The Economy and its Impact on Us

All right, folks, Conejo Joe here.  I've been on a week long trip to San Diego with my family and am back in action. 

The economy has been a major concern and drag on all of us.  What a year.  Gas prices rising to over $4 a gallon and now we're seeing prices below $2.  The stock market has been hammered over 50% from its highs and it has hit all of us hard in our retirement savings.  We've seen dozens of companies filing bankruptcy or scaling back.  Foreclosures all over the place.  Real estate prices are way way down.  Unemployment rates are sky high.  It has certainly been a stressful year.

But you know what?  We are resilient and we will come back.  We are all in this together and we have seen this cycle before.  We have a broad, diversified economy and somehow, some way, we will all make it through these economic doldrums.

Our trip gave me hope.  We visited Legoland, Sea World, Downtown San Diego and we saw lots and lots of people out there, experiencing life, enjoying themselves, spending money, regardless of the bad economy.  Heck, we even had to stand in lines!!  There are too many things in life to live for and enjoy.  Why let a little recession ruin the fun!? 

If you are unemployed, there are still plenty of jobs out there!  They may not pay exactly what you want, but sometimes we need to step back to move forward.  Check out Monster.com, Craig's List, the local newspapers.  Network in LinkedIn and other social networking sites.  Make something happen.  Our country needs each and every one of you.  There are jobs out there for everyone.  They don't always hit you in the face.  You need to take action and FIND them!

OK, OK, Mervyns went bankrupt, Linens & Things went bankrupt, Sharper Image went bankrupt, Circuit City just filed for bankruptcy and the banking industry changed so much that we hardly recognize it.  But ya know what, I HATED Mervyns, Linens & Things, Sharper Image and Circuit City.  Last time I visited Circuit City I waited 20 minutes for help and there were no customers in the store.  Mervyns was never exactly enjoyable.  Times change and some businesses can't keep up with change.  (I do like the Janss Marketplace very much and hope that the void left by the loss of Mervyns and Linens & Things is filled quickly).

In the meantime, The Oaks mall has been through a major upgrade and a large new Nordstrom store opened in September.  And a high-end Muvico movie theatre is slated to open at The Oaks in early 2009.  The U.S. Government has stepped in and provided a backstop for large financial institutions like Citigroup, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan Chase by investing in these companies.

So bottom line is this.  We live in a very cyclical, dynamic and changing world.  Don't overreact.  Don't not act.  Now is the time to start investing in your future.  Make things happen.  Everything is a two-edged sword.  Real estate and stock prices have tumbled.   But perhaps that gives us the buying opportunity of a lifetime.  Your company went bankrupt and you are out of a job.  Well maybe you hated that job and this gives you the opportunity to find what you enjoy.  Or become a consultant.  Or start your own business!

We have seen how quickly things can change.  TAKE ACTION!  Don't just sit there!  Don't wait for the "perfect" opportunity or situation.  Now is the time.  If you snooze, you lose!  Try something new!  Don't rely on others to make it happen for you.

There is too much to enjoy in life to sweat the current economic situation we face.  As the Resident Rabbit of this website of local goings on, I can tell you that hundreds of hundreds of events and activities take place locally each year and thousands upon thousands of us participate.  Yeah, yeah,  Conejo Valley Days may be history, but you know what, there are dozens upon dozens of other events that have taken its place.

So in this holiday season, enjoy yourselves, have FUN and remember...we are all in this together.  After all is said and done, our goals are all similar.  We want to live happy, healthy, loving lives.  Let's work together and make it happen!

Only in L.A.: Los Angeles Regional Paparazzi Task Force Citizen's Guide

We have so many things that make where we live such a wonderful, unique place...the weather, the beaches, the climate, and now, The Los Angeles Regional Paparazzi Task Force. Formed by Los Angeles City Councilmember Dennis Zine, the goal is to address ways of dealing with issues related to paparazzi.

The Task Force came up with a one page "Citizen's Guide" (also see below) to dealing with paparazzi. As I am famous celebrity Conejo Joe, I have already printed the guide and glued it to my dashboard. 

