Simply Norma

One of my favorite songs is sung by Karen Carpenter. It’s called Rainy Days & Mondays.

Karen died early in life — she was only 33. She had an eating disorder called anorexia nervosa. Statistics state that 5-10% of anorexics die within 10 years of contracting the disease. Only 1 in 10 people seek treatment.

Other “stars” who have had this disease include Joan River, Princess Di and Nadia Comaneci to name a few.

Humans are strange sometimes. Even though they know they have a problem, they fail to seek help and the consequences are sometimes dire.

Part of the the lyrics say “what I’ve got they used to call the blues, nothing is really wrong, feeling like I don’t below, walking around, some kind of lonely clown…”

If only clowns would take their costumes off —

At our recent family reunion, our son made very simple hors d’oeuvres using loaves of baguette bread.

We didn’t forget the “usual” — deviled eggs.

I wonder why they are called deviled eggs???

One of our guests brought a bouquet of flowers for our table. A very nice touch!

With the Dow Jones and S&P 500 going up and down with no one really knowing what is happening, it’s easy for fear to make its home in our hearts.

I have quite a different view of the market though. When mutual funds and stocks plummet, I see this as an opportunity. Yes, I know it is affecting my 401K. It’s also a good time to look for stocks that are of good value.

The Apple Company “has achieved the status as the most valuable company in the world” according to an article in TechZone360.

Another article in SeekingAlpha states that “Apple will be the most valuable company in 2012.” Very interesting.

I remember a few years back, our son told us to buy Apple stock. Back then, the company was what I considered stodgy — not really going anywhere. The iPods had just started to come out. Stock worth? Approximate $19 a share. At end of day today, a share of Apple stock is at $365.60. At one point in July, an Apple share was $404.  If only …

Opportunities still exist to purchase Apple stock along with other stocks that have good (low) P/E ratios.

So — don’t fear. There’s nothing we can do about it anyway. Don’t sell low unless you have an absolute need for the money today.

Worse case scenario — you lose all your money. You’ll still have your life and (hopefully) loved ones that surround you.

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I’m always on the hunt for good hot chocolate — even on hot Minnesota days. I can’t explain it …  When I visit my sister, she pulls out a bag of Chocolate Corte. The chocolate is ground up (molido) and all you need is a mug of warm milk and 3 tablespoons of the chocolate. A quick heating on the stovetop until it reaches the right temperature completes the process.

A Puerto Rican man, Don Pedro, started the company called Chocolate Cortes in an effort to elevate the Caribbean cacao to a “position of respect and envy” around the world.

Good job Don Pedro!