Christopher Shaw, winner of the most recent Power Ball lottery, said he would go to the dentist and then Disney World. (this is a retweet, a year later. Not much has changed, except for Chris’ dentistry).
I guess that’s how winning feels: being on top of the world, full of positive forces that lift you up, brushed by a stroke of luck.
He will have plenty of time and money to look his best. Good luck with beginner’s luck, and with investing.
The rest of us can look forward to another work week, another mortgage or rent payment, and another long summer.
The decoupling of stock market (on the uptick since April 09) and unemployment figures (still quite upsetting).
We have stretched productivity and inventory to the max. It’s time to venture out of the cocoon, to bounce back from
the “creative destruction” period.
Texas has been spared. Michigan has not.
Newsweek‘s Daniel Gross argues that America is making a comeback, unlike Japan in the 80’s.
In other words, there won’t be a Lost Decade after this Recession (which if cyclically predictable, will swing back up for a roughly half a decade of prosperity).
Let’s hope he is right. After all, we already lived through a lost decade (2000-2010) since the Y2K scare.
Cannot afford another one. Numbers don’t add up on Wall Street or Main Street if we keep spending away the future.
Harley Davidson is cool. Facebook is cool. Zappos is cool.
These are examples of companies which can still survive with solid deliverables.
And to put the icing on the cake (or cream on the latte), Starbucks reported strong Q1 earning.
Hello, welcome to Starbucks. What’s your name? (reminds me of Cheers, where everybody knows your name).
And from there, the behind-the-counter man/woman in black starts “pouring his/her heart into it” (Starbuck’s motto).
I am supposed to use this as a canvass for reflection. After all, I have lived here for 35 years.
I have seen things come and go (Pinto? Yugo? Datsun?) and things which stay and stick (Post-it, Ben and Jerry, J&J).
One thing I know, I wasn’t happy when first arrived due to the extraordinary circumstance of my evacuation from Saigon.
No expectation, no deliverable. In VC’s term, I wasn’t ready with my business plan. Just float, like on a boat.
Each day is a bonus. Even on those days when I witnessed (on TV) the blow up of the Challenger, the Twin towers, and Three-Mile-Island nuclear reactors (in person).
And I also found myself out of work, at the exact downturn 87, 93 and 2009. Tell me how can one stay a bystander, unaffected.
My journey is America’s. It just happens to be personal, but with tragedy and triumph nevertheless. Like Shaw, it involves both dentist and
Disney, pain and pleasure. OK, I feel lucky just to: 1) stay alive 2) be here in the US 3) live through the past Recession. I am going to buy a lottery ticket
this week. Need some wind on my back. Maybe I too, can win. And maybe I too, will go to Dentist and Disney (World). Got to show up to win.
Staying alive, as the Bee Gee would sing at the top of their lungs.
Thang Nguyen 555 