Ace Wisdom

Snow is falling.  Only thing left to do is watch taped recordings of Downton Abbey.

The “Alberta Clipper” that is bringing wind and snow started affecting us this morning at 7:00 AM, just in time for the morning commute to work.  Ahh, I remember well.  When I was working in Ripon I’d slide to work in the morning and then negotiate snow covered and wind blown roads in the evening.  Hey, I did what I had to do.  I prefer watching Downton Abbey.

My mother always had a superstitious remark about strange happenings.  If a bird flies into your window, a member of the family will die soon.  If that were true, every family member would have met their fate.  This morning a red fox ran in front of my car.  I’m not sure what Alice would have said about that but I’m sure it would have been mind bending.

It seems the “hit” of Christmas was the battery operated pepper mills.  Fun but effective.

I am not a fan of Duck Dynasty but what do I know.  They have 14 million viewers each week and the whole family is multi-millionaires.  The guys wear ugly clothes and have shaggy beards.  When the patriarch of the family commented on his religious beliefs (consistent with the church he attends) concerning gays, there was a social backlash.  A&E was threatening to drop the show and suspended the “old man”.  The public has spoken.  What a person says and believes on his own time is is own business.  The new  season begins this week and there is no shortage of sponsors.  Cracker Barrel had suspended it’s advertising for the program.  Many patrons threatened not going to Cracker barrel any more.  Yes sir, Cracker Barrel is back supporting Duck Dynasty.

We are midway through January on our way to summer winds and sunny skies.

Love,

Dad

First my tip for the day:  pay cash for purchases at Target.

Grandson Mitchell is the starting center for the Middleton “cardinals” JV basketball team.  He wears number 23.  Micheal Jordon wore number 23.  The difference is that Micheal Jordon (MJ) could not make the sophomore basketball team and Mitchell plays every game.  Move over MJ.  Your Mom and I watched the Middleton Cardinals defeat the Sun Prarie Cardinals 43-33 last night.  Mitchell defended, rebounded, scored, and made some great passes.  He is easily the best defender on the team.  Oh, and he does the starting center jump because of his height.  Where does that come from?

I listen to Grasshopper No.4 espouse the skills required to be a successful coach.  It requires discipline and clear objectives.  No compromise!  There is an autobiography out on John Wooden, maybe the greatest basketball coach in the history of college basketball.  He had rules.  “It was his way or the highway”.  His most famous player was Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul Jabar) in the late 1960’s.  Talented or not, Alcindor would not get special treatment.  Wooden insisted his players eat steak, potatoes and a vegetable before a game and drink two glasses of milk.  Alcindor showed up and drank soda instead of milk. Whoa.  Talk about defiance.  Wooden the coach did nothing.  If a player was late for the team bus starting a road trip, he was left behind.  Alcindor was late but the Athletic Director personally picked up Lew from his apartment and drove him to the airport in time to catch the airplane.  Wooden said nothing.  You get the idea.  The greatest coach of all time bending the rules for the greatest player of all time.  I’m sure Grasshopper No.4 would not approve.  Maybe UCLA losing one game in 3 years would change No.4’s mind.

The cold weather went north.

Love,

Dad

 

 

For twelve years we have had our newspaper(s) delivered by the same person early in the morning –  5:30 AM or before.  Guess what?  Our delivery person retired.  I went to get the paper around 7:00 AM yesterday and it  hadn’t arrived yet.  I know that the newspaper industry is dying, but hot coffee. the newspaper and TV local broadcast works for me.  I don’t want my routine to change (imagine that).  That is my oh, oh!

The Consumer Electronics Show is taking place in Vegas this week.  I am not an electronics geek, but there are a few gadgets that are interesting.  Imagine this!  A big screen HDTV that is “curved” gently around the viewer to increase viewing pleasure.  So here is the deal.  Big, big screens.  Curved screens.  HDTV with 4U technology signifiantly increasing resolution (if that really matters), “smart” capability, finished off by 3D projection.  Add an easy chair and a universal remote and the cold weather suddenly doesn’t matter.  What could screw up the heavenly set-up?  Maybe a partner wanting to watch Dr.Phil.

The Green Bay Packers aren’t “dancing” any more.  For sure, changes on the defensive side of the ball are coming.

Your Mom made 2 batches of chicken dumpling soup just as the cold weather arrived.  How do you spell “sweetheart”?  With the letters M-O-M.

The phenomenon of “winter blues” occurs now.  The excitement of the holidays capped by Christmas and New Year’s is followed by lousy weather and a lack of things to do.  Depression sets in, especially since the Green Bay Packers are out of the playoffs.  Fear not.  This too shall pass.  Hey, the new season of Downton Abbey is underway.

For the first time in fourteen years I walked the local Mall with my sweatshirt on.  Even the Mall was having trouble keeping ahead of the cold.

Stay warm.

Love,

Dad

 

It is now 2014.  I have written two checks and I did not make a mistake on the date.

I am now looking forward to getting “larger” Social Security checks.

Somebody stole our car(s).  There are two “white” cars in the garage replacing the two gray cars normally housed there.  I think it is called a salt coating.

The Green Bay Packers will play in zero degree weather in Sunday’s Playoff game.  Does it get any better.  They have a home game.  It is the frozen tundra.  And the Packers have a rich tradition and loyal fans.  What is this?  Fans are not buying all the tickets!  There is the potential of a “blackout” of TV in Wisconsin because of a NFL rule forcing a blackout if all tickets are not sold within 72 hours of the game.  No, there will not be a blackout.  Stupid rule!

