For over a decade, I’ve had fun (and some rewards) with playing in the stock market. Between purchasing shares of SBA Communications, Edison Schools, and the likes, I have more than offset my losses in stocks such as WorldCom and Countrywide. However, one of my biggest mistakes was not purchasing gold bullion, gold coins, or a gold IRA.
In 2001, gold was sitting comfortably below $300 an ounce – well within my range of investing. Since then, it has gone up over $1000 an ounce (see the chart below). This return on an internationally appreciated commodity is impressive and probably the best investment during the global economic pinch over the past few years.
Gold is used around the world in so many different applications. NASA uses gold in the construction of their satellites because the metal is corrosion-resistant and shields delicate components (and astronauts) from solar radiation. Due to the non-allergenic properties of gold, doctors and dentists use gold in treatment of patients; using gold for filings, treatment of arthritis, and fighting cancer. Gold is even found in your cars airbag, since the contacts and wiring provide reliable contacts to ensure the airbag deploys when you need it the most.
While it is unlikely that it will continue this level of growth, the fact that gold is a finite resource might mean that it will remain a safe investment until the economies around the world recover. Gold is unique because the value placed on the metal comes from two completely different points of view. Industries need the metal for its unique physical properties, while nations need the metal because bullion is internationally accepted as a form of financial backing for their currencies. Until a time comes when there is a synthetic material developed to replace the application of gold in electronic devices, odds are this precious and finite resource will maintain its value for years to come.
I’m not sure if you have these in your life, but recently I’ve noticed that I am inconsistent with my “good deeds.” For example, two weekends ago, I was driving down the road and noticed someone who was trying to push their car while in the right-hand lane of the main road near my house. I promptly pulled my car off the side of the road and help the owner push the vehicle (and was later assisted by two younger guys who stopped as well). The four of us pushed the car less than a quarter mile uphill and into the development where the owner was met by one of his family members. A little hard work, but an easy “good deed” for the day.
Two days later, on my way home from work, there was a car that broke down in front of me in the left-hand turn lane. While this section of the street was relatively level, and there was a large shoulder on the opposite side of the road to where the person could park their car and not be in the way of traffic, I didn’t bother to exit the car and help. In fact, I grumbled and pulled my car out from behind theirs and continued on my way. Why didn’t I stop to help? It would have been far easier of a push.
Skip ahead a week. I’m in the office when one of my coworkers calls me if I can help change the tire on their car. No problem. Went down to the parking garage, changed the tire in 10 minutes, and went back to work. Yes, my hands were dirty and I broke out in a sweat, but it wasn’t anything that didn’t clean up easily enough. So how come today, while walking to lunch, I passed by a person on the side of the street with a flat tire and didn’t offer to help?
Now I know that I can’t help everyone all the time, but shouldn’t I be more willing to stop and help others? Maybe it is something about our society these days. As I mentioned in the first example … two young guys stopped to help push the car with me and the owner. I was very proud of them for lending a hand because it has become the exception to the rule. It’s too easy to say “Oh, they probably have AAA” or something along those lines instead of stopping to lend a hand.
Also referencing the first example, the car owner and the family member were surprised by the level of help they received. I’m sure they might have questioned “Why are they helping us” at one point. It reminds me of one time years ago when I helped a young lady push her car out of the intersection. She was so nervous because she was stranded, but I think she was also nervous because a strange man stopped to help. I offered to stay with her until her father arrived, but fortunately a cop showed up shortly there after to assist.
Whatever the reason might be, I hope that I can be a better helper in the future. Maybe my actions will encourage others to help out more often as well. If it becomes a common practice within our communities, maybe I won’t feel so hesitant in the future.
What is the wold coming to when a police officer boards a bus, holds people hostage, and ends up killing seven of them … all in the hopes of regaining his job? It makes no sense what so ever. How can someone who is hired to protect the innocent turn into the complete opposite?
If there is anything positive to take from this, at least the officer was considerate enough to let a mother and her three children off of the bus earlier in the hostilities, as well as a man with diabetes. But still, how could he think his actions were going to result in him regaining his job? Truly sad.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to both the Chinese families involved as well as the general public in the Philippines. Such events should never happen.
Odd question alert! What ever happened to Sanka? With Starbucks dominating the coffee industry for the past decade, somewhere along the line Sanka disappeared from the coffee advertising circuit. In fact, I don’t think I heard any advertising for any of the Instant Coffee brands as of late.
