Christmas-time in America. Which retailers will recover from the Great Recession? Shop, spend, go further into debt. How can we have an annual gift giving ritual when we can't pay our bills?
The Chinese our financing our profligate spending. The Chinese, who are lucky to be able to feed their 1.3 billion people are owed almost 1 trillion dollars in the form of US Treasury notes.
Hurry up and get to the mall to stand on line all night for the "doorbusters."
Make sure that you set your VCR to record "The Simpsons," because when this country finally goes down the tubes future historians will be able to watch the video and understand the synicism that eroded the core values that allowed The United States to pull itself up from the Great Depression and overcome its foes in WWII.
Presidential and Congressional candidates can count on the barely litterate, selfish, short-sighted electorate that can be easily distracted by sound bites and avoid facing the releveant and difficult issues that need to be delt with if we wish to maintain our standard of living.
Friday, December 24, 2010
The Emperor of all Maladies; A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee
A 500 page journey through the history of Cancer and Cancer Therapy. It is written by a medical oncologist with numerous references to his personal experiences with cancer patients. The conflict between the plodding scientific method and the urgency to find a cure is very well described in the book. The author does a good job explaining the sciences of epidemiology, biochemistry as well as politics of illness. He does a better job explaining earlier advances than more recent advances.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
"Fair Game" The Movie
The story of Valerie Plame's CIA Outing during the start of the second Iraq war. Her husband, Joe Wilson disputed President Bush's account of the transfer of radioactive material from the Republic of Niger to Iraq. The office of the Vice President tried to discredit Wilson's account and in the process it was revealed that Ms Plame was a CIA Operative.
Free speech, citizen's right to dissent against the government, the almost unlimited power of the executive branch of the federal government and the integrity of the government are all issues that are exposed by the filmmaker to the audience in this powerful film.
Free speech, citizen's right to dissent against the government, the almost unlimited power of the executive branch of the federal government and the integrity of the government are all issues that are exposed by the filmmaker to the audience in this powerful film.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Think Outside the Dollar
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970204804204576025452329864700.html?mod=BOL_hpp_popviewThe Chinese Currency will compete with the "Greenback" and will be called the "Redback"
Having been an investor for almost 40 years I can say that I can usually give good predictions. The problem that I have is that my timing is usually way too early. The above article is predictive but the problem is how long will it take for the events described to take place?
I will probably dollar cost average into International Stocks and Bonds and Commodities and away from US
Treasuries, Municipals and Cash.
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970203676504575618532254502558.html?mod=BOL_twm_fshttp://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970203676504575618532254502558.html?mod=BOL_twm_fs
Having been an investor for almost 40 years I can say that I can usually give good predictions. The problem that I have is that my timing is usually way too early. The above article is predictive but the problem is how long will it take for the events described to take place?
I will probably dollar cost average into International Stocks and Bonds and Commodities and away from US
Treasuries, Municipals and Cash.
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970203676504575618532254502558.html?mod=BOL_twm_fshttp://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970203676504575618532254502558.html?mod=BOL_twm_fs
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Letter to Children about Janet
February 14, 2009
It was the spring of 1972. It was the time of Watergate. I was in the Gerstenzang Science Library at Brandeis University when this very beautiful young student came up to my table and asked if she could study at the opposite corner. We talked about how difficult it was to be pre-med. She was a sophomore and I a junior. She said that she wanted to become a doctor and that she had worked last summer as a nurses aide at a nearby hospital. She was not sure that she would be able to do well enough in her studies to be admitted to medical school. Her name was Janet and at that time I thought that she would be a wonderful girlfriend. I told her that if she studied with me she could do it. We became lovers and partners in advancing through Brandeis University where we worked in the SSIS (student sexuality information service which assisted young women with getting information about reproductive issues.) We worked as orderly and nurses aide at nearby hospital and we applied to medical schools. We lived together and when we made arrangements to rent an apartment together for a second summer together Janet’s father, from the old school got upset and wanted to know what my intentions were toward his daughter. I remember him saying, “If the milk is free, why buy the cow.” Janet and I wanted to stay together and it was important at that time to stay on good terms with our parents. We decided to get married and to continue using birth control. Our studying and hard work paid off and Janet followed my path through college at Brandeis, medical school at Mount Sinai and OBGYN residency at the University of Miami. We got married after I completed my first year in medical school.
I loved the first two years of medical school. I always had so many questions about the human body and how it worked, how it functioned in health and disease, and how diseases were treated. I studied every waking hour and I won an award for being the best student in the first two years of medical school. Janet and I lived in a dormitory attached to the Mount Sinai Hospital. We had a room that was 10 feet by 12 feet and a waterbed. One night I came back from the library to the room and found Janet crying. I asked her to tell me what was wrong. At first she would not tell me. I insisted that she tell me. She told me that while she was at the library she met a psychiatry resident who started talking to her and who asked her to join him for a cup of coffee in the cafeteria. He affected Janet and stirred up some emotions. He made a play for her. Janet could not reject him outright. I told her that she could solve this problem simply by calling him and telling him that she was married and could not see him and by looking me straight in the eye and telling me that she loved me. We stayed up all night. She cried and told me that she could not do what I asked. I took her to a psychiatrist the next day. I don’t know what was said. We functioned. We studied but we never resolved this conflict.
Years later when we completed Medical School we moved to Miami to do our residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology. I started in the summer of 1978 and Janet had to stay in New York to complete her last year at Mount Sinai. She was accepted to the same residency program one year behind me. We did surgery together. We worked at the rape treatment center. We worked day and night seven days a week. I would return from work and she said to me, “You can’t complain…. I do the same thing as you.” When I was sick with a 102 fever she said, “How am I going to explain to the other residents that you are not going to take call?” When the discussion of children came up, Janet insisted that we take equal role in child care. I disagreed and we never resolved this conflict.
We grew apart as we grew into our roles as complete physicians. Finally, as I began the final year of my residency I moved out of our apartment. We still worked well together. We agreed to get a divorce the next year. We were operating together the next day after finalizing our divorce. Janet has divorced and remarried twice since. She has a successful practice in South Miami. She is the mother of triplet girls who must be teenagers by now. About six months after I moved to Fort Myers and was lying in bed with your mother, Janet called to tell me that she was divorcing husband number 2 and that she had not realized until then how good I was for her.
