The Sky Is Falling…The Sky Is Falling!

        The Sky is falling…the sky is falling…does anyone remember that saying from the children’s story…Chicken Little?  That is how I am feeling today about the hysteria surrounding the money markets.  The more that the warnings go out…the more hysteria that takes place, which then makes the markets more unstable.  The dow is beginning to resemble a roller coaster ride.

          I fell for it…and i am sure there are others who are biting the bullet as far as the panicked feeling.  Everyone is panicking.  Other countries are panicking too.  Because of it…the instability is contagious.  Everyone needs to stop….take a deep breath and let things settle for a few days.  Don’t sell out of panic…don’t buy out of panic…just stop and let things settle into what they are; do what you normally would do.

          I know the need to protect what you have worked for, i know the need to keep your personal finances bubblewrapped to the best of your ability, i know the fear that won’t let you sleep because you may not be able to send your kids to college, retire, or live without too much heartache with your daily spending.  Truth is, most of us needed to tighten our belts and live the way we were taught which is to save up to buy what you want…not overextend yourself with credit and pay as you go.  This is common sense.  It is also common sense to establish some credit…but you must be vigilant and pay it as it comes due…not let credit become the disaster that it has become.

          Businesses, banks, real-estate companies all are in the position that many of us regular people have been in.  The problem is that they can’t operate if their customers can’t pay.  We can’t pay if we don’t have jobs or homes to live in.  It is a vicious cycle.  Everything needs to stabilize long enough for an honest evaluation of where we are at.  At the moment, it is like a lake that has had a boulder fall from the cliffs into the center of the lake; there are ripples that are still rocking the boat floating on the surface.   The shifting that keeps taking place is definately keeping the extent of the damage unclear.

         Putting measures into effect to try to “correct” the market is just going to continue to keep things out of control.  This whole financial crisis is scary as heck…i won’t deny that.  But, we have no accurate way to measure the actual scope of the damage.  There is something to be said for an old adage such as, moderation in all things. 

         The people & companies that put us in this situation are going to have to make better decisions, they have to have consequences for the mistakes that they have made, and they are going to have to put procedures into place to prevent repeating the same mistakes.  The housing markets, the oil companies, the credit card companies and the banking industry all need to take stock of how they have each added to this disaster, and do a review of business 101.  Make more than you spend, lend less than you can afford to lose, and build trust and relationships with your customers!  What a novel idea…we can all learn from those practices.

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The Things We Learn-Right In Our Own Backyard!

        I find things that are the most interesting to me, are often things that are going on right around me; figuratively, in my own backyard.  That is why, when i read an article today about a man who lived less than an hour away from me; and actually at one time in my life, lived less than 10 minutes from my childhood home…i took a major interest in the story of his life and his death.  He was an inspiration to watch and learn from.

         This man’s name was Lewis (Luke) Arends.  He lived in Sparta, Michigan.  You might find by reading this post that you may share a connection with him as well.  Luke was 91 years old when he died on Monday.  But, what i found is that he was the man who “discovered” the Paula Red apple, that many of us know and love.  Paula Reds have a sweet/tart tingle on your tongue and when you taste them, they almost remind you of a ripe strawberry.  When mixed with a couple of other variety of apples…they make a wonderfully, tangy applesauce to feed to your family.  The texture is smooth and cool.  The skins remind me of the old saying, red apple cheeks. 

         It seems that Mr. Arends was an apple grower in the 1950’s.  One day, he noticed an apple tree that was a little bit different than the rest.  He continued to watch this tree grow and eventually, produce apples in time.  He learned that this apple tree was different, in the fact that the apples began to ripen much earlier, in August, than the other apples that he had growing in his orchard.  This new variety of apple tree was good and he decided to name it after his wife, who’s name was Pauline.  The tree is still standing there…a natural tribute to the man; and to the fruit growers who were wise enough to recognize a gift from above.  The tree provided early income needed to bridge the gap from one season to the next…helping fruit producers to ride out the ups and downs that naturally occur due to mother nature’s temperment year- to- year.

         This is when the apple called Paula Red was born.  So, through patenting and propagating the species…everyone gets to enjoy a good tasting, early ripening apple before the first bite of autumn makes it’s presence known.  Thank you Mr. Arends for paying attention to the gift growing in your own backyard.  God bless!

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