the traditional sense. My standard mixture includes...
2 tags
The Guy IS Cool
Obama jabs Hillary: Referring to his new status as the Democratic front-runner, he said: “This feels good. It’s just like I imagined it when I was talking to my Kindergarten teacher.”
3 tags
Morning Commute: Charlie Card
I appreciate that Boston has put in a great deal of effort to try and improve rider access/comfort/enjoyment on all forms of inner city transport. Despite the fact that the MBTA is a big money loser, they have purchased some new trains, upgraded stations and introduced and RFID/swipe card payment service to replace tokens. It is this last “improvement”, the Charlie Card, I have a...
3 tags
Iowa
I still don’t understand why voters in any states that get to vote between now and February 5th (“Super Duper Tuesday” as I like to call it), would let anything that any idiot on TV says about their potential candidate change their vote. Actually, the people on the TV shouldn’t have any influence. Pundits are just opinionated people who have managed to find their way onto...
2 tags
Nothing ever works
Just an observation. ————————————- Sent using BlackBerry Wireless