Your grandfather, Papa has his back to the camera in the picture that is in our bedroom where you walk into the bathroom. It looks as if he is marrying us. What he is saying is “The best thing that the two of you have going for you is that you both have had failed marriages and that you will not take each other for granted.”
Your mother is the best thing that ever happened to me. She met me at the right time. She picked me up at the airport when I came to Fort Myers. It was immediately clear that having and caring for her children was all that mattered to her. She has her own story to tell you. We have truly been blessed with our children. We loved making you and growing you. You have been our whole life. Everything was centered around you. We never sent you to sleep- away camp because we enjoyed being with you so much.
When you and Joshua left for college there was an emptiness and we have been trying hard to fill it.
We have done so many great things together. Fantasy Isles, Jungle Larry’s, Ben and Jerry’s, Biltmore Home and Gardens, Half Dome and Lambert Dome, Busch Gardens and Apollo‘s Chariat, Callaway Gardens, Saddlebrook, Minorca, Zip-Lining, Rome, Alaska, Bahama Hair Braiding, The Space Needle, Hershey Factory, Harley Factory, the Boeing Factory, Back-Packing in Aspen and the Grand Tetons, San-Francisco, Deep Sea Fishing in Fort Myers and in Cabo San Lucas, the Big Onion Tours in New York City, Hearst Castle, Big Sur, Monterey, Washington State and Washington City. There are so many more.
Your mother and I never took our eye off you until you went away to college. We never stopped loving you. We want our girl back. When I was at breakfast at the Embassy Suites the other morning I saw a little girl in a snowsuit with little ears on it which reminded me of you in the Teddy Bear Picnic. I cried.
We were and still are good parents, Danielle. We know that you are in a lot of pain and will do everything to help.
Love,
Dad
It was the spring of 1972. It was the time of Watergate. I was in the Gerstenzang Science Library at Brandeis University when this very beautiful young student came up to my table and asked if she could study at the opposite corner. We talked about how difficult it was to be pre-med. She was a sophomore and I a junior. She said that she wanted to become a doctor and that she had worked last summer as a nurses aide at a nearby hospital. She was not sure that she would be able to do well enough in her studies to be admitted to medical school. Her name was Janet and at that time I thought that she would be a wonderful girlfriend. I told her that if she studied with me she could do it. We became lovers and partners in advancing through Brandeis University where we worked in the SSIS (student sexuality information service which assisted young women with getting information about reproductive issues.) We worked as orderly and nurses aide at nearby hospital and we applied to medical schools. We lived together and when we made arrangements to rent an apartment together for a second summer together Janet’s father, from the old school got upset and wanted to know what my intentions were toward his daughter. I remember him saying, “If the milk is free, why buy the cow.” Janet and I wanted to stay together and it was important at that time to stay on good terms with our parents. We decided to get married and to continue using birth control. Our studying and hard work paid off and Janet followed my path through college at Brandeis, medical school at Mount Sinai and OBGYN residency at the University of Miami. We got married after I completed my first year in medical school.
I loved the first two years of medical school. I always had so many questions about the human body and how it worked, how it functioned in health and disease, and how diseases were treated. I studied every waking hour and I won an award for being the best student in the first two years of medical school. Janet and I lived in a dormitory attached to the Mount Sinai Hospital. We had a room that was 10 feet by 12 feet and a waterbed. One night I came back from the library to the room and found Janet crying. I asked her to tell me what was wrong. At first she would not tell me. I insisted that she tell me. She told me that while she was at the library she met a psychiatry resident who started talking to her and who asked her to join him for a cup of coffee in the cafeteria. He affected Janet and stirred up some emotions. He made a play for her. Janet could not reject him outright. I told her that she could solve this problem simply by calling him and telling him that she was married and could not see him and by looking me straight in the eye and telling me that she loved me. We stayed up all night. She cried and told me that she could not do what I asked. I took her to a psychiatrist the next day. I don’t know what was said. We functioned. We studied but we never resolved this conflict.
Years later when we completed Medical School we moved to Miami to do our residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology. I started in the summer of 1978 and Janet had to stay in New York to complete her last year at Mount Sinai. She was accepted to the same residency program one year behind me. We did surgery together. We worked at the rape treatment center. We worked day and night seven days a week. I would return from work and she said to me, “You can’t complain…. I do the same thing as you.” When I was sick with a 102 fever she said, “How am I going to explain to the other residents that you are not going to take call?” When the discussion of children came up, Janet insisted that we take equal role in child care. I disagreed and we never resolved this conflict.
We grew apart as we grew into our roles as complete physicians. Finally, as I began the final year of my residency I moved out of our apartment. We still worked well together. We agreed to get a divorce the next year. We were operating together the next day after finalizing our divorce. Janet has divorced and remarried twice since. She has a successful practice in South Miami. She is the mother of triplet girls who must be teenagers by now. About six months after I moved to Fort Myers and was lying in bed with your mother, Janet called to tell me that she was divorcing husband number 2 and that she had not realized until then how good I was for her.
Your grandfather, Papa has his back to the camera in the picture that is in our bedroom where you walk into the bathroom. It looks as if he is marrying us. What he is saying is “The best thing that the two of you have going for you is that you both have had failed marriages and that you will not take each other for granted.”
Your mother is the best thing that ever happened to me. She met me at the right time. She picked me up at the airport when I came to Fort Myers. It was immediately clear that having and caring for her children was all that mattered to her. She has her own story to tell you. We have truly been blessed with our children. We loved making you and growing you. You have been our whole life. Everything was centered around you. We never sent you to sleep- away camp because we enjoyed being with you so much.
When you and Joshua left for college there was an emptiness and we have been trying hard to fill it.
We have done so many great things together. Fantasy Isles, Jungle Larry’s, Ben and Jerry’s, Biltmore Home and Gardens, Half Dome and Lambert Dome, Busch Gardens and Apollo‘s Chariat, Callaway Gardens, Saddlebrook, Minorca, Zip-Lining, Rome, Alaska, Bahama Hair Braiding, The Space Needle, Hershey Factory, Harley Factory, the Boeing Factory, Back-Packing in Aspen and the Grand Tetons, San-Francisco, Deep Sea Fishing in Fort Myers and in Cabo San Lucas, the Big Onion Tours in New York City, Hearst Castle, Big Sur, Monterey, Washington State and Washington City. There are so many more.
