Wild and Free-Roaming?

It's not often that I'll give a WHOOP! while reading my morning newspaper, but this morning gave me one of those happy moments. Let me explain...about a week ago I read that a number of wild horses contained in BLM holding pens were going to be slaughtered because of budgetary concerns. I wrote to the BLM, our senators, our representative, even a representative from another state. I was still contemplating who else I could voice my concern to when I read in the paper this morning that Madeleine Pickens, wife of T. Boone Pickens, was going to rescue these horses. And not just the ones scheduled for the slaughter house, but *all* of the horses currently held in the holding pens - approximately 30,000 wild horses and burros! (Read a more detailed article) THANK YOU Mrs. Pickens! It's wonderful to have wealthy people with such big hearts in this world who can do such tremendous good!

I'm no expert on the wild horse issues out west, but in simple terms there appears to be some objection by private cattle ranchers to share the land with the wild horses. I came across this video that will explain more:

But this issue is not resolved. Mrs. Pickens has saved the animals currently in the holding pens, but the BLM will continue to remove others from the wild to take their place. The Wild and Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act of 1971 needs to be restored.

So, if you would like to do something to help, here are some ideas:
1. Go to The Wild Horse Preservation Campaign and click on both - Take Action and Sign the Petition
2. Consider donating to one of the current wild horse sanctuaries that have been rescuing these animals over the years:
* Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary - (we've visited this sanctuary in 2005) - in Hot Springs, SD
* The Wild Horse Sanctuary - Shingletown, CA
* Return to Freedom - Lompoc, CA
I'm sure there are other sanctuaries out there, but these are three I'm aware of. Each one could use volunteers, donations of goods, or monetary donations.

Ok, I'll get off my soapbox now. Thank you for taking the time to learn more about this issue.

Another Interesting Pattern

Could this be a Double-Top? It doesn't meet some of the specific criteria for trading stock chart patterns, but I'm finding the looks of this pattern on a long-term S&P 500 Chart pretty interesting...
This pattern is validated when it breaks the low of the trough between the two peaks, which is around 800. The anticipated target would then be the difference between the height of the peaks and the low of the trough (so, roughly speaking 1600 at the peak - 800 at the trough = 800). Subtract that number from the breakout point (800) and this would bring our target to *0*, as in ZERO? Geez, let's hope not! But if this pattern was to play out, it could take about 7 1/2 years to do so - the time from the first peak to the second. It's times like this when I hope technical analysis really isn't a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Lantana, FL - John Prince Park

Another last minute decision leads to a great weekend! We're trying to get the RV out on a more regular basis, and sometimes that means we don't decide to go away until the Thursday or Friday before we go. This is partly due to the fact that life seems to slip by rapidly and we can't believe a month has gone by and we haven't taken the RV out! Thankfully, we don't need to go far if we don't have to...

So, this past weekend we went to John Prince Park in Lantana, FL. It's a whopping 39 miles away. But we've never stayed there before and we've never even been to this park before. Perfect!

Friday night we enjoyed sitting out with the full moon over Lake Osborne. Several of the campsites are right on the lake. We were also fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of the Space Shuttle Endeavor take off. We got to see the burning orange flames even at a distance of approximately 150 miles.
Saturday morning allowed us an opportunity to ride our road bikes along another section of A1A that we rarely get to ride. With Intercoastal Waterway and Ocean views like this, who could complain about riding home against the winds?Later on Saturday we went kayaking. We had an easy put-in right from our site.
We paddled around a wetland restoration area:We watched people active on their boats in Lake Osborne - tubing, waterskiing, and whatever-crazy-sport-this-is-called - "body dragging", perhaps?And we watched the sunset from the middle of Lake Osborne:
It's a great park for birdwatching, too:
Here's a Google Map showing access points to the wetland areas, and an island that had lots of birds to watch...(click on the pushpins to read details)

View Larger Map
The park is also close to Lake Worth Avenue if you're looking for some nightlife action. We had a few beers at an outdoor cafe and just people-watched (another of our favorite activities). And, boy, was it an interesting night - I'll just leave it at that!

Flutterby Butterfly

In a sick sort of way, I was almost happy that Andy had to take some quiet time to nurse an injury. We wanted to do something on the day after he injured his quadricep on a 10-mile run and needed to think of something that wouldn't require much walking. Then we thought of Butterfly World. We haven't been here since Andy's Dad and Mom went with us (March, 2005). The classical music, lush landscaping, and lots of benches makes it a place that beckons to relax. Sometimes sitting is the best way to see more....just watch the butterflies and hummingbirds come to you.

So, as the name would imply, there are lots of butterflies - from all around the world:

There are hummingbirds, too. Due to their territorial nature, expect to be buzzed by some of these tiny birds.
Andy enjoys walking under the misters that add to the tropical rainforest feel of the atrium.
This visit didn't even require us to buy the nectar for the lorikeets - Andy had four of them land on him immediately upon entering their habitat. Be careful with the lorikeets though - they're known to chew on everything - shirts, skin, hats, earlobes...they're not picky!
The flowers that can be found throughout are just as beautiful as the butterflies and birds.
And the birds are of all colors and sizes...

testing google form

Be Kind. Be Human.

hu-man: a person
hu-mane: 1) emphasizing humanistic values and concerns; 2) kind or compassionate
hu-man-i-ty: 1) the condition or quality of being human; 2) the quality of being humane
hu-man-i-tar-i-an: adj. Compassionate
hu-man-ize: to make humane; civilize
hu-man-kind: the human race

I think we've forgotten how to be human. I don't know about you, but I'm eager to have these elections over with because I think it is bringing out the worst in us. We've all heard the stories: assassination threats against Senator Obama; an effigy of Governor Palin hanging from a noose; a Halloweener dressed as Sarah Palin is confronted; political signs ripped out of people's lawns; homes are vandalized; racial slurs and sexist remarks are thrown around (a renewed scourge from decades ago); and so on. If we really were a kind and compassionate race, we could disagree with civility. This is the wonderful benefit of living in America - we have the ability and the right to our opinions. We all want what is best for our country, we just happen to disagree on what that is. We just need to remember the importance of being human and being kind -- a vote for all of humankind.

Tuition Reimbursement?

In a depressing sort of way, I guess this is good news...Investools has finally paid for itself. I wish I could say it was due to my incredible talent and skill at trading. But no, it's because we transferred one of our IRAs last year so that I could actively trade it. If I left it where it was I would've lost $29k. So we paid for Investools by protecting ourselves from that loss. We would've left that money where it was if we weren't trading.

Now I just have to be prepared for when the market bounces. I had taken two months off from trading because it was too spastic for me. Let's just hope I have the courage to jump back in when the signs start presenting themselves again. Fear is the main reason why most people miss out on the beginnings of a bull market.