Ahhh...

Poorly drawn cartoon helps my simple mind.

Not perfect.

Not totally clear.

But at least approaching 20/50 instead of 20/1000...

A primer on the mortgage crisis

*link stolen from Doucheblog

Brother, can you spare $700 Billion?

Now I am far from the smartest pea in the pod, but I am totally tripping at the $700 Billion (some say it will reach $1.5 TRILLION) dollars we are going to pay all of these failed investment and banking firms.

Say what???

Kirby-you and I agree on some things, and your comment on my post below did not fall on deaf ears. I don't fully agree or understand the bank lending racist card. But I can grasp greed and lack of morals. Everyone is subject to it on some level-whether big or small. Now, MY  OPINION, is the majority of banks, lenders, mortgage folks and investors KNEW shit was not right and KNEW it was a get in and out scheme. I'm no market analyst, but I do know that it runs in cycles just as much as I know people on ALL levels were lacking ANY common sense...

I know because I was right in there.

Folks telling me, "Just do stated income-you'll be able to get a house", or "You need a house", or "Real Estate will keep going up-we live in a desireable area".

Their fault?

Nope.

Mine.

I accept MY responsibility (or lack there-of). But many, many folks on BOTH sides of the equation we are now staring down-do not.

I mean, come on...could you have afforded the house before? Did you know, really, what the cost was? Will you have a job, or if not, will you still be able to pay your mortgage?

What's scaring me the most is it all seems as simple (and also uneducated) as a 5 year old's mentality to just "get more money out of the ATM". The whole, "My bad, now can I have a do-over?"

So we are going to pay these folks that screwed up royally (Frannie, Freddie, Chase, WAMU, et. al)-these people that already MADE money on the ordeal--I am talking about the executives and folks in charge-who not only had to know (based on all that schoolin' and degrees)-yet also gave themselves bonuses and perks and retirements packages in the millions???  How is it that they are NOT going to be charged, just like Enron? Shit goes both left and right my friend. (And don't even get me started on republicans and their agenda to invade everyone's personal life-see wire tapping and freedom of speech/censureship of current administration,  cut taxes while spending 800x more, and generally leading us into an Orwellian/religious based state.)

Here's one for you republicans---

How do you cut revenue (taxes), spend more than ever imagined (that  includes those whopping $3000 or so tax rebate checks we received in the past 2 years), and not have a deficit?...Somebody smarter than me-please explain.

I don't see much in the way of helping the other end out. And I'm not talking about folks that put no money down, refinanced to buy SUVs and Flat screens, or got into a house they KNEW they could never afford.

 I'm talking about folks that put money down (one way or another), have made their payments. Not refinanced to buy toys. 

Granted I have no idea how to make it work. We were just as foolish to buy a house for $400,000 when 2 years prior it was $200,000. 

I just wish someone with a big ol' brain could show me how the common, middle class sap is gonna be helped out.

Cause I'm that middle class sap, and I don't want to be paying for all this...forever.

I'm rambling like a crazy coot, but this whole thing stinks on so many levels, I can't even begin to sort it out. For my part, I'm sticking to what I know I have some control over, I'll keep paying my bills as long as I have a job and most importantly I'll keep my focus on me, my son and our health...

Following Up on that Political Ass

OK, quickly...

My previous post, represented a portion of my frustration with the media today. The stories I have been seeing and reading, in multiple outlets both right and left leaning had Paulin and Co. reaching for new levels of muck-racking and BS slinging. The aforemetioned article came along when I hit the max I could stomach from the campaign. Do I stand for EVERYTHING it speaks of? No.

A little background might be necessary:

I am a white male

I am a single father

I make just enough to provide for myself and my son, savings currently are not an option

I work hard, I take pride in my work

I don't own stocks or bonds, have much of an IRA or money for that matter

I am responsible for myself-both my mistakes AND my successes

I recognize more clearly as I have been getting older that personal responsibility is NOT something a lot of folks in my country have or accept. It's way too easy to place the fault/blame/cause on someone else than to see it was YOU that made the choice (good or bad) and it is YOUR responsibility to handle it.

I am happy to live in the USA, at least we can (currently) continue to have these discussions, disagreements, alternative views and personal expressions. 