Your mother and I never took our eye off you until you went away to college. We never stopped loving you. We want our girl back. When I was at breakfast at the Embassy Suites the other morning I saw a little girl in a snowsuit with little ears on it which reminded me of you in the Teddy Bear Picnic. I cried.
We were and still are good parents, Danielle. We know that you are in a lot of pain and will do everything to help.
Love,
Dad
Letter to Dr Gottleib about Danielle February 2009
Dear Dr. Gottlieb,
We are writing this note to help you care for daughter Danielle. Some of what we say can not be easily said in front of Danielle. We feel that this additional information will give you our perspective in an efficient manner.
We have not been overprotective parents for over five an one half years. Danielle left home to study abroad in Spain during the summer between her junior and senior years in high school. She went to undergraduate at the University of Florida in Gainesville which is over four hours drive form our home in Fort Myers, Florida. Danielle made all her own decisions about academics. Her decision to go into law was totally her own. We supported her and told her that we thought she would fit well in the legal profession because of her debating skills. Danielle lived off campus in an apartment for much of her undergraduate life. She had her own car and a scooter that she won at a school raffle. We weren’t happy about the scooter. We paid for its insurance, nevertheless. We were not involved with her day to day activities after she left home. She had a three and one half year relationship with a young man at the U of F. We were supportive of that relationship. We paid for their plane ride to Arizona for them to see the Florida Gators win the National Football Championship.
After completing college one semester early Danielle did an externship at a law firm in Washington DC for several months. We visited her there and she appeared happy and adjusted to life in that cold big city. She applied for law school and was accepted at Loyola and the University of Miami. She was offered a full academic scholarship to the University of Miami. She turned it down to leave Florida and go to Chicago. We had told her that if she got her BA from a Florida Public University we would pay for her graduate school of choice.
That summer she broke up with her longstanding boyfriend and became a counselor at a summer camp. It is a camp for well to do Jewish kids. Danielle’s Aunt and cousins have attended there. Danielle was very happy there as well. It was there that she met Marshall and fell in love. Marshall drove Danielle from camp in Pennsylvania to law school in Chicago in the fall of 2007.
Danielle had difficulty adjusting to law school, Chicago and her new love. She expressed this to us during the Christmas break 2007-8.
We told her that she did not have to continue law school in
Chicago and that she could transfer to a Florida law school or do something else if she wanted. Danielle stated that she wanted to continue at Loyola and during the spring semester she seemed happier. She got a job as a legal aid to a prominent law firm in Chicago where she got along well. Marshall moved up to Chicago from Florida to live with her. We helped Marshall move up here by driving his belongings here from Florida. We helped them shop for furniture for their new apartment. The second year of law school appeared to be easier for Danielle. She was reporting that she was getting A’s in her courses.
She and Marshall began to travel to cities hundreds of miles from Chicago. During Christmas break 2008-9 Danielle was only able to spend two days with us in Fort Myers. She spent five days with friends in New York City during the New Years Holiday. The time we spent together was difficult with Danielle experiencing crying spells.
Danielle’s long time friend, Amy Blitzer informed us that Danielle and Marshall had been attending concerts given by a techno-rock group called Disco Biscuits which according to the urban dictionary means “seeking the drug ecstasy.” (Marshall changed his computer network password to “disco-biscuits.”)
Friends who gathered at Danielle’s apartment the day that she had her psychotic break report bags of marijuana and numerous drug paraphernalia.
Marshall has a history of ADD. He has been prescribed Strattera which he had stopped taking because he “did not have insurance to pay for it.” The night before Danielle was admitted to the psychiatric hospital I spoke to Marshall on the phone concerned that Danielle sounded manic. He downplayed her symptoms and stated that she was just under a lot of stress. We asked him to watch Danielle carefully until we could get to Chicago and help her. He left Danielle to go to work the next day and had plans to fly to Atlanta to attend the next Disco Biscuits concert.
Danielle’s long time friends, law school classmates, and family feel that she is being isolated by Marshall.
Marshall has other history. A prior girlfriend was gang-raped by men in his college fraternity. When Marshall could not convince the girl to drop her charges he felt pressured to transfer out of his school.
Marshall has many problems of his own. We witnessed his behavior when Danielle returned to her apartment after her discharge from the psychiatric hospital. He was not supportive. He was upset about the television show that she was watching (Top Chef.) He left in a huff, leaving Danielle slumped over on a couch. Danielle stated, “I just got home, can’t you stay?” Marshall responded, “Order what you want. Call me when it gets here.”
There is a very strong possibility that LSD, MDA, Marijuana and ETOH may have triggered the psychotic break. Danielle states that she used marijuana before she met Marshall but it is our suspicion that her illicit drug use increased to new levels on his watch.
We have trusted Danielle to make good choices. We were blindsided by her sudden break. In retrospect she did show some signs of moodiness… crying spells. Friends have reported to us that she had a syncope/seizure spell on a hot, crowded subway train last summer.
As parents of an adult child who is still dependent on them we face certain dilemmas.
We need to make sure that Danielle does not have a brain lesion that may account for some of these behaviors. (MRI, TSH)
We need to do everything possible to avoid alcohol and illicit drug use. (Urine Drug Screen… We don‘t want to kid ourselves into thinking that we are helping her with psychotherapy if she continues to use hallucinogens and psychosis inducing agents.)
We need Danielle, as she has stated, to make a budget that she can control without asking our permission to do everything.
We need Danielle to understand that we wish to respect her autonomy as we have done for the past five and one half years. We want to return to Chicago in good weather and bad to visit her and love her.
Sandy and Stuart Levy
We are writing this note to help you care for daughter Danielle. Some of what we say can not be easily said in front of Danielle. We feel that this additional information will give you our perspective in an efficient manner.
We have not been overprotective parents for over five an one half years. Danielle left home to study abroad in Spain during the summer between her junior and senior years in high school. She went to undergraduate at the University of Florida in Gainesville which is over four hours drive form our home in Fort Myers, Florida. Danielle made all her own decisions about academics. Her decision to go into law was totally her own. We supported her and told her that we thought she would fit well in the legal profession because of her debating skills. Danielle lived off campus in an apartment for much of her undergraduate life. She had her own car and a scooter that she won at a school raffle. We weren’t happy about the scooter. We paid for its insurance, nevertheless. We were not involved with her day to day activities after she left home. She had a three and one half year relationship with a young man at the U of F. We were supportive of that relationship. We paid for their plane ride to Arizona for them to see the Florida Gators win the National Football Championship.
