Memories

I first realized that maybe I wasn’t feeling so good when my dad offered me a ham sandwich and a Ding Dong. To make a long story short, for the next three hours while most of the passengers were inside the dry main cabin, I was out making memories. For instance, I have a memory of clinging on the railing as the boat rocked up and down the ten-foot waves. As the torrential rain poured down on my back, I hung on tightly heaving over the rail over and over again. “Bill, want any Pringles?” my dad yelled out the crack in the door.

Before I could tell him what to do with the Pringles, a wave crashed over the railing and almost knocked me down. Fortunately, I was able to pull myself back to the rail in time for heave No. 10. The rocking boat, the rain, the throwing up… it all continued for hours. In my wildest dreams, I never imagined someone could be so violently sick and not be dead.

To this day, just the thought of that day will trigger nauseous feelings. So what does this have to do with the financial world? To me, it’s the same feeling I have when I think about our markets today. Up and down, over and over again. No end in sight. Nobody knows what to do or when to do it. As an investor, I feel exactly like I did on that boat… like I’m desperately clutching the railing in a storm, retching over the side with every brokerage statement I review. Surely this storm can’t last forever, can it?

For now, I’ll just keep hope alive and stay at my place on the rail. My hope for all Americans is that someday soon this economic storm will subside and I will be able to buy an iPad.

If after reading this you realize you’re in the same boat as I, here’s my advice: Keep hanging on just like the survivors of the S.S. Minnow did. After all, Gilligan, Skipper and the rest eventually got rescued. However, they did all owe substantial back taxes (especially the Howells).