weekend notes

Hope all goes well.I call him Osama bin-Charlie. A term of endearment. Got a soft spot for the little terrorist. ’Cause he’s my 4th. My last. And while bin-Charlie’s just mid-way through the terrible two’s, I know his reign of terror’s nearly over. Stockholm Syndrome’s setting in. He infiltrated our bed, 5am, whispering, “Charlie’s a superstar.” Over and over. And over. And over. Yeah, he talks in

Hope all goes well. Got the news. In-flight to Miami. Made me shiver. Just another reminder I’ve accomplished so little. And it’s got nothing to do with the fact the guy built a $200mm fortune. Paid less than 14% tax (I paid 35%). Has 5 kids (I stalled at 4). Saved the Olympics (I coached 6yr old girls soccer). Or published a best-seller (ughhh). Nope. What really got me was this: $21mm in investm

Hope all goes well. Monopoly mania. Hit my house. Boardwalk. Park Place. Jail. Pass Go, watch M1 grow. Jackson’s ruthless. Olivia sneaks money to the needy. Teddy’s despises the rich, but covets cash, property, punishing peasants. Charlie fondles dice. Drools on dough. Mara loves winning, hates losing. And I watch. As my kiddies buy, sell. Rise. Fall. Beg. Negotiate. And slowly discover that the d

Hope all goes well. What a break. I needed it. Sailed on an old-world schooner. In rolling seas. Stared up at stars. The moon too. You know, they looked the same back when Columbus explored the Caribbean. Plotting, planning. Driven by ambition. Lust for adventure, wealth. Thirst for knowledge. And chased by the haunting truth that, adrift in the infinite, our voyage is so short. But onwards we sai

Hope all goes well. Teddy (6) just couldn’t decide, “A real live Red‐Tail Hawk, or a real magic wand that can turn real trees into real coconuts.” Olivia (8) announced all she wants from Santa is, “To end all wars forever.” Jackson (10), without the slightest hesitation, replied in a demeaning bark, “Well then there’d be too many people.” Which naturally started a war. Charlie (2) cried without qu

Hope all goes well. Spent my last trip of ’11. Considering ’12. In NYC. Focused on Europe. Debating. Weighting. Probabilities, possibilities. You know, everyone expects ’12 to be just as hard as ’11. Maybe harder. Perhaps. No doubt ’12 will be fascinating, filled with questions, enigmas, conflicts, opportunities too. Betcha my grandkids study ’12 in college. But I’m ahead of myself. Right now, we

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 a

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

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 sys