After completing college one semester early Danielle did an externship at a law firm in Washington DC for several months. We visited her there and she appeared happy and adjusted to life in that cold big city. She applied for law school and was accepted at Loyola and the University of Miami. She was offered a full academic scholarship to the University of Miami. She turned it down to leave Florida and go to Chicago. We had told her that if she got her BA from a Florida Public University we would pay for her graduate school of choice.
That summer she broke up with her longstanding boyfriend and became a counselor at a summer camp. It is a camp for well to do Jewish kids. Danielle’s Aunt and cousins have attended there. Danielle was very happy there as well. It was there that she met Marshall and fell in love. Marshall drove Danielle from camp in Pennsylvania to law school in Chicago in the fall of 2007.
Danielle had difficulty adjusting to law school, Chicago and her new love. She expressed this to us during the Christmas break 2007-8.
We told her that she did not have to continue law school in
Chicago and that she could transfer to a Florida law school or do something else if she wanted. Danielle stated that she wanted to continue at Loyola and during the spring semester she seemed happier. She got a job as a legal aid to a prominent law firm in Chicago where she got along well. Marshall moved up to Chicago from Florida to live with her. We helped Marshall move up here by driving his belongings here from Florida. We helped them shop for furniture for their new apartment. The second year of law school appeared to be easier for Danielle. She was reporting that she was getting A’s in her courses.
She and Marshall began to travel to cities hundreds of miles from Chicago. During Christmas break 2008-9 Danielle was only able to spend two days with us in Fort Myers. She spent five days with friends in New York City during the New Years Holiday. The time we spent together was difficult with Danielle experiencing crying spells.
Danielle’s long time friend, Amy Blitzer informed us that Danielle and Marshall had been attending concerts given by a techno-rock group called Disco Biscuits which according to the urban dictionary means “seeking the drug ecstasy.” (Marshall changed his computer network password to “disco-biscuits.”)
Friends who gathered at Danielle’s apartment the day that she had her psychotic break report bags of marijuana and numerous drug paraphernalia.
Marshall has a history of ADD. He has been prescribed Strattera which he had stopped taking because he “did not have insurance to pay for it.” The night before Danielle was admitted to the psychiatric hospital I spoke to Marshall on the phone concerned that Danielle sounded manic. He downplayed her symptoms and stated that she was just under a lot of stress. We asked him to watch Danielle carefully until we could get to Chicago and help her. He left Danielle to go to work the next day and had plans to fly to Atlanta to attend the next Disco Biscuits concert.
Danielle’s long time friends, law school classmates, and family feel that she is being isolated by Marshall.
Marshall has other history. A prior girlfriend was gang-raped by men in his college fraternity. When Marshall could not convince the girl to drop her charges he felt pressured to transfer out of his school.
Marshall has many problems of his own. We witnessed his behavior when Danielle returned to her apartment after her discharge from the psychiatric hospital. He was not supportive. He was upset about the television show that she was watching (Top Chef.) He left in a huff, leaving Danielle slumped over on a couch. Danielle stated, “I just got home, can’t you stay?” Marshall responded, “Order what you want. Call me when it gets here.”
There is a very strong possibility that LSD, MDA, Marijuana and ETOH may have triggered the psychotic break. Danielle states that she used marijuana before she met Marshall but it is our suspicion that her illicit drug use increased to new levels on his watch.
We have trusted Danielle to make good choices. We were blindsided by her sudden break. In retrospect she did show some signs of moodiness… crying spells. Friends have reported to us that she had a syncope/seizure spell on a hot, crowded subway train last summer.
As parents of an adult child who is still dependent on them we face certain dilemmas.
We need to make sure that Danielle does not have a brain lesion that may account for some of these behaviors. (MRI, TSH)
We need to do everything possible to avoid alcohol and illicit drug use. (Urine Drug Screen… We don‘t want to kid ourselves into thinking that we are helping her with psychotherapy if she continues to use hallucinogens and psychosis inducing agents.)
We need Danielle, as she has stated, to make a budget that she can control without asking our permission to do everything.
We need Danielle to understand that we wish to respect her autonomy as we have done for the past five and one half years. We want to return to Chicago in good weather and bad to visit her and love her.
Sandy and Stuart Levy
Chicago, February 2009 Posts
Letters and Thoughts written in February 2009 in Chicago. A difficult time... painful for all involved.
The purpose of our visits to the psychiatrist is to help you deal with the new realities of bipolar illness, to remove stressors, to adjust medications, and prevent another psychotic break like we recently experienced. The past is less important than the future. We can’t change the past but we can affect the future. Dwelling on perceived injustices is like driving a car through the rear view mirror and waiting for another crash.
During these past two weeks I have felt like Jake Lamatta taking punch after punch from you. I have told your mother that if you took 1000 children and rated the love and caring that we gave our kids we would be # 1. Unfortunately we are not perceived as such by you.
Lets set the record straight. Two weeks ago I received a phone call from you telling me what a great father I have been and that you understand and appreciate everything that I have done for you and that I should not worry about you. I was cooking your mother lunch when you called. I was puzzled by the call and I wondered what I had done to deserve such sudden praise. Maybe you appreciated the fact that we did not question the $2100.00 a month credit card bill that we have paid since Marshall arrived in Chicago. Maybe you appreciated how we drove up from Florida with a carload of yours and Marshall’s stuff and helped you set up your apartment. (It was $900.00/month prior to that.) I patted myself on the back for not questioning your judgments. That night we got the hysterical call from you in which you insisted on speaking Spanish to your mother. You called your grandmother three times and she hung up on you three times because she could not recognize you. You understood everything and that you were going to cure the world of all its ills with your love. You denied having problems with sleep when I asked you directly. You denied having eating problems. We called Marshall on his cell phone and asked him if anything was wrong. He stated that you were just under a lot of stress and everything would be alright. We told him that we were very concerned and that we were ready to come to Chicago because you sounded manic. We told him to watch you carefully until we could come and help. Marshall left you the next morning. Your mother called him the next day at work and convinced him not to leave town. You sent out e-mails to friends which made them concerned about you. You called numerous people who feared for your well being. Your mother and I came to Chicago as soon as possible. I contacted Dr. Gottlieb who instructed me to have your friends Yvette and Joe to take you to Northwestern Medical Center Emergency Room.
