“My grandparents were given the name on Ellis Island,” he explained over lunch. At Lavo – NY’s hottest spot. Filled with people from all over the world. Building. Hustling. Making something from nothing. And conversation wandered. His plans. Our plans. Opportunities. Risks. Markets. Trades. 2012. I explained investors have yet to fully appreciate what a true safe haven is: A place where you’re prepared to permanently

The human eye needs 20 minutes to fully adjust to darkness. So that’s how long we spent at the trailhead, cause it’d be hours till dawn and we were climbing without headlamps. The fascinating thing about the dark is that everything’s basically the same, but yet, it feels so very different. Mountain lions hunt, coyotes prowl, footing feels unstable, and the boogeyman lurks. We brought 2 big dogs, Man

Lots of ways to make a buck bro. Some noble. Others less so. And while I admire the former more than the latter, green is green. Plus it’s hard to take anything too seriously. ’Cause creative destruction ensures no business endures. And new ones arise. Which keeps us running hard. Fast. To stay one step ahead in our race against failure. One of my boys had an idea. Built a team. On a shoestring. Raised some money. To

Hope all goes well. Woke at 4am. Snuck out. With Mara. Two tiny creatures. Lying on a little planet. Hurling silently through the infinite. Watching our moon. Slip into Earth’s shadow. In awe. And there it was again. Glowing. That f’in color. Red. Just seems to be everywhere these days. Mercifully, it’s the last full lunar eclipse for 3yrs. We’re back in black. Bringing Mara to NYC this wk. Work and play. Overall: Se

See the video? Unreal. American stealth drone. Looked like a UFO. Musta got lost. And found. In Iran. Yeah, some Persian dude landed it. Seriously. How? Code bro: One and Zero. It’s the future ya know. Only way to go. ’Cause let’s face it, no matter how much dizzy yellow‐cake we stack on rockets, no one’s ever launching one. Nope. These days it’s hack, crack, attack. And like all of man’s great weapons, before long,

5‐4‐3‐2‐1. Ignition. Blast off. Yeah, NASA launched a rocket. Bound for Mars. Carrying a rover. Named Curiosity. Aren’t we just. From that very first bite of the apple. Curious. And while our scientists voyage afar, to explore the cosmos, and the quantum, we’re left to our shrinking Newtonian planet. Dropping things on each other. Lifting too. Pushing weight around. Desperate to stay one step ahead in Sir Isaac’s fav

Hope all goes well. How’d my trip go? Great. Thanks. Weather report? Switzerland: Sunny & warm outside, dark & cold inside. Why? Inflation, deflation, ice ages, dark ages, they’re scared. Sweden: Dark & cold outside, sunny & warm inside. Why? They weathered their ’92 collapse, got leaner, now run surpluses, dodged the Euro too. But they’re cautious, knowing well the road ahead for Europe. Overall: 5‐4

The affair lasted for years. And I wasn’t her only lover. She has so many. Mostly youngsters. But the gravity of middle age drew me back to center. Broke her spell. Perhaps I’d encountered too much social injustice, lost faith in extreme ideologies, or simply realized there are no heroes like John Galt, and Dagny Taggart. Anyhow, when I land in Zurich, Ayn returns. To tantalize, tempt, and taunt me. You see, Switzerl

Hope all goes well. What a mess. Traders step away from their screens for just a couple days and look what happens. Worst Thanksgiving wk for the S&P since 1932. It’s been three yrs in a row where this wk’s seen more than just a few gobblers slaughtered. So much for Black Friday. Week‐in‐Review: Mon: Mkts assume Supercommittee failure, Japan trd bal falls, Sing 3Q GDP solid, S&P ‐1.9%; Tue: US 3Q GDP revised

Hope all goes well. What a mess. Traders step away from their screens for just a couple days and look what happens. Worst Thanksgiving wk for the S&P since 1932. It’s been three yrs in a row where this wk’s seen more than just a few gobblers slaughtered. So much for Black Friday. I’m off to Zurich for a UBS macro panel. Then Stockholm. I was last there in ’93, right after Sweden’s economic system collapsed, and t