Simply Stella - Another practice in narcissism

I feel younger but wiser and more mature today. But I finally feel like I’m in my 30s.

2009 brought me many changes because I moved to a new city, but as usual it feels like I didn’t accomplish much.  I have made a few great friends along the way, which I’m grateful for and happy about, but 2009 was sometimes filled with unnecessary noise from people I couldn’t care less about.  Why was that? Because I had too much free time on my hands. Because I went out to the “scene” too much the first half of the year and was too nice to cut these people off early.

No worries, I know that this year will be awesome!  I welcome positive, happy people with open arms and will tune out negative noise with decisiveness. In 2010, I will:

1. Get a job to get a steady inflow of cash.  Money, after all, is the great enabler
2. Get my own place
3. Get my new idea launched in 4 months - I will plan this time w/ my biz partner.
4. IM as little as possible, use the phone more often
5. Be more decisive and not change my mind later.  Stick with the decision.  A few important opportunities have been lost because of this
6. Spend more quality time with quality friends
7. Be more physically active outdoors (combine with above!)
8. Be more diligent and work steadily on careerjot
9. Get a dog finally!!
10. Give my 110% to everything worth doing.
11. Say yes more than no
12. Talk more and share more.

I will be focused more on work and on accomplishing my goals and finding permanence than having fun this year.  I have lived a vagabond life in 2009 because I wanted change from too stable a life in 2008, but now I crave more structure.  The pendulum swings yet again this year.  I love change!2010 is

a blank slate! How exciting!

No Comments »

I was having dinner with one of my best friends on Castro St on Election Day, 2008. The commotion and excitement in the streets spilled over to where we were seated on the 2nd floor of a Victorian flat converted into a restaurant overlooking the street, so I was very curious what they were celebrating. Could it be that Prop 8 didn’t pass? Did Obama win?

I couldn’t wait to find out. After my friend and I enjoyed a 3 hour dinner together, we finally ventured out into the streets. On the huge TV screen on Castro & Market, I could see a picture of Obama as the projected winner on CNN. I immediately screamed and joined in the festive celebration. The energy of the crowd was sky high - it was like being at a rock concert. I’ve never seen anything like it for a politician.

It was such a strange night. At a gay dive bar on Castro St which we went to afterwards, a drunk red-faced guy tried to kiss me when I was sitting down. I changed my mind at the last minute and pushed him away instead of punching him. Then a girl offered my friend MDMA. As if this wasn’t strange enough, another guy tried to lick my friend’s face when we were leaving bar! So weird!

No Comments »

1. On the first date, you will learn about her most recent ex.  This is a major faux pas in straight dating!  Oh no she didn’t!
2. By the first or second date, you will know exactly how many kids she wants and maybe even how many dogs.
3. By the second week, you will find her stuff in your closet, your dresser, in the bathroom, and the living room!
4. By the second month, your menstrual cycles will be completely synchronized.
5. By this time you will also know certain things about most of her exes. If she was a ho before, then maybe about half of them.  Oh no she didn’t!
6. You two become attached at the hips.
7. By the third or the fifth month, one of you will start talking about marriage.
8. You will see her cry at least once.  This is not a pleasant experience.
9. If you and she break up, oh watch out!  An atomic bomb will detonate and there will be hell to pay.  She will make sure that you are scarred for at least a few months.

No Comments »

When I saw masses and masses of cows on the 5 on my drive from SF to LA, I couldn’t help but think - if those cows could talk, would there be more vegetarians?  Or at least pesceterians?

I knew as well as anyone what lay ahead for the cows - they were going to be slaughtered for the massive beef industry.

About 10 years ago, I was parked somewhere in LA because I had to stop to look at the map (these were the days before GPS).  I remember an older Spanish woman knocking on my car window, asking for money.  I remember her saying “hambre,” which I knew meant “hungry.”  But because she was speaking in Spanish, not English, I didn’t roll down the window to extend my hand to give her some $$.

When I was at the DMV a few years back,  when I was sitting and waiting for my turn, I looked back to see who were sitted behind me because I had a question to ask.  There was a young African-American man and an older Asian woman.   I asked the young man the question because I knew he could speak English, and therefore more familiar to me than the Asian woman.