Friends have told us that Marshall isolates you from them. Friends have told you that you have attended 28 rock concerts given by a group called Disco Biscuits. Disco Biscuits means ecstasy according to the urban dictionary. Drug paraphernalia and bags of marijuana were found at the apartment.
Frankly, Danielle, I am not surprised that you tried marijuana in college. I am surprised that you have bonded so strongly with an individual who has exposed you to LSD, ecstasy and marijuana used daily. An individual who has a mental illness of his own, who spends his money traveling to rock concerts to procure drugs instead of paying for health insurance and getting the help that he knows he needs, who left my precious daughter by herself when she was in great danger, and who has a history of being involved with a women who was gang raped at his fraternity. What am I supposed to do Danielle? Sit back and applaud? Wait to see your tragedy air on 48 Hours on TV? Accept his apology and feel sorry for him because he had to spend a Sunday without getting high?
Meanwhile, you continue to focus on what you perceive to be my problems. You had an idyllic childhood, Danielle. Your biggest gripe is that your mother and I did not let you screw up when you were under our roof. When you went to college we were not overprotective. We respected your judgment at all times. We gave you our car and when you wrecked it we bought you a new one. We kept our promises and when you turned down a full scholarship to the University of Miami School of Law we did not flinch but stepped up and supported your decision. Yes, you have said that you are grateful, but your other statements and especially your actions contradict that.
I said it before and I will say it forever… You have meant everything to us and we have done everything in our power to help you and your brother. You have had it much better growing up than me, my siblings, your mother and her brother had.
What scares me the most is your lack of insight. You have so much going for you, Danielle. Your mother and I are behind you as long as you respect yourself.
Now, having addressed the reason your mother and I are in Chicago I will address some of other problems not directly related to recent events…
1) My drinking was excessive when we vacationed with our family on Longboat Key 5 years ago. I passed out and EMS was called. We hid the details from your grandparents. I apologize. I will also admit that I drink more when you are home. Perhaps you can help me on this one. I admit that we have had problems in our relationship. But, you have often been very rude to your mother and I. I have had to bite my tongue so often it is a wonder that I can still speak to you. And worst of all is your frequent statement, “I know what you are going to say, Dad.”
2) You spent your first grade in public school. Your mother and I volunteered there and witnessed children who did not get appropriate guidance from home in your class. Your teacher had to spend most of the time teaching those unfortunate kids the basics that you already got at home. That is why we sent you to Saint Michaels Lutheran School. By all accounts except your own (in the hospital) account you thrived there. Think about all the positive things that happened there… Trips to New York and Washington, ballet recitals in which you were a star. You were very well prepared for the IB program in Fort Myers High School. You never gave us a clue that you were persecuted for being Jewish. Had you done so you know that we would have been in the principal’s office the next day.
3) We have already dealt with the issue of your parents’ prior divorce. There are many things that we choose not to share because sharing might do more harm than good. Your mother and I did not see the need to give you this information. We are both sorry that we did not tell you ourselves. We did not lie any more than you lied by not telling us about your persecution at Saint Michaels Lutheran School.
4) Actions are more important than words. Your Uncle Carlos did his best to destroy your grandmother. He drove Dore Designs into near bankruptcy, trashed the home that his mother sweated to build for him, abused his cats by locking them in the house and forgetting about them and then getting thrown in jail several times. Now, there is a real alcoholic. Why don’t you give him some of the vitriol that you reserve for your mother and me?
We are and have been more than talk for you for almost 25 years. We don’t just tell you that we love you. There is more to love than telling someone that you love them. We walk the walk.
Now, having got the past out of the way, lets look to the future for you, Danielle. You are at a crossroads. You are young, beautiful, intelligent, articulate, and organized. You are very angry about still being dependent on your less than perfect, caring parents. You have an illness which may have been caused by the drugs to which you have been exposed. You live with a man who by all accounts uses/ used more drugs than you, has psychiatric issues of his own, and has a history of letting his partner down at critical times. Your parents would have to be idiots to send you for psychiatric care without insisting on random urine drug screening.
Love,
Mom and Dad
February 25, 2009
Dear Danielle,
After being up here for a month I think that I am finally beginning to understand a few things. Your mother and I have been blaming Marshall for your destructive behavior and drug abuse. We have always held you on a high pedestal and we could not accept that you would do such a foolish thing on your own. You have told us several times that it was your decision and finally, yesterday it registered with me.
I forgive you for making those bad decisions.
Remember when you wrote me the note, “Just think Dad! If you were eight years old wouldn’t you want to go to Disneyworld?” Well, I am going to use the same tactic with you.
Imagine (I know that it is hard) that you had a 23 year old daughter, Debbie who phoned you from 1500 miles away. She sounded awful, incoherent, and unable to protect herself. She lived with a man named Morris.
You spoke to Morris and said, “Morris, Debbie sounds awful. What is going on? Is she taking some of the medicine that you take for your ADD? She is manic. We are WORRIED, Morris. We are thinking of dropping everything that we are doing and flying up to help her.”
Morris says, “She is just under a lot of stress, she will be OK. I stopped taking that medication.”
You say, “She is not OK. She is in danger, Morris! We are flying up!
Don’t leave her. Here is my cell phone number. Don’t leave her! Call me if anything changes.”
Morris leaves for work the next day without calling you for an update.
Debbie’s friends arrive at the apartment and find Debbie incoherent and take her to the emergency room. Information about Debbie comes from Debbie’s friends.
How would you feel about Morris?
Morris then covers his tracks by erasing files on Debbie’s computer.
How would you feel about Morris? I am still having trouble with this, Danielle.
Everyone’s personality has a sunny side and a dark side. We try to let the sunny side out to show to others and keep the dark side hidden. In other words we try to “cover our asses.”
One of the advantages of living with someone is that a good partner is that they can help you cover your ass. (Your mother has done that with me for almost 25 years.) We ask their opinion and we get another perspective and then make a more informed decision. Mom judges me constantly.
Let me give you a simple example of the dark side. Remember when your mother and I drove to Fort Lauderdale to pick you up and take you back to Fort Myers for your plane trip back to Chicago. Marshall’s father was driving that same day past Fort Myers to attend a football game in Tampa. You elected to have your mother make an unnecessary round trip on Alligator Alley so that you could be with your lover another couple of hours. Your response to my discovery… “I was worried that you might find out, Dad!” Where was Marshall in that decision making process? And Debbie Nyman, she is a saint because she “does not judge me.”