I spend most of my time outdoors-cycling mostly, although hiking and kayaking happen too. Main thing, I respect the outdoors, nature and the environment. Not enough to burn SUV's or Ski resorts, but enough to know that it is MY responsibility to do MORE to maintain them and their freedom/wild-ness/access. That includes recycling more, re-using more, being more mindful of my impact on the planet. That is MY impact. And that will be ever-evolving. I'm not perfect, but I am (daily, weekly, monthly) trying to do more, no matter how small. No preaching, but I will defend what I hold close and that is outdoors and my time in them (and my Jake's time in them).

I do not think one party is really that much "better" than the other. However, I will not stoop to immature name-calling, partisan BS, succumbing to media frenzy, close-minded, "that's how my parents voted-so will I"... I am not so naive that I think Dem or Rep. is going to solve the countries problems. Nor do I think either party really gives a rat's ass about me (middle class). I wasn't impressed with the current administration EVER. As a matter of fact, the last election really being the first  (sadly) I paid ANY attention to or voted in, pretty much destroyed my confidence in the system. It was devastating to see our current president win- on so many levels, that I made a pact to myself to learn more about the process and candidates and be more involved "next time". Well, I have-somewhat. Not sure I could ever REALLY get the whole, complete, true, un-adulterated version from EITHER party. But I make my decisions based on MY personal beliefs, needs and ideals---NOT (not ever) what a media outlet or 6 o'clock news story dictates.

I am in the rather large portion of America who impulsively (and in hind-sight--.isn't that always the case!?--regret allowing my impulses, family and societal pressures push me to purchasing it in the first place. But I do understand no-one forced me into it, and given that knowledge, understand it is MY responsibility-both to succeed or fail in its ownership) purchased a house for WAY too much on loan terms that pretty much guarantee that I will not own it anytime soon or ever. I pay a bank rent and hope that shit doesn't go too bad in terms of interest rates and such. I know that the "powers that be"-banks, mortgage brokers, lenders, knew shit wrong, but still raked suckers like me in hand over fist--it's the "American Way" dollars are almighty--while they could. Again, only in hind-sight could I even see what a mess I was entering and how folks with money would keep it and folks without, well they'll continue that way.

Where the hell am I going with this?

Reading my good friend's and my sisters reply to my previous post has me wondering if I am on the same planet. 

To blindly say as my sister says, "I wish more people could hear them instead of the negativity we get fed through the media in articles like these liberal hate pieces that do nothing to inform anyone of what either candidate stands for or what their character contains."

"Liberal Hate Pieces"--have you listened to YOUR candidates banter lately? I mean come on. That's what led me to the story in the first place. And that's what I took away from the piece as well--how one side can say all the shit they want and not substantiate it, and have it accepted as gospel-while the other is vilified? 

Think please. For yourself.

Anyway, that's kinda the point of all of this for me. We all are thinking for ourselves. I'm not one to say my thoughts/beliefs/ideals are any better than yours or his or hers. But I am entitled to them as much as you are to yours. That's the great thing about our country and the thing that makes me proud to be an American. We can agree to disagree and no one will die over it. 

The more folks (myself included) think—and I mean REALLY Think about what you stand for, why and how it affects not only yourself, but everyone/thing around you—the better off we will be as a country. 

OK, a little more

I am enjoying the online discussion between my good friend and I, it's refreshing to be able to have different views and be able to freely express them.

My sources on the last post came from a 15 minute web crawl, as I mentioned my research is heavily influenced by my feelings, not my experience or understanding of the system.

A strong word of caution on sources though, Wikipedia is probably the last place I would go for truly credible accounts. To many times it has been shown to be wrong (the price to pay for community involvement/information sharing)---many times the sources are incorrect or misleading...Update: Nature Magazine found the scientific articles reasonable accurate-which was soon disputed by Britannica on BBC (see below), but I still caution single resources, biased or not.

Looky:

Nature Article references from BBC

Wiki Accuracy 1

Wiki Accuracy 2

I'll give you my POV and that will help determine where I am heading socially, politically and personally...

+ I have a family including a 5 year old son whom I love more than anything. Given my current circumstances, they are a primary focus. The fact I could lose them makes it all that more important.

+ I am a graphic designer by trade-not quite an artist, but inclined toward it and very appreciative of the arts

+ I am heavily involved in the outdoors--cycling in any shape, kayaking, hiking, camping---my "religion" if you will, my closest moment to a higher power, comes when I am outdoors, usually alone, but always outdoors. It is when I am the most clear headed, calm and thoughtful.