One cannot deny the power of language.  It’s a strong bonding force.  Is it any coincidence that the US, Great Britian, and Australia are allies?  Sure they share history but so do Spain and Argentina.   Are they allies?  I’m not sure.

Language is so bonding.  So is personality.  That’s why we will never think of eating dogs.  Oh no, God forbid!

Too bad for the cows that they don’t have personality or can talk.  Poor poor poor cows

No Comments »

After spending years in an insurance company, Harvey Milk says right before turning 40 that he hasn’t done anything in his life.  At 31, I feel the same way.   But I know that will no longer be true.

When I turned 25, I felt so old but really wanted to “make my mark on this world” by 30, whatever that meant (coming up with a theory, writing a  book?).  I know now that that doesn’t matter.  Life is not about accomplishments but really about relationships.  Without family and friends I am nothing.

I don’t really need many New Year’s resolutions this year.  It will be just one: To Live with a Sense of Purpose.   If I feel that anything I do doesn’t give me a sense of purpose, then it’s a sign that I should stop doing it or leave.

No Comments »

I have an incredibly strong attachment to my mother, like most people.  A day didn’t go by that I didn’t think of her when I lived in Western Europe for 3 months 5 years ago, , even though it was probably the best 3 months of my life.

I love my Dad to death too, but without my Mom I wouldn’t be the same person I am today.  If I didn’t have her growing up, who knows?  I may be dealing drugs off the street corner somewhere or be a stripper with fake boobs in Vegas.    My Mom has provided me with a sense of security that no one else could, and she still does.  Without her the foundation of my entire being will be shaken.

Then how safe and secure a child must feel if s/he has 2 mothers?  In 19th century England, child custody almost always went to the father in divorce until they realized that it is usually in the best interest of the child if s/he stays with the mother.

If we think about what’s best for children, shouldn’t 2 women be allowed to raise kids under equal protection of the law?  I do think that gay men should have the same rights as any other, but it may be better for lesbians strategically to separate themselves from gay men, because the two groups are really polar opposites, with straight couples in the middle.  Lesbians tend to be nesters, which are qualities in good mothers.  That’s why lesbian bars and clubs don’t do as well as gay bars or straight ones.  That’s why lesbian bars are relegated to Sunday and Monday nights because they don’t bring in as much money to the club owners as gay or straight events on the weekends.

When women and African-Americans fought for the right to vote, they worked together until one group eventually separated themselves from the other for strategic reasons.      Black men won the right first, followed by women 50 years later.

Lesbians can do the same.  They can win the right to marry first, followed by gay men.

If we think about what’s best for children, heck, lesbians should have VIP rights.

No Comments »

GLD has been acting very strangely.  It seemed to have risen during the stock market massacre 2 weeks ago mostly based on emotion - fear.

But fundamentals for GLD rising does not make sense.  It should be falling because:
1) Deflation - all prices are falling, including prices of commodities.  OIL, soybeans, wheat, and copper have all fallen, so GLD should fall too.  The ratio of price of Oil to that of Gold per their respective units has been constant throughout time because their intrinsic values don’t change, even if there’s inflation.  Since OIL fell that means GLD should catch up too by falling too.
2) Demand for physical Gold has decreased.  The majority of physical demand for physical Gold comes from jewelers, and their demand for the precious metal is down about 30% compared to last year.
3) Stronger dollar.  Ironically enough, because the economies of other countries are suffering too, foreign banks which borrowed dollars before now they have to reverse their trades - buy dollars.   Demand for treasuries is up making the dollar even stronger.

Hence, I shorted GLD in the mid $80s.  Let’s see how long this will last.  If the Fed and the government are successful then inflation will kick in as they try to rescue the economy by pumping money into the system and lower interest rates and keep it low for a long time.  That’s when you should buy GLD, when inflation becomes a threat.

No Comments »

I hear about retirees losing 50% in their 401k.  Why should they just sit around
and lose money when their retirement depends on it?  I understand if
we don’t care because we’re young and we’re not going to see it for another 40 years
and it will eventually recover.  I certainly didn’t care and just left
everything sitting there in the early 2000s when it tanked.