I love your sunny side, Danielle. I was looking for it a few days ago when I was in the Chicago Cultural Center. If there is one thing that I am guilty of is not seeking out your sunny side more often. We used to find it all the time at Ben and Jerry’s.
The purpose of our visits to the psychiatrist is to help you deal with the new realities of bipolar illness, to remove stressors, to adjust medications, and prevent another psychotic break like we recently experienced. The past is less important than the future. We can’t change the past but we can affect the future. Dwelling on perceived injustices is like driving a car through the rear view mirror and waiting for another crash.
During these past two weeks I have felt like Jake Lamatta taking punch after punch from you. I have told your mother that if you took 1000 children and rated the love and caring that we gave our kids we would be # 1. Unfortunately we are not perceived as such by you.
Lets set the record straight. Two weeks ago I received a phone call from you telling me what a great father I have been and that you understand and appreciate everything that I have done for you and that I should not worry about you. I was cooking your mother lunch when you called. I was puzzled by the call and I wondered what I had done to deserve such sudden praise. Maybe you appreciated the fact that we did not question the $2100.00 a month credit card bill that we have paid since Marshall arrived in Chicago. Maybe you appreciated how we drove up from Florida with a carload of yours and Marshall’s stuff and helped you set up your apartment. (It was $900.00/month prior to that.) I patted myself on the back for not questioning your judgments. That night we got the hysterical call from you in which you insisted on speaking Spanish to your mother. You called your grandmother three times and she hung up on you three times because she could not recognize you. You understood everything and that you were going to cure the world of all its ills with your love. You denied having problems with sleep when I asked you directly. You denied having eating problems. We called Marshall on his cell phone and asked him if anything was wrong. He stated that you were just under a lot of stress and everything would be alright. We told him that we were very concerned and that we were ready to come to Chicago because you sounded manic. We told him to watch you carefully until we could come and help. Marshall left you the next morning. Your mother called him the next day at work and convinced him not to leave town. You sent out e-mails to friends which made them concerned about you. You called numerous people who feared for your well being. Your mother and I came to Chicago as soon as possible. I contacted Dr. Gottlieb who instructed me to have your friends Yvette and Joe to take you to Northwestern Medical Center Emergency Room.
Friends have told us that Marshall isolates you from them. Friends have told you that you have attended 28 rock concerts given by a group called Disco Biscuits. Disco Biscuits means ecstasy according to the urban dictionary. Drug paraphernalia and bags of marijuana were found at the apartment.
Frankly, Danielle, I am not surprised that you tried marijuana in college. I am surprised that you have bonded so strongly with an individual who has exposed you to LSD, ecstasy and marijuana used daily. An individual who has a mental illness of his own, who spends his money traveling to rock concerts to procure drugs instead of paying for health insurance and getting the help that he knows he needs, who left my precious daughter by herself when she was in great danger, and who has a history of being involved with a women who was gang raped at his fraternity. What am I supposed to do Danielle? Sit back and applaud? Wait to see your tragedy air on 48 Hours on TV? Accept his apology and feel sorry for him because he had to spend a Sunday without getting high?
Meanwhile, you continue to focus on what you perceive to be my problems. You had an idyllic childhood, Danielle. Your biggest gripe is that your mother and I did not let you screw up when you were under our roof. When you went to college we were not overprotective. We respected your judgment at all times. We gave you our car and when you wrecked it we bought you a new one. We kept our promises and when you turned down a full scholarship to the University of Miami School of Law we did not flinch but stepped up and supported your decision. Yes, you have said that you are grateful, but your other statements and especially your actions contradict that.
I said it before and I will say it forever… You have meant everything to us and we have done everything in our power to help you and your brother. You have had it much better growing up than me, my siblings, your mother and her brother had.
What scares me the most is your lack of insight. You have so much going for you, Danielle. Your mother and I are behind you as long as you respect yourself.
Now, having addressed the reason your mother and I are in Chicago I will address some of other problems not directly related to recent events…
1) My drinking was excessive when we vacationed with our family on Longboat Key 5 years ago. I passed out and EMS was called. We hid the details from your grandparents. I apologize. I will also admit that I drink more when you are home. Perhaps you can help me on this one. I admit that we have had problems in our relationship. But, you have often been very rude to your mother and I. I have had to bite my tongue so often it is a wonder that I can still speak to you. And worst of all is your frequent statement, “I know what you are going to say, Dad.”
2) You spent your first grade in public school. Your mother and I volunteered there and witnessed children who did not get appropriate guidance from home in your class. Your teacher had to spend most of the time teaching those unfortunate kids the basics that you already got at home. That is why we sent you to Saint Michaels Lutheran School. By all accounts except your own (in the hospital) account you thrived there. Think about all the positive things that happened there… Trips to New York and Washington, ballet recitals in which you were a star. You were very well prepared for the IB program in Fort Myers High School. You never gave us a clue that you were persecuted for being Jewish. Had you done so you know that we would have been in the principal’s office the next day.
3) We have already dealt with the issue of your parents’ prior divorce. There are many things that we choose not to share because sharing might do more harm than good. Your mother and I did not see the need to give you this information. We are both sorry that we did not tell you ourselves. We did not lie any more than you lied by not telling us about your persecution at Saint Michaels Lutheran School.
4) Actions are more important than words. Your Uncle Carlos did his best to destroy your grandmother. He drove Dore Designs into near bankruptcy, trashed the home that his mother sweated to build for him, abused his cats by locking them in the house and forgetting about them and then getting thrown in jail several times. Now, there is a real alcoholic. Why don’t you give him some of the vitriol that you reserve for your mother and me?
We are and have been more than talk for you for almost 25 years. We don’t just tell you that we love you. There is more to love than telling someone that you love them. We walk the walk.
Now, having got the past out of the way, lets look to the future for you, Danielle. You are at a crossroads. You are young, beautiful, intelligent, articulate, and organized. You are very angry about still being dependent on your less than perfect, caring parents. You have an illness which may have been caused by the drugs to which you have been exposed. You live with a man who by all accounts uses/ used more drugs than you, has psychiatric issues of his own, and has a history of letting his partner down at critical times. Your parents would have to be idiots to send you for psychiatric care without insisting on random urine drug screening.