Grasshopper No.4 could tell you more about the trials and tribulations of Ray Nitschke, fabled Green Bay linebacker.  He played center linebacker in many cold weather games.  Allegedly in one game, it was so cold that when he removed his football cleats, all his toes had turned purple.  It is called frostbite.  No his toes did not fall off but it was serious.  Nitschke would never complain.  Football players don’t complain.  There is no complaining in football.

Stay home.  Stay warm!

Love,

Dad

As 2013 ends, I can’t help but reflect on events that stand out.

For myself personally, surviving “open heart surgery” tops my list.  Hey, I’m here!  And, I will remember it.

This year was the first time someone has been entrusted to do a guest blog in my absence.  Grasshopper No.4 did the honor.

It was the first time in over 20 years that your Mom and I did not attend a UW-Badgers football game at Camp Randall.

I was able to trace my Dad’s family back to England in the late 1580’s and eventually to Plymouth Rock where the Pilgrims landed.  I had been trying to do that for over 50 years.

We lost Son-in-Law Tom’s Dad.

We gained a great grand-daughter Myla.

My early baseball history was filled with lots of baseball heros.  2013 saw Andy Pafko of the Milwaukee Braves pass away.  Also Johnny Logan of the Braves died along with Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals.  I had all their baseball cards.

50 years ago I graduated from Marquette University with an Engineering degree.

50 years ago I got my first real job at Allis-Chalmers for $570 a month.

Your Mom and I were unable to attend our 55th anniversary of graduating from high school.  We were scheduled but my heart procedure “got in the way”.

Financially, 2013 was a good year for those of you with jobs that have 401(k)s.  Most stock investments were up 25-30%.  Now you are all rich.

My personal financial regret of 2013?  Grasshopper No.5 had told me about her company GameStop and how good it was.  I bought a share of Gamestop stock.  It went up 10% and I sold it.  If I hadn’t sold it, it would now be a gain of 100%.  My own daughter gave me the insight and I let the opportunity slip away.

And, finally, I will remember the year end moment.  Your Mom made a special effort organizing an old fashion family Christmas.  For just a moment in time last Saturday, Christmas was what Grasshopper No.3 would call a “memory”.  Thank you Mom.  Thank goodness I was here to enjoy it.  Thank You All for being here.

Happy and a Prosperous (and healthy) New Year, 2014.

Love,

Dad

The stock market is a “slippery slope”.  There are solid investments.  And then there are penny stocks.

Your Mom and I went to see “The Wolf of Wall Street”.  It was about raping and pillaging gullible investors  by selling them “penny stocks”.

Penny stocks are essentially equities that you can buy for “pennies”.  I think the formal definition of a penny stock is any security selling for under $5 per share.  Most penny stocks sell for under $1 per share.  For example, a stock such as “Paul’s Spices” may sell for 10 cents per share.  You could draw $100 out of your savings account and buy 1000 shares of Paul’s Spices.  The salesman would tell you Paul’s Spices tasted great and the company just signed a contract to sell exclusively to Roundy’s Foods.  Paul’s Spices was ready to announce the partnership with Roundy’s and Paul’s Spices stock would “zoom”.  That would mean the stock probably would go up in value and might easily reach $1 per share (and you would make $900 on your $100 investment).  Whoa.  What a tip!  It turns out the salesman gets a 50% commission on his $100 sale.  Less than $50 goes into buying Paul’s Spices.  In the meantime Roundy’s decided to buy spices from somebody else and the government shut down Paul’s Spices operation for unsanitary manufacturing practices.  Paul’s Spices is going out of business!  Your $100 investment is worth “zero”.

What I have described for penny stocks is fairly typical.  Occasionally there is a stock that becomes successful but not very often.

My first advice is don’t invest in “penny stocks”.

My second advice is be willing to lose whatever investment you make in penney stocks.  Companies that are valued at under $1 share probably don’t have a very good chance of success.

If you don’t know what to do with your pennies, send them to me.

Santa brought Packer fans a Christmas present.  Aaron Rogers is back.  Now the Packers make the Playoffs by beating the Bears Sunday afternoon.  Yeah, right!

Love,

Dad

 

It is important to remember the true meaning of Christmas.  The birth of the Christ Child has given hope to people all over the world.  It is a joyous celebration.

Santa plowed my driveway this morning.  Who else could it be?  Does Santa have a red truck with a snow plow?

There are lots of stories about kindness at Christmas.  People helping other people.  There is the story of an Iowa woman who died of cancer several years ago leaving behind a loving husband and two children.  She wrote a letter to be opened in the future and gave it to a friend.  The “condition” was that it would be opened upon the eminent re-marriage of her husband (which is this case happens to be around Christmas).  The letter was addressed to the Make A Wish Foundation.  The letter requested that her husband’s new wife get a weekend at a spa and be totally pampered before the “wife to be” took on the role of mother and wife.  She knew her husband would chose a future partner wisely and she wanted the new family member to be welcomed in a special way.  Make A Wish not only arranged the spa but sent the whole family to Disney.  The deceased Mom got to welcome the new lady to the family beyond her expectations.  It was indeed a joyous celebration.  Rest in Peace Mom!

Santa has been spotted in the area.

Merry Christmas to all!

Love,

Dad