Happy New Year - 2009

OK well I haven't written in a very long time. I just don't have the patience or time to sit here and blog/journal, but I know that I want to. so I'm going to do it rather quickly.

WORK: I am working at LogmeIn in Woburn. They provide applications that allow people to remote onto other computers - they have a variety of products and the phones are very busy.
I support the people who use their products. (similar to PC Anywhere, GoToMyPC, VNC etc.) I can also use it to work from home, which I love. They have the technology to switch the phone over, I remote control my work PC and I'm good to go. I've worked from home twice already, when we had snowstorms. My shift is 10-6 and it's about a 20 minute commute - 7 miles through Melrose and Stoneham. Good benefits. Was trained mostly by a 22 year old girl named Randi who is a photographer, car buff, ex-high-school wrestler and artist. she likes Hello Kitty and does web development and some operational support. Needless to say, she has tattoos. She is also very pretty with long red hair and pale skin, and she has been stricken with Lyme Disease, so she is sick a lot. The other guys are typical geek/techs, into World of Warcraft, anime, sports and games. Sean Keogh is in the National Guard and thinks most of our customers are morons. Todd Dyer is a huge sox fan, as is Amanda.

ZAMIR: Starting up again tomorrow night. Had nice concert of Russian Music on New Year's Eve. Nothing much else to report.

ALAN: Nothing new there either. I am working, he is taking care of his mother. I can't fault him for that, since he does do a lot of running around. At almost 60, I think his work days are over. Part of me gets annoyed that he is not more ambitious, and part of me is envious, since I'd rather not be working either. I have stopped asking if he wants to move in with me, and he hasn't decided anything about his own living arrangements. He could move into his mother's house in Newton, but I really like him being down the street. I think my LOVE has cooled a bit - I no longer need to be with him all the time, and maybe only seeing him on weekends wouldn't be so bad. He always goes wherever I ask him to go with me - a concert, a party, whatever it is. Not like Eric who only wanted to know if there'd be liquor there.

MONEY: My total portfolio is down about 30% from where it was a year ago, when I felt incredibly flush and wasn't worried about immediately finding a job when Siemens laid me off.
I have always been a good investor, but it was my dad that helped me get to where I am today.

Lately, I've been watching this nest egg shrink at an alarming rate - and of course, I'm not alone.
Everyone says...but it was only on paper.. well of course! I considered taking my "winnings" lots of times, but then I'd have had to pay capital gains taxes on a whole lot of it. Now, the tax rates are lower, but the gains are no longer there! The Fidelity fund I purchased at about $12.00 a share was once at about $45/share and I said I'd never be able to sell it! Now it's at a more "respectable" $18 - ha - there go my "winnings"... But then, my Roth IRA, which was at $16,000, is now down by half, and most of that was contributions. The news is filled with people who have seen their retirment plans shrink 50% or more.

I purchased Apple at $80, sold it at $130, bought it back at $150. It's now at about $88. Talk about back to square one. And my idea to buy RIMM -- big mistake. I bought at $122, it's now at about $50 with a target of $75. Not going to get rich in the stock market, that's for sure. I seriously had started to consider retiring from full time work, although health insurance is a concern. I didn't even expect to find a job - it was one of only a couple I even applied to.

My new salary is not that great - only $38K - my take home pay will just about cover my bills, but anything else will be coming from savings. I mean everything else. My condo fee is going up $25, and I'm making what I made when I started at Keane. But, the benefits ARE great.

WCUW: Sunday nights 8-10 PM is Shirim - a program of jewish music. I have done 2 shows at this community based radio station in Worcester. 91.3 they stream online. www.wcuw.org.

I thought I'd write more, but can't think of anything. I just wanted to catch up.