+ I am working on be a healthier individual, including eating better, understanding my impact on the world and environment, including how my actions influence the world around me both intimately and from afar.

+ A consumer at heart, I find my desires lend themselves to the following: bikes, music, shoes, jackets and more bike related stuff. Toss in a new Mac every 4 years and that covers my compu-side. I look at HDTV's, even want one, but find my money goes to bikes, coffee or clothes (after bills and family fun). My turning point has been paying off my credit cards and living more within (still a WIP) my means. Quite the contrary to the American standard, whether individual or as shown by our own government (deficit spending, borrowing from other nations, the feeling like you are owed an SUV or HDTV, instead of the FACT it is a privilege---NOT a right).

There's so much more, but my point (if there is one) is the parts of me described above, help build the person I am and how I look toward leadership, choices and decisions and the future.

The major problems I see are the usual; the rich getting richer, the poor getting poorer and more widespread (as the middle class begins to be absorbed into the classification), special interests (generally spearheaded by the ultra rich in my opinion) gaining favor and influence (yes, that includes BIG oil as they influence so much of what we do everyday), and a general disregard for personal responsibility and understanding of yourself and fellow man, woman and child.

Problems, blogging, chatting are all fine to ponder, my next step, albeit a very tough one, is figuring out what I can do at even a small scale to make a difference...and that my friend will be a life long endeavor.

Mo' Politiking

A bit more on last post and in response to you K to the Irby...

As far as research goes, I have not even scratched the surface, way below less than 5%. My opinion is heavily based on feeling and loose understanding...in no way shape or form am I versed enough...but I'm going to keep reading (multiple sources) and listening...

Concerning congressional approval, it's understandable-Dubya holds the record for NOT veto'ing anything...interestingly enough for the 6 years his republican party held control...check it out:

NY Times article on Bush Record

Things changed with the new democratically controlled congress, bi-partisanship again took precedence (in my opinion at least) over what was actually good for the people...

Huffington News Post on Congress

As far as congressional approval, it's like Mark Twain said, " There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics". Approval is all of what you make of it, and the record doesn't show the approval ever really high, for EITHER party (although the republican held version did suffer from seriously low ratings).

I looked up congressional approval and found this site (among many):

Democratic Polling Report

And more...

Currently, 32% of Americans approve of the job Bush is doing as president, a far cry from the record-high 90% he received in September 2001. Bush's current job approval rating is just three percentage points above his lowest.

There was a slight interruption in the downward trend in congressional approval ratings at the beginning of this year when party control changed hands from the Republicans to the Democrats following last fall's midterm elections. In January 2007, 35% of Americans approved of Congress, a significant increase from the 21% who approved of Congress in December 2006. That December rating tied the lowest in the 12 years the Republicans controlled Congress from 1995 to 2006.

But that "honeymoon" period for the new Democratically controlled Congress was brief, as its job ratings dropped below 30% in March 2007 and have now fallen below where they were just before the Democrats took over.

Dependence on oil is too huge for this post, but put it this way, dependence on corn=dependence on oil as the crop requires more oil to produce than any other (fertilizer, transportation, refinement...)...to me it's a sham and REAL thinking needs to be introduced NOW to work on this issue.

Socialized health care...I know nothing about, guess I have more reading to do...I do know insurance is beyond my families reach (if it were not provided for by our employers, we'd have none).

I am mainly focused on what we are doing now as a society and how messed up it is going to be for my son, your daughters and many others---a lot sooner than we think.

Gettin' all po' litical and sheet!

Well, I'm no real follower of the in's and out's of politics, but recent events have opened my eyes to some pretty interesting developments. 

It should be noted that I in no way shape or form support our current president, never have, never will. 

His dis-regard for the truth (how there were NO WMD's as claimed and when that reason was shown to be false how Iraq has become the war on terror, even though there was NO links to Al Queda until AFTER we invaded---saddest part? No one questions this, it is now accepted as fact...see G. Orwell "1984" on how to re-write history) and personal liberties (wire-tapping civilians, etc--let's see how easy it is to get back those freedoms we gave up without knowing they were taken--see Homeland Security, etc) and his cowboy mentality make me ill. Oh how sweet it is, we're gonna maybe get up to $1800 in June to help the economy...let me tell you how far that goes now a days...Anyway I digress...

