Taking Stock Of Past 12 Years

My dad would have been 84 years old tomorrow. What would his advice have been to me about Karrie?
World
I haven't been paying much attention to the world. Most of the news I get is from 2 year old Time magazines, which I find in the bins at the Recycling Center. I just read a piece about Tiger Woods and what a great influence he is as a role model to kids, written in May of 2009.
Nation
I haven't been paying much attention to things in the nation. I understand the stock market took a dive recently. I was in Phoenix, Arizona in 1999, during the "internet bubble" which propelled the stock market to what we all kind of felt were unsustainable heights. I was at TD Waterhouse, pouring as much of my profits from working as a cab driver as I could, into such issues as Power Integrations, Ericsonn Telecomm, and Redhat. When I say "as much...as I could," I mean that I moved into a cave up on South Mountain, where I cooked my food, slept, fed the squirrrels so many peanuts that I had a peanut-shell carpet (easy on the knees) and listened to Financial News Radio on my cheap AM radio. If I made 100 bucks driving the cab, I would spend about 20 of it on things for the cave, (like oil for the lamps which kept rats from coming in at night,) and then write TD Waterhouse a check for the balance. I haven't been able to bring myself to give a landlord money since.
I had no idea what Power Integrations was, or what they did. Neither did the "Financial News" network guy, who came on the AM radio at 5 (a.m.) and highly recommended it one morning. "I have no idea what they make," he said unashamedly, "but the stock is up 15% this week alone and 390% since its IPO, two months ago. I love this stock!" Exclaimed over the airwaves on 1550 AM at five in the morning, this was, which meant that it was eight in the morning on Wall Street. TD Waterhouse was open at that hour to accomodate all of us traders.
A couple of sidenotes: One day, an Oriental guy was at the brokerage, short selling thousands of shares of Yahoo with a "strike price" or whatever its called, of 6 dollars. The thing was trading at like 190, and had recently jumped there from somewhere around 100, and showed no signs of letting up. He was the only guy there who was selling short, and certainly the only Oriental guy there selling short. After he left, even the Customer Service Rep behind the counter remarked "That guy just sold Yahoo short at 6 bucks a share!" Jaws dropped open around the room. "That's weird," I thought.
I thought a lot more about that Oriental guy during the next year, as shares of Yahoo fell to under 2 bucks each. He might OWN a chunk of The Orient now.


There Is Always Dalton, Georgia To Consider

The second quick sidenote; yes, I was visited by three of them, one a foot long, another two feet long, and one of about 5 feet, while living in the cave. Diamondback Rattlesnakes, I refer to, of course. They don't run. They stand their ground and rattle at you. I had to throw my hot sauce bottle at the big one, to drive it under a rock, from where it emitted a half hearted rattle every now and then.
Health
My health is still good since the 7 day fast I went on last week. It feels like my joints have been oiled. They move more easily and quietly and I feel like I am slinking along like the Pink Panther when I walk.
Finance
Not much to report here. I had $12.49 on me, when I woke up. Sadly, all I can think of right now is drinking $12.49 worth of strong alcohol as soon as I leave the library here. I am an "evening" alcoholic. You won't catch me drunk before noon.
Travel
Tuscaloosa is the place where I feel most led by the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit. There is a college there. I want to get out of music and into movie-making, and I won't have to go to Orlando, Florida where there is a college dedicated to the science of motion picture making. Tuscaloosa was hit by a tornado, and there is reportedly work there. I want to get back to work so I can snap up those shares of Yahoo, which are such a great value now.
The only thing is the name: Tuscaloosa. I'll have to get used to that.
Becca said that she has friends who attend the University Of Alabama there, and that I might look them up and maybe get some advice on how to worm my way into the college scene; and acquire knowledge without paying for it.