Love,
Mom and Dad
February 25, 2009
Dear Danielle,
After being up here for a month I think that I am finally beginning to understand a few things. Your mother and I have been blaming Marshall for your destructive behavior and drug abuse. We have always held you on a high pedestal and we could not accept that you would do such a foolish thing on your own. You have told us several times that it was your decision and finally, yesterday it registered with me.
I forgive you for making those bad decisions.
Remember when you wrote me the note, “Just think Dad! If you were eight years old wouldn’t you want to go to Disneyworld?” Well, I am going to use the same tactic with you.
Imagine (I know that it is hard) that you had a 23 year old daughter, Debbie who phoned you from 1500 miles away. She sounded awful, incoherent, and unable to protect herself. She lived with a man named Morris.
You spoke to Morris and said, “Morris, Debbie sounds awful. What is going on? Is she taking some of the medicine that you take for your ADD? She is manic. We are WORRIED, Morris. We are thinking of dropping everything that we are doing and flying up to help her.”
Morris says, “She is just under a lot of stress, she will be OK. I stopped taking that medication.”
You say, “She is not OK. She is in danger, Morris! We are flying up!
Don’t leave her. Here is my cell phone number. Don’t leave her! Call me if anything changes.”
Morris leaves for work the next day without calling you for an update.
Debbie’s friends arrive at the apartment and find Debbie incoherent and take her to the emergency room. Information about Debbie comes from Debbie’s friends.
How would you feel about Morris?
Morris then covers his tracks by erasing files on Debbie’s computer.
How would you feel about Morris? I am still having trouble with this, Danielle.
Everyone’s personality has a sunny side and a dark side. We try to let the sunny side out to show to others and keep the dark side hidden. In other words we try to “cover our asses.”
One of the advantages of living with someone is that a good partner is that they can help you cover your ass. (Your mother has done that with me for almost 25 years.) We ask their opinion and we get another perspective and then make a more informed decision. Mom judges me constantly.
Let me give you a simple example of the dark side. Remember when your mother and I drove to Fort Lauderdale to pick you up and take you back to Fort Myers for your plane trip back to Chicago. Marshall’s father was driving that same day past Fort Myers to attend a football game in Tampa. You elected to have your mother make an unnecessary round trip on Alligator Alley so that you could be with your lover another couple of hours. Your response to my discovery… “I was worried that you might find out, Dad!” Where was Marshall in that decision making process? And Debbie Nyman, she is a saint because she “does not judge me.”
I love your sunny side, Danielle. I was looking for it a few days ago when I was in the Chicago Cultural Center. If there is one thing that I am guilty of is not seeking out your sunny side more often. We used to find it all the time at Ben and Jerry’s.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
AYR
Aircastle
Airplane Leasing Company
Insiders Own about 2.3%
Dividend is about 3.9%
Recent CEO Purchase of shares
Makes its money leasing aircraft to airline companies.
Buys used aircraft
Most of its business is overseas
Watched the CEO on CNBC and was impressed.
Airplane Leasing Company
Insiders Own about 2.3%
Dividend is about 3.9%
Recent CEO Purchase of shares
Makes its money leasing aircraft to airline companies.
Buys used aircraft
Most of its business is overseas
Watched the CEO on CNBC and was impressed.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Food Inflation Plays
monsanto, potach, syt, cf, dd, china mengiu
We believe investors should view the recent pullback as a buying opportunity in our Buy-rated names -- CF Industries Holdings (ticker: CF), Mosaic (MOS) and Agrium (AGU) -- as we see upside of 28%, 22% and 17%, respectively, from current levels http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970204831004576022023580247888.html?mod=BOL_article_full_popview
We believe investors should view the recent pullback as a buying opportunity in our Buy-rated names -- CF Industries Holdings (ticker: CF), Mosaic (MOS) and Agrium (AGU) -- as we see upside of 28%, 22% and 17%, respectively, from current levels http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970204831004576022023580247888.html?mod=BOL_article_full_popview
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Selling Vanguard's Tip's Fund
Treasury Yields are ridiculously low.
Have unrealized gain in this fund of $25,000 which will evaporate if yields rise.
Have realized losses from sale of bank stocks, BAC and WL earlier this year.
Parents accounts have large holdings of TIPS.
Have unrealized gain in this fund of $25,000 which will evaporate if yields rise.
Have realized losses from sale of bank stocks, BAC and WL earlier this year.
Parents accounts have large holdings of TIPS.
How to Paying a Spouse's Excessive Health Care Costs
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/12/nyregion/12medicaid.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&hp
Full Wallets, but Using Health Program for Poor
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Analog Devices 12/11/10 Barrons
Dividend = 2.5%
PEG < 1
Growing business with a good cash flow, balance sheet has 4x cash to debt.
I want to sell something before I increase my equity exposure.
I also want to sell some of my gains in Treasury Bonds.
PEG < 1
Growing business with a good cash flow, balance sheet has 4x cash to debt.
I want to sell something before I increase my equity exposure.
I also want to sell some of my gains in Treasury Bonds.
From the Economist 12/11/2010
The Chinese government referencing the Noble Peace Price awarded to but not received by dissident Liu Xiaobo called the prize ":interference by a few clowns."
All Souls: A Family Story From Southie by Michael Patirck MacDonald
This autobiographical sketch of a family's horror story in South Boston in the 1970's and 80's. I was lured into borrowing the book from our public library because I came across the name Whitey Bulger who is a former FBI informant now on the top of the FBI's most wanted list. The reviewers on Amazon gave the book a 4 and 1/2 star rating. I have read about 160 pages with few references to Bulger. I am saddened and disappointed with the book so far. The characters are very depressing. Their lives are all affected with alcohol, drugs, illegitimacy, child abuse, depression, bigotry and a delusional pride.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Income by Diversification
I read an article in Barrons today and it got me thinking.
"I've pretty much subscribed to the fact that you can't live off the interest any longer. Investors in retirement are going to be forced to have more volatility in their portfolios due to the fact that when interest rates go up, bond prices will fall."
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970204374404575630983764352448.html#articleTabs_panel_article%3D2
Currently we get next to no yield from keeping our money in the money markets. Those of us who have invested in bonds have either seen them appreciate, mature or get called away. Currently, with yields so low it is foolish to invest new money in bonds, especially with the federal budget and US trade deficits. It may even be wise to sell longer maturing bonds that have appreciated in our portfolios.