What got me focused was hearing more clearly the talk of a recession, especially in light of recent incidents.

I used to work really closely with VP's and Presidents in Marketing in the Fast Food industry. I began hearing the talk early regarding food prices, not just ours (cost going up), but also the food that feeds our food (namely corn). You see, the new "advancement" in bio-fuels--corn based gas has made it more lucrative to use the crop for that endeavour, thereby raising it's price as "food" for our food. (Don't even get me started on corn though, check out Michael Pollan's "Omnivoures Dilema" to see what the real cost of this crop is for all of us). Anyway, higher food prices abound and less money to spend on it is going hand in hand...long story short, good folks at very high levels (and on down as it surely will) are now out of work...and my eyes are opened a little bit more (not even as wide as they should be to be considered responsible).

Not being too economically "smart" I did a quick look-up on recession, here's the short version from Forbes:

A significant decline in activity spread across the economy, lasting longer than a few months. It is visible in industrial production, employment, real income and wholesale-retail trade. The technical indicator of a recession is two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth as measured by a country's gross domestic product (GDP).
Recession is a normal (albeit unpleasant) part of the business cycle. A recession generally lasts from six to 18 months. 

Interest rates usually fall in recessionary times to stimulate the economy by offering cheap rates at which to borrow money.

Where am I going with this? Mostly rant, but also that it is a great time for everyone, myself included, to get involved with politics and what is really going on. No one contender stands out as "the answer"—as a a matter of fact, with the mess Ol' Dubbya has gotten us into (I pray he doesn't get his last wish to invade Iran)—I wouldn't want to be the next 2 presidents—but it's a good time to really look at what you are voting for and why... and it shouldn't be based on a tax refund check.

The Ocho

Time to catch up chuck, what's been happening since the new year? Well, unfortunately not a lot of picture taking, but I can tell some stories.

Here it is in a loose re-cap...

2008
by Ken P
(A synopsis so far)

New years was crazy, we launched the SSWC registration to the consternation of some and the elation of many. 12:00:04 found me watching gmail implode as over 400 entries came flying in seconds. The next day was a nice long road ride with Pizza crew up to Lake Hennessey and Chiles Valley. Fun fact, Curtis and I challenged each other to climb Pope Valley road to Chiles Valley no handed and I freakin' made it! Felt so good I got Rigo and Curtis to do Oakville grade from the valley , and the miracles continued as I finally made it up without stopping or dying.

Sidenote: one of my "goals" for 2008 is to ride more-especially now that I have a job in town. I am jumping at every chance (including riding trainer in garage at night to do so). Added bonus is hopefully losing a little gut and eating somewhat better... Other more important goals include more time with my son, trying to resurrect my marriage, to be a stronger person, to embrace my family and friends, and to calm down (spiritually and mentally)...

side-side note: I use this blog for everything, personal and impersonal. That means the good and the bad. The happy and sad. Kinda obvious, but I wanted to put it out there as much for myself as anyone else. It's a freaky online journal of me. I'm doing it because I feel better sharing this stuff, not to impress, not for anything more than pouring my head onto "paper" or blog in this case (trust me, I have journals too). Anyway, like it or don't, I don't really care.

Ummm, what else, I know I did some more riding and a ton of freelance work in the first week (I had it off)...Oh yeah, LEGOS! Jake and I have been getting our groove on building the myriad of Lego sets he received for Christmas. He's amazing and has an incredible imagination. Time is also spent re-reading (for me) "Choose Your Own Adventure" books with Jake. I can't find mine from when I was a kid, but we picked up a few at the library book sale and Jake loves them! He's also exploring his artistic side with some sweet pencil and crayon drawings (see bike pic previous post)...it's truly amazing to see him grow and draw.

