Disorganized and Rambling Friday

I’m sitting here looking at the ‘create posting’ screen and am coming up blank.
So this is going to be a rambling, wandering, whatever comes to mind post. I have nothing in particular to write about, just feel like writing.
Which, by the way, is why I haven’t really posted anything since attending services. Nothing interesting to say.
I figured out how to post videos from myspace. I won’t overuse it. In the mornings I often play in the myspace music videos. They have some good stuff. Especially since ‘Blogger’ and ‘You Tube’ aren’t talking these days. With myspace, if I want to stick something on my blog, now I know how to do it.
My youngest daughter, Mandy, BLEW ME AWAY during the week. I mean, I’m still speechless over it. She called me one evening, wanted me to come see, she had something important to show me. Worried, I haul myself there as quickly as possible. Her dad was there as well, she wanted both of us to see whatever she was doing. She’s got her keyboard out. Her dad and I bought her a fairly decent lower end keyboard a few years back. She’s always been musically inclined, and we figured this would enhance her ability to express it without taking out a second mortgage for musical equipment. Mandy has used it and enjoyed it thoroughly…she’s put out some beautiful stuff for us. I’ve been know on occasion to play with it as well. Hey, it’s fun!
Anyway, Mandy has us both in her room. “I taught myself something just for you two.”
And she pops out with ‘The Entertainer.’ Her hands are all over the keyboard, and she is playing it perfectly. She played the entire song. She is only thirteen years old. My jaw fell completely off the bottom part of my face.
What does one say to this? How beautiful! When she was done she put her head down in her shy little manner and I could see her face was turning beet red. I hugged and told her what a beautiful job she’d done and how proud I am of her. ‘Thanks, Mom.’ I didn’t even pay attention to what her dad was doing. My child. My beautiful child. When did she grow up? Like I said…I’m still speechless over her.
I finally got that blasted check engine light OFF on my dashboard. It only set me back 154.00 bucks. I am thrilled. The guy tells me my truck had a clogged something or other (in my mind I heard blah blah blah…I’m not mechanically inclined) and he fixed it. He said it was the cheapest possibility I could have dealt with. I’m glad. I’ve been looking at a new Expedition anyway. Yep, got the fever. I can get a brand new with more bells and whistles than what I paid for my current one. And it’s blue! Not white, like the last 700 vehicles I’ve gotten, at Tom’s insistence. I’ve always had to get WHITE. Well guess what. My next vehicle is going to be a color of my choosing. I think I’ll take pea shit green over white.
But I digress.
I’m finally getting used to no car payments. Funny thing. I’m finding lots of creative ways to spend my money. Isn’t that always the case?
Talking about separating the men from the boys-the stock market correction has some people worried. What have I done? Not a blasted thing. Sure, my portfolio took a hit just like everyone else’s. But look. The Dow is over 12000 these days. A 400 point hit is just not as serious as if, say, the Dow were at 3000. Get over it people! The market was overdue for a correction, and used the news from China and the half-assed attempt on Cheney to do something. Market people are more nervous than a chicken in a fox house. Sheesh. Disclaimer: the above is solely my opinion. Don’t blame me for any investment screw-ups you may do. My philosophy: I’ve chosen some solid investments with potential for growth, I invest every month, and I ignore the short-term market ups and downs. My window is twenty years. There’s going to be plenty of hiccups between now and then, like now. If you believe in what you’ve chosen to invest in and if you believe in the firm’s long-term outlook, then do what I tell my friends to do during times like this: Shut off your computer, your tv, and your radio. Give yourself a good amount of breathing space. Deal with it next month.
It’s worked every time.
One other thing comes to mind that I wanted to ramble about…but I’ll keep this one short and ramble about it later. In six weeks I’m going to be taking a road trip. I CAN’T WAIT. It’s to a place I’ve never been before. I don’t care if I have to sleep in my truck (I won’t). It’s going to be great just getting out of my normal ‘groove’ for a few days. Did I mention I CAN’T WAIT!
OK. Enough rambling for now…