Everything old is new again

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Remember when VISA was called “BankAmericard” and MasterCard was “Master Charge?”

I remember when my dad brought his first credit card home. He told my mom, “Now you can put it on the Master Charge if you don’t have enough cash with you.” Such simple, innocent words.

I remember putting clothes on layaway in high school, using my weekly allowance and money from my waitressing job to pay down the balance. Remember layaway? The store kept the items until you could afford to pay for them. When the bill was paid, you got your stuff. My, my, how far we’ve come….

The consumer debt problem in this country is something I don’t have time to get into this morning, and I’m no financial analyst, but I got eyes. It’s going to get much worse before getting the tiniest bit better. And I’m not throwing stones at anyone, mind. Many of us are guilty of that impulsive credit card purchase; I’m the first to admit it.

But the trend is reversing, believe it. Could we soon see the days when retail commerce runs on a cash-only basis? I think the answer is, “sooner than you think.”

I read an article this morning with a quote from a woman in New Jersey who had just dissolved some personal debt. She said that “her family was only living according to their means and not spending anything extra.”

Imagine that.

Fink out.

A happy day

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OK, how’s this?

  • It’s a rather cold, but still happy morning in Ohio. I turned off my reading lamp at 10:58 last night, and when I looked at the clock again, it was 4:06. That’s a good night for me.
  • I have auditions for DT features today…looking forward to that.
  • I found out more about the quantitative issue (see yesterday’s post) from a friend in PA last night. Nice to know some stuff that will give me direction.

And finally, this will hopefully brighten your day:

And the tradition of musicians in the Fink family continues (what am I thinking???)

Happy Wednesday!

To quote John Lennon…

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…I’m soooooo tired.

Tired of what? Tired of quantitative research — the not-understanding-it part. Remember when I said that I was going to make sure I understood my statistics problem by the end of the day? Well yeah. That was a big fat lie.

I really have to question being expected to know enough about analyzing a quantitative study (that is, research that uses numbers, formulas and statistical data) to write for 2 hours about it, when none of my coursework dealt with statistics in any significant manner. In fact, I haven’t had a statistics class since doing my masters work back in 2001 or whatever. But hey, I’m always up for a party. Count me in.

Would I be a terrible teacher if I let my students watch the inauguration today? Thing is, the “big” part (the swearing-in and inaugural address) starts at noon…right when high school choir meets. Hmmmm. And it just isn’t the same watching video snippets of it later, you know?

Meh…I dunno. They need the rehearsal. Why am I so easily distracted these days? Why am I seemingly unable to form a single cogent thought? Why was I still awake at 1:45 a.m.? Why do I possess violent, angry sentiment toward my present educational situation?

I think now that I shall quote H.L. Mencken:

Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.

Yeah. That sounds nice.

Fink out. (Yarr!)

Some things defy explanation

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Here’s handsome Joaquin Phoenix, a while ago:

and here…

And here’s Joaquin now, after he quit acting and turned rapper:

Somewhere, Kevin Federline is laughing.

Fink (I really need more coffee) out.

PS – Yesterday’s AFC Championship game was a strange experience. How does one come away happy afterwards when one wants both teams to lose? Regardless, it’s time for a brand new Super Bowl champ, don’t you think? A team that deserves a Super Bowl win, but never got one.

Photo credit: Associated Press, Reuters, PA Photos