January 7th was like the first day oif school all over. I started my new job here in town at Napa Printing and Graphics. That in itself is somewhat surreal and out of character. I left my previous job of almost 4 years at Tesser and joined a great new crew. Easy? Easier than I thought. You have to understand something about me though, jobs usually leave me, I don't leave them. In this case, I took a chance and replied to a friends' email and landed a great new gig. Leaving Tesser was incredibly hard, that was my family-I spent more time with my team there in the past 4 years than with Jake and Cari. Not totally good. 12+ hour days (thanks to 3 hour commute) don't lend themselves to quality time with family. Now I will admit, I wept openly as I walked to catch my last commuter bus out of SF. I literally love all of the people I worked with, but I know we'll keep in touch and this is genuinely for the better. It's all new working on the vendor side and cleaning up other designers files. I am learning a ton and look forward to getting into the groove and adding to this new environment. Did I mention it is 12 minutes from my house? I go home on lunch? I am home by.....drum roll...5:15PM, with NO guilt trips! Awe--some!

What else...more riding...oh yeah and finally got back to the snow! David invited me to join him and Rich up at Kirkwood 2 weekends ago. I can not believe it has been over 5 years since I last touch snow. My sweet new board, bindings (clickers) are outdated now, but brand new and I like 'em. We woke up at the butt-crack of dawn and headed up to Tahoe. Mickey D's mixed horribly with my innards, so it was a relief to all to get out of the truck and onto the snow. It was totally sunny and kinda ice-y, but a wonderful day. I was stiff as hell for most of my runs. A combination of out of practice, no health insurance (until March) and my usual fear of going too fast. By the end of the day though I was looser and turning better (David has a video of me to attest to stiffness and style). I thoroughly enjoyed the day and the company and look forward to doing it again (with Jake too).

So here I sit, freezing my fingers in my garage workshop and I can do nothing more than say I am glad to be alive and I look forward to what the ocho has in store...

Scientist Battle!

Just a quick note on a new section to my blog, the "My Scientistists are smarter than your scientist..." section.

What brought this about?

A couple of things...
First, I just finished a great book by Michael Pollan titled, The Omnivores Dilemma

Seriously good reading on the topic of food and how we use it (and it uses us). Pretty good for a bacon lovin', taquito buying, fast foodie like me. But I do notice the pounds and the feeling I get from eating bad food too much and even if I can apply 10% of what I learned from this book (as well as Fast Food Nation and Super Size Me), I think I'll be heading down a better path...

Next up was a read thru of my good friend's blog and his opinion on the matter of global warming and big oil profits. Although I disagree compltely with the articles cited, I overcame the impulse to scream "No, No, No" and instead took a step back -- OK not a total step, ask Cari, when she challenged my stance and thinking, I only got angry and said I would do nothing. Well, as usual she's more level headed and after settling down personally, I evened my keel and determined my next actions to take on a personal and local level.

I'm not going to point fingers or even openly disect opinions on this site. what I can say is I have not seen ol' Al's movie, I plan to, but haven't just yet. I'm not jumping on his band wagon and god knows he's not the end-all be-all answer or savior. Hell, he's just some rich guy taking another turn in the spot light.

But the fact that his movie/focus/pulpit involves something so central not so much to MY existence, but most importantly to my son's and his family's life, well it is a positive in my book. A positive that it allows this issue so much press and exposure. And in getting that press and exposure, maybe one more of my fellow citizen's will take notice and do one thing, just one, to change their (our) wasteful, selfish existence for the better.

Oh yeah and another thing, I do love the country I live in, becasue for the most part we are free to have opinions (any and all) and voices to speak about issues of many sizes big and small and that is a wonderful thing.

Anyway, back to the new section. Just as everyone is free to express their voice and opinion, I decided, that as I want to know more about my choice to believe that there is a such thing as global warming (and that we as humans have a lot larger role in it than some would think), I would start collecting and researching more resources highlighting that event as well as others I am interested and voicee opinion for (food sources and sustainable living for example). I'm just out to better inform myself on these things and maybe others as I learn more. I'm going all over the net and books as time allows, and learning as I go. I know each side can pull out ascientist here or there to battle or dispute each comment. But I believe that I can do a lot more by learning, reading and acting locally (whether buying food locally, voting and supporting local issues or recycling more)—not only for myself, but more importantly for my son's future...Just as much as I do NOT believe that drilling in protected areas (Arctic), driving Hummers, or Walmart is the answer...

Hell, I even looked into the sun getting hotter and drilling in natural parks and protected wild areas (err, desolated areas...). Trying to get to both sides is a huge challenge, faced with largely partial opinions (ususally argued very childishly I read)—but a worthy journey (get it Journey!...see below) nonetheless...