There are ways to obtain a yield on our money, but there are no guarantees. If you want to stretch for yield you have to accept some risk. The key is to minimize risks.
How do you minimize risk?
Answer: Diversification, diversification, diversification.... Diversify by asset class, by location and by time of purchase.
Examples of asset classes... Dividend paying securities, Preferred Stocks, Treasury Bonds, REITS, Commodities, MLPS
Examples of location diversification... US, Canada, Far East, Latin America etc.
Examples of timing diversification... Dollar cost averaging into an investment... Make a decision to buy into various assets but do it over
time...Put $3,000 into each of the following every three months. If you invested it all at once you would increase the risk of buying something just before the market tanks. If that should happen you would still be able to purchase more later at higher yields and lower prices.
Lockheed Martin LMT... Equity... Dividend Yield = 4.34%... dividend growth 20% per year over last five years.
McDonalds MCD Equity... Dividend Yield = 3.0%... dividend growth 29.5% per year over last five years.
Intel INTC Equity... Dividend Yield = 3.0%... dividend growth = 17.61% per year over last five years.
The above are American based corporations with businesses that are growing and earning enough internationally to easily grow their earnings and dividends. Their managements are nimble enough to bob and weave through the economic minefields created by currency rate fluctuations, trade imbalances and tax changes. I may be naive but something tells me these companies can husband a portion of my nest egg better than lending it to Uncle Sam.
Below is an assortment of closed end funds and one MLP investing in different asset classes. These will make their payouts and their net asset values or NAV's will fluctuate. Higher interest rates and appreciation in the dollar will put pressure on their NAV's. Lower interest rates and a depreciating dollar will raise their NAV's.
Gabelli Gold GGN... Closed End Fund/ Commodities... Payout = 9.13%... selling at a 1% premium to NAV
Nuveen Quality Preferred Inc JTP...Preferred Stock Closed End Fund Payout = 7.96% ... selling at at 6.8% discount to NAV
ALLIANCE BERNSTEIN GLOBAL HIGH INCOME FUND INC AWF... Payout = 8.13%..... selling at a 4.18% discount to NAV
ABERDEEN ASIA PACIFIC INCOME FD INC FAX... Payout = 6.09%... selling at a 4.3% discount to NAV
Kinder Morgan Limited Energy Partners KMP... Payout... 6.29%... 7% annual payout growth over the past five years.
ING Clarion Global Real Estate IGR ... Payout = 7.01%... 8.33% discount to NAV. (The oldest/largest closed end fund investing in global REITS)
With this portfolio you would make 6.1%
You will notice that I have not listed any US Treasury Bonds. Currently the 10 year is paying only 3%.
"I've pretty much subscribed to the fact that you can't live off the interest any longer. Investors in retirement are going to be forced to have more volatility in their portfolios due to the fact that when interest rates go up, bond prices will fall."
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970204374404575630983764352448.html#articleTabs_panel_article%3D2
Currently we get next to no yield from keeping our money in the money markets. Those of us who have invested in bonds have either seen them appreciate, mature or get called away. Currently, with yields so low it is foolish to invest new money in bonds, especially with the federal budget and US trade deficits. It may even be wise to sell longer maturing bonds that have appreciated in our portfolios.
There are ways to obtain a yield on our money, but there are no guarantees. If you want to stretch for yield you have to accept some risk. The key is to minimize risks.
How do you minimize risk?
Answer: Diversification, diversification, diversification.... Diversify by asset class, by location and by time of purchase.
Examples of asset classes... Dividend paying securities, Preferred Stocks, Treasury Bonds, REITS, Commodities, MLPS
Examples of location diversification... US, Canada, Far East, Latin America etc.
Examples of timing diversification... Dollar cost averaging into an investment... Make a decision to buy into various assets but do it over
time...Put $3,000 into each of the following every three months. If you invested it all at once you would increase the risk of buying something just before the market tanks. If that should happen you would still be able to purchase more later at higher yields and lower prices.
Lockheed Martin LMT... Equity... Dividend Yield = 4.34%... dividend growth 20% per year over last five years.
McDonalds MCD Equity... Dividend Yield = 3.0%... dividend growth 29.5% per year over last five years.
Intel INTC Equity... Dividend Yield = 3.0%... dividend growth = 17.61% per year over last five years.
The above are American based corporations with businesses that are growing and earning enough internationally to easily grow their earnings and dividends. Their managements are nimble enough to bob and weave through the economic minefields created by currency rate fluctuations, trade imbalances and tax changes. I may be naive but something tells me these companies can husband a portion of my nest egg better than lending it to Uncle Sam.
Below is an assortment of closed end funds and one MLP investing in different asset classes. These will make their payouts and their net asset values or NAV's will fluctuate. Higher interest rates and appreciation in the dollar will put pressure on their NAV's. Lower interest rates and a depreciating dollar will raise their NAV's.
Gabelli Gold GGN... Closed End Fund/ Commodities... Payout = 9.13%... selling at a 1% premium to NAV
Nuveen Quality Preferred Inc JTP...Preferred Stock Closed End Fund Payout = 7.96% ... selling at at 6.8% discount to NAV
ALLIANCE BERNSTEIN GLOBAL HIGH INCOME FUND INC AWF... Payout = 8.13%..... selling at a 4.18% discount to NAV
ABERDEEN ASIA PACIFIC INCOME FD INC FAX... Payout = 6.09%... selling at a 4.3% discount to NAV
Kinder Morgan Limited Energy Partners KMP... Payout... 6.29%... 7% annual payout growth over the past five years.
ING Clarion Global Real Estate IGR ... Payout = 7.01%... 8.33% discount to NAV. (The oldest/largest closed end fund investing in global REITS)
With this portfolio you would make 6.1%
You will notice that I have not listed any US Treasury Bonds. Currently the 10 year is paying only 3%.
The Invisible Wall by Harry Bernstein
The true story written by a 97 year old Jewish man about his early life near Manchester, England during and shortly after World War 1. It exposes the divide between Jewish and Gentiles living in the same neighborhood. It is a love story that breaks the wall between the two communities. Jewish customs and cultures are vividly depicted. The importance of one's image in the eyes of others is contrasted with the realities of physical needs. One world philosophy is contrasted with segregation within communities, nations and ethnicity.
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