Current P/E ratio of S&P 500 is around 22, which means that it’s
overpriced still (historical average is 15).  So it still has ways to
go down.  I would tell them to sell the stocks that are losing value
when the stocks rally.  If a stock is still up a lot, then they shouldn’t sell that one
because that means they already bought it at a low price - unless the
company has a bleak outlook.

Then they can slowly rebuy the ones they sold (or different ones) in
the next 2-5 years.

I was wrong about GLD.  You should sell GLD.  Right now banks aren’t
lending and people aren’t spending as much, so there is deflation
going on.  GLD will drop in the next few months to a year.  It may
drop to $70, $50, no one knows, but I would buy it at that price.
Safety is not just about WHAT you own, but also at what PRICE.  Then
as the Fed tries to prevent a depression by lowering interest rates
even more and pumping more money, inflation will follow.  Gold will
pick up again.

Of course, they should diversify and have some quality stocks, GLD
(don’t buy right now), and the rest in liquid cash (CD).  Bonds I
don’t know much about but it doesn’t seem that safe because of
inflation.

No Comments »

I advise you to put 10-20% of your assets in gold (NYSE:GLD), which is easily bought through any brokerage account.  I bought some shares 2 and a half years ago.  My only regret is not buying more of it back then.  I placed an order for Gold over the weekend because whether or not the $700 billion bailout passed, Gold would have went up eventually.  If it passed, the Fed would have created money out of thin air, which meant indirect taxation through inflation (i.e. higher Gold prices).

Many signs indicate that we’re entering a long recession, if not a depression, and there’s absolutely no reason why you or your parents should lose money during this period if you pay attention and are careful.  Even CDs at 4% does not seem safe because current inflation is at 5-7%, so you’re effectively losing money.  I plan to SHORT the Russell 2000 index soon when the market goes up momentarily (I’ve shorted S&P 500 last year).  There’s high inflation because this country is at war, and going into huge debt to finance it (and this is precisely why OIL and food prices went up recently - has little to do with China and India).  When a government has debt, it is to its advantage to have inflation so that the value of its interest payments on the debt are not as much as their face value when they’re due.  Wouldn’t you want to pay less in interest payments by having the value of the dollar go down?  Our tax money goes entirely to only the INTEREST payment of government debt.  It’s like a person who pays credit card interest payments on his/her entire monthly salary, living perpetually in debt.  This way s/he can spend and spend, live prosperously until sh*t hits the fan.

Other ways I can think of to protect ourselves against inflation:
1) Buy corn, rice, and other food staples in the stock market
2) Get a 0% APR credit card - I saved “junk mail” offers that have 0% until 2010.  If you don’t have to pay until then, in a period of higher than normal inflation, that means the value of your payment in 2010 is much lower.  And don’t ever buy stocks of credit card companies that have these offers.  For them, this is a money-losing move out of desperation.
3) If you have money, time and good credit, buy a single family house or duplex/quadplex etc (depending on what you can afford) in cities in Texas, Mississipi, and Louisiana.  With 20% down, the rent payments will pay for the mortgage.  With inflation, rent will also naturally go up, so you’re protected.  You just need to hire a property manager, who charges 7-10% of monthly rent. Make sure the areas have a high percentage of younger population (yuppies & immigrants), good job growth, and low vacancy rate.

The Fed is not part of government but owned by the banks.  We didn’t have income taxes until the Federal Reserve was established in 1913.

No Comments »

Imagine that we could live forever - that is, no one in this world dies. There is no way that we can feed everyone with the limited natural resources we have unless everyone stopped having kids.  The Earth is taxed as it is with the current level of population. If there are anymore, we will not be able to sustain ourselves and become extinct.

There are births because there are deaths.   The number of births is equal to the number of deaths over time.  But in a hypothetical world where everyone lives forever, the number of births must be capped.  Everyone will eventually become asexual. This means that no one will feel romantic love, be attracted to anyone sexually, or for that matter, have sex.

In a world where everyone lives forever, Valentine’s Day cannot exist.

No Comments »