Has our society grown too accustomed to the coffee houses that stirring up a quick cup of instant coffee is no longer appealing? Or was it that the instant coffees lost the taste that only fresh brewed coffees could offer? As one who doesn’t drink coffee, I cannot answer that, but maybe you can. Anyone seen or drink Sanka lately?
Have you ever wondered what happens to large commercial ships once they’ve become too old to operate? Unlike the Navy (who likes to sink their ships to make artificial reefs), commercial ships are usually sold for scrap. When this happens, the ships make their way to places like Alang, India.
In Alang, ships meet their doom when they are beached. When the ship is emptied of cargo and important equipment, the vessel is placed on a direct course for the beach while at high tide. Once ashore, the workers at Alang dismantle the ship to recycle all the steel and other valuable materials for scrap.
While the operation is very efficient, the Red Cross and environmentalists around the world complain about the ship breaking practices there in Alang. For starter, there is no full-service hospital within 30 miles from the beach (though the Red Cross operates a medical response facility there). Secondly, while these ships are empty of cargo and supplies, pollutants still find their way into the shores as the ships are taken apart.
Despite the current issues surrounding the town and the practice, it is an impressive operation. Below are three items that demonstrate the process and scale of the operations in Alang. The first is an aerial view of the Alang ship-breaking facility. In this photo, you can see at least 70 vessels that are currently beached.
The second is a video of a ship that is being beached. As you can see from the video, the vessel is empty, with the bulbus bow of the vessel riding high out of the water.
Lastly, here is a close-up aerial shot of one of the ships that has already been partially stripped down.
I “finally” have my desktop up and running again. It has been down for over a month after getting a nasty virus. The virus attacked the registry and made it impossible for me to launch any program directly. After a long time of trying to bypass the problem, I decided to call it quits and strip-down the system. Fortunately I was able to download the photos and files I wanted to save, so it wasn’t a total loss.
For those who create these viruses, I seriously hope that they one day find their computers infected with their own malicious code. Karma and all that, you know.
Happy Fourth of July! May you enjoy the day with family and friends. If you are traveling, I hope you make it to your destination(s) safely and with little traffic. Remember, take a moment to reflect on the sacrifices our Founding Fathers and all those that came after them made in order to create this wonderful nation.
There is a poll question CNN.com asking: “Are you doing anything to mark Earth Day?” My answer is … no. Sorry, but I don’t need an artificial holiday to go out and do something in honor of the planet. Besides, it’s Thursday. By the time I get home from work, it will be too late to go outside to do anything (plus I’m tired and have my exercise challenge to address).
No, to me, Earth Day is an artificial holiday for people who don’t think about the planet the other 364 days out of the year or for environmentalists who need a “Christmas” of their own. For me, everyday is my Earth Day. As you know with my on-going landscaping project, I’m busy taking care of my lawn and plants. This has taken up more time that I would like on the weekends, but at least it is preserving the soil while cleaning the air. During the week days, I carpool with two others to save on gas as well as wear-and-tear on my car.
Forty years ago, when Earth Day was first established, I could see the purpose of the artificial holiday. The industrial side of our society had really left a scar on the land, in the air, as well as the water. We have come a long way. With a natural cultural shift to bring people in line with views held by groups such as the Boy Scouts, we are doing a much better job of living in harmony with our environment. There is still a lot of work to do, but I think we’re on the right track.
I’m sure you’ve been asked that famous question at least once your life. I’m asked it at least once a year, for what reason I do not know. I’m not the old all-knowing guy sitting on top of a mountain somewhere after all. Anyway, no matter how many times I’m asked, I always give the same response: suffering.
What would your life be without suffering? You would be “happy” all the time with no concern over your actions. Wonderful, right? Not really, since your life would be meaningless.
Think about it for a moment. Without suffering, you wouldn’t be able to know what happiness is, let alone appreciate it. And if you weren’t afraid of doing something that might result in you suffering, you wouldn’t be able to identify the tough choices in life nor their circumstances. I think the Lady Antebellum song “Need You Now” has a great one-liner that summarizes this perfectly. “Yes I’d rather hurt than feel nothing at all.”
A life without suffering would be almost numb, just like your mouth when you go to the dentist. When they numb your mouth, your lips can’t form a proper smile, you accidentally bite your cheek or tongue, and you can’t sense much of anything as far as feeling nor taste. Why would you want to live your life like that (if you could even call it “living”)?
Next time you find yourself feeling down, reflect on what made you happy in the past. And when you find yourself feeling happy, be thankful that you were down before so you can appreciate the positive emotions you are experiencing.