What does paparazzi mean anyway? Well no one is completely sure according to this Wikipedia article but one source says papparazi (plural for papparazo) came from an Italian dialect that describes a particularly annoying noise, that of a buzzing mosquito. Federico Fellini, director of the 1960 film La dolce vita, remembered a boy who was nicknamed "Paparazzo" (Mosquito) because of his fast talking and constant movements, a name Fellini later applied to the fictional character in the movie.  Sounds plausible.  Another line of thought is that Fellini discovered the name by randomly opening the 1901 book "By the Ionian Sea," which has a hotel owner by the name Signor Paparazzo.  Hmmm.  All right, all right, I'll stop this nonsense.

Mortgage Meltdown Musical Chairs

As I type this post on a windy Columbus Day holiday in Ventura County, the stock market is up over 11%, thanks in part to an announcement that the U.S. Treasury may buy some bank stocks!  Talk about a volatile market!  Stocks were down 18% last week, 24% over the last 2 weeks and 40% over the last year! 

What prompted me to write this was that my wife mentioned we have a savings account at Washington Mutual.  There have been so many banking changes that I couldn't even remember who now owns WaMu (it is now JP Morgan Chase)!  So here's a high level compilation of some of the major events of the year...so far!

10/13/08 (today):  The Federal Reserve approved Wells Fargo's purchase of Wachovia.  This deal is expected to close by the end of the year.  Wachovia is (soon to be was) the 4th largest bank in America.  Originally Citigroup tried to buy Wachovia but Wells Fargo offered more $$.

10/3/08:  FDIC deposit insurance limits are temporarily raised from $100K to $250K per account until 12/31/09.  Now if they could just tell me where I can get this much money fso I can utilize these limits.

9/25/08:  Washington Mutual is shut down by the Office of Thrift Supervision and FDIC (the largest bank failure in U.S. history), only to be immediately sold to JP Morgan Chase that same day.  JP Morgan Chase now claims to be the largest U.S. bank.

9/16/08:  Bank of America bought Merrill Lynch for $50 billion (way to go, B of A!).  The deal will close sometime in Q1 2009.

9/15/08:  Lehman Brothers files Chapter 11.  Sorry guys, no bailout for you!  But the next day, Barclay's Bank bought Lehman's businesses and assets.  So Lehman is still around.

9/7/08:  The Government takes over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  Maybe they should upgrade their names to something like Angelina and Brad or other more popular names.

9/6/08:  The Government steps in and saves AIG from its liquidity issues by taking the equivalent of an 80% stake in the company.

7/11/08:  IndyMac, with local branches in Thousand Oaks, Camarillo and Ventura, is the 2nd largest bank failure in history (now the 3rd largest, thanks to WaMu).  But that's o.k., they are now owned and operated by the Feds and all's fine.  Anyone wanna buy a bank?  How about McDonald's?  Rename it BigMac bank and pay interest in french fries??

7/1/08:  Countrywide officially becomes owned by Bank of America.  So now the big question is...when are they gonna change it to the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza's "Bank of America Performing Arts Plaza"??

5/31/08:  JP Morgan Chase bought Bear Stearns.  They opted against calling the new entity JP Morgan Chases Bears.

Well let's all hope that we are headed in the right direction!

Our California Legislators are Hard at Work, Counting Your Calories!

From the good intentions, questionable impact department.  Our Governor signed into law Senate Bill 1420 yesterday, which will require restaurant chains with 20 or more locations to publish the calorie content of their food beginning on 1/1/11. 

The goal was to ensure that we, the ravenous masses, know how many calories we are inhaling so that perhaps we make wiser food choices.  I suppose it may make some of us think twice.  For example, when I see that a Big Mac has 120 calories more than a Quarter Pounder clear as day on that menu, maybe I'll grab the Quarter Pounder.  Yeah, that's it!  I'll go on a Quarter Pounder diet!

The law doesn't apply to chains of 19 or less locations, farmers' markets, grocery stores, commissaries and school cafeterias.  So Mastro's Steakhouse will be at a major advantage as they will not have to tell me I'm eating 3 billion calories in my meal!

The law says that after 1/1/11, "every food facility that uses an indoor menu board shall disclose calorie content information for a standard menu item next to the item on the menu board in a size and typeface that is clear and conspicuous."  All right you brilliant lawmakers, take a look at this Taco Bell menu and tell me how you're gonna fit "clear and conspicuous" calorie information on there!  I already have a hard enough time reading these cluttered menus! 

Perhaps the real goal here is to make menus so incomprehensible that people get fed up and start eating at home!  I heard LensCrafters was a big supporter of this law.

But let's zero in their definition of "standard menu item."  SB 1420 defines this as a food or beverage that is on the menu at least 180 days per calendar year and excludes special orders, alcohol, salad bars and buffets.  Souplantation, you're off the hook!

Loophole Alert!  Hey all they have to do is change the menu every 179 days and the law doesn't apply!  I can see it now.  Carl's Jr., Wendy's and Burger King strike an agreement to swap menus every 179 days just to get around this law.

The law goes on to say that if a menu item is a combination of 2 or more other menu items, then you must show the minimum/maximum calorie counts based on all possible combinations.  El Pollo Loco was shaking in its boots at this one.  Imagine...the kids meal combo has 11 different sides and 3 entrees.  That's 33 different combinations, ignoring beverages!  Uggghhh!

They are letting drive-thru menus off the hook, kind of.  Instead of publishing calories on the drive-thru menu, they can provide a brochure with the calorie counts.  "Hi, I'd like a Double Double and Strawberry Shake please.  But hold on, I would like to review your calorie content brochure prior to placing my order.  Thank you."

Violation of this law will be an infraction, punishable by a fine of $50 to $500.  Watch out for those Calorie Cops!!

Christina Applegate Double Masectomy

Emmy Award-winning actress Christina Applegate was intereviewed on Good Morning America today about her very recent decision to have a double masectomy in response to learning she had breast cancer in one of her breasts.  The surgery took place about 3 weeks ago.

It was uplifting to see how positive, determined, and good-spirited this talented actress, whom many of us (especially us guys) know all so well from her 10 year stint on Married with Children in the late 80s/early 90s, was in the interview (click here to see it).

Her decision was obviously not an easy one, but was based on an assessment of the facts.  She tested positive for the BRCA1 gene that is an early indicator for breast cancer.  Her mother is a breast cancer survivor.  A doctor-ordered MRI confirmed the breast cancer diagnosis.  She decided to have the surgery to ensure the cancer would not come back (she is 100% cancer free now) and to alleviate the need to have chemotherapy and other recurring treatments.

Christina, who looks incredible at age 36 and only 3 weeks after surgery, says she wants to increase awareness of breast cancer screening and in particular, find a way to help women at risk but lack finances to pay for the expensive BRCA1 testing and MRI screening. 

She went on to joke about how in the coming year she will have reconstructive breast surgery and that her new boobs will make her the envy of other 90 years olds sitting around the bridge table in the nursing home.  She describes how humor has helped her deal with her challenge and that she is ready for the next challenge of helping others facing the same issues.

Applegate is scheduled to appear on the Stand Up To Cancer fundraiser on September 5th.  See www.standup2cancer.org for more information.  She is also rumored to be playing the part of actress Elizabeth Montgomery, who died due to colorectal cancer, in the 2009 movie "Everything Is Going to Be Just Fine."

We wish you well, Christina!  We admire you.

Run or Die? A 21-Year Stanford Study

In a study published today in the American Medical Association's Archive of Internal Medicine, Stanford researchers said that over a 19 year period, runners died at less than half the rate of non-runners  Wow, if that isn't a case for regular aerobic exercise (be it running, swimming, biking, whatever), I don't know what is!

The study began in 1984 with 538 runners over age 50 and a healthy "control" group of 423 non-runners from Northern California.  Annual surveys were completed by participants.  After 19 years, 15% of the runners had died compared to 34% of the non-runners.  Hmmm, could that be why my wife wants me to stop running and set up a life insurance policy...hmmm.

At the end of the study, the runner group had a 40% reduced chance of being moderately disabled or of dying as compared to the non-runner group.

The runner group exercised as much as 200 minutes per week versus only 20 minutes for the non-runner group.  It obviously pays to exercise, so go on, get out there and start training!  How about one of these upcoming local 5K fun runs as a goal!

One last point.  The study indicated that 284 runners and 156 non-runners completed the entire 21 year study.  So of those that lived through the entire study, this implies that 62% of the runners and 56% of the non-runners completed the entire survey.  To me this says that runners not only live longer and healthier, but are more reliable survey takers.

(Disclosure:  Conejo Joe is a runner if you couldn't already figure that out.)