Every where you turn – the news, the papers, the talk shows, everyone is blaming only Wall Street for the economic crisis we are.  While I wholeheartedly agree Wall Street does need to accept a lot of the responsibility, some of the responsibility also goes to Main Street and the American public, which seems to be ignored.  For the past several years, creditors and lenders have been basically throwing money at the American people with little or no checks to see if people could truly afford to borrow money.  People all across the country were applying for and being granted loans or credit they clearly could not afford to pay back.  While the idea that everyone should be able to afford a home is a noble one, anyone with any sense of fiscal responsibility knows this should not be the case.  There are people that clearly cannot afford to own a home, maintain it and pay their bills and should not have applied for mortgages or loans let alone be granted them.  The folks on Main Street need to take responsibility for their own reckless financial behavior just like the folks on Wall Street.

In my opinion, living within your means is a concept that seems to be lost by the majority of Americans.  Everyone – Wall Street AND Main Street were both over extended and had no ability to payback what they owed.  While Wall Street was able to take advantage of highly lucrative and risky credit instruments they would not have had these opportunities if it weren’t for the creditors and lendors who gave Americans money to ‘play with’.  That is what frustrates me.  We need to look at the root cause of our problems and EVERYONE needs to take responsibility.  I do feel sorry for people who have over extended themselves and those that have lost their jobs but people need to have a budget and live with in the means they can afford to pay back when and if called upon.  Credit is nice but extremely dangerous and anyone that continues to buy on credit thinking they will ’someday’ find the money to pay it back is only getting themselves deeper and deeper into a financial mess.  It’s time for EVERYONE to take responsibility for their actions.  If you can’t afford the payments, don’t buy it.  And if you don’t have enough savings to cover your financial obligations for a set period of time then stop spending money and start saving.  Tighten your belt and realize that you can’t have everything.

This morning Google launched Project 10 to the 100th, a call for ideas to change the world by helping as many people as possible.  Google’s goal is to seek input from the public and a panel of judges in choosing up to five winning ideas which will be announced in February.

According to their news release “These ideas can be big or small, technology-driven or brilliantly simple — but they need to have impact.  We know there are countless brilliant ideas that need funding and support to come to fruition.”

I think this is a great campaign!  It seems like every week, Darren has another new idea so I’m going to encourage him to submit some of his thoughts.  Who couldn’t use $10 million dollars these days – especially with the way the markets are! 

Submissions are due by October 20th.  Good luck to all who enter! 

This weekend was a glorious one so we took advantage of the warm weather on Saturday and came into the city to meet up with friends at Central Park.  It was the first weekend in a long time that we had virtually no plans so it was great to be spontaneous and enjoy the outdoors.  The park was packed with kids, families, tourists and the like riding bicycles, walking the perimeter or just sitting on a bench enjoying the beautiful weather.   Strolling the streets was like old times.  While we come to the city every day for work we really haven’t spent much time on the Upper East Side since we moved last year.  It was interesting to see what changes the neighborhood has undergone in the last 17 months.  Some stores and restaurants went out, some new one’s opened but overall the area was the same…only we felt a little bit like visitors.  Once the baby is born and we get through the winter though we hope to spend more time in the city sharing all the wonderful things it has to offer with our son.  Seeing the streets alive with parades, fairs and shoppers brought back great memories.  It was a fabulous day. 

Although we do miss the city, when we walked into our house that evening it was home and where we belong.

More and more I am frustrated by inaccurate reports the media makes and the rippling effects their stories have on the country or the people they are reporting on.   Prior to the Watergate scandal, the media sought to protect stories that would play negatively for the country and its people.  Today is a different era entirely.  The media seeks to build up people only to destroy them over time.  They also report inaccuracies only to retract them later but only in a tiny little blurp on the bottom of a future paper that goes practically unnoticed.  The media seeks to sensationalize stories to magnified proportions which they use to attract viewers and/or readers.  It’s distusting.  Whether it is celebrities (ie. Britney Spears), political figures (Palin, Obama) or even the stories around the financial crisis we are in, the papers just don’t get the facts straight.  This angers me because many people are drawing conclusions and making decisions based on the information they receive from the media.  I think part of the panic we have seen in the financial community is driven by the inaccurate media reports.  All of the networks and the papers have played to people’s fears and have done everything they can to draw viewers by scaring average Americans.   Yes, we need to be informed and we count on the media to share information with us but when they share inaccurate information which lately seems more and more often, I’m annoyed.  The NY Times is such an offender as you can tell by the article below they needed to come clean about their false reporting….

Given the tone of things on Wall Street, this correction qualifies as monumentally important. From the New York Times:

An earlier version of this article cited two sources who were said to have been briefed on a conversation in which John J. Mack, chief executive of Morgan Stanley (MS), had told Vikrim S. Pandit, Citigroup’s (C) chief executive, that “we need a merger partner or we’re not going to make it.” On Thursday, Morgan Stanley vigorously denied that Mr. Mack had made the comment, as did Citigroup, which had declined to comment on Wednesday.

The Times’s two sources have since clarified their comments, saying that because they were not present during the discussions, they could not confirm that Mr. Mack had in fact made the statement. The Times should have asked Morgan Stanley for comment and should not have used the quotation without doing more to verify the sources’ version of events.

Indeed.

Source

Ben White and Eric Dash, “As Fears Grow, Wall St. Titans See Shares Fall,” New York Times

Last night I joined Darren and a bunch of NextNY’ers at a private gathering at the Shake Shack for a mix and mingle of those in the digital world.  Investors, venture capitalists (aka. ‘vc’s’), entrepreneurs, and a mix of others shared details about what they are working on and made connections to help move their business ideas forward. 

This was my first NextNY event and I thought it was great!  Brilliant minds connecting with one another in a fun, casual atmosphere.  The weather was perfect – cool and comfortable and the location was amazing.  Charlie O’Donnell, a friend and business associate of ours (we invested in Path101) and the NextNY team organized this sold out event that brought people together from all over the digital scene in New York.  Attending the event gave me the opportunity to meet the many people Darren knows in the industry and helped put faces to the names I’ve been hearing about over the last couple of years.  I really enjoyed this informal networking opportunity and for anyone in the digital/technology scene, you should consider checking out NextNY and their events.   One thing that did stand out to me though was the scarcity of women in attendance.  While technology is largely dominated by men, it would be great for more women who have a technology focus to their jobs, to get out to these events.  Its a fantastic opportunity to increase your profile and stand out among the men!

Whether you work on Wall Street or not, I don’t think there is anyone in America that is not focusing on what has been happening with the markets.  Televisions everywhere have been broadcasting the financial news as the lead story for several days now as the filing of bankruptcy by Lehman Brothers and the sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America have shaken the economy even further.  The housing and credit crisis which began in the summer of 2007 has resulted in an unprecedented situation for banks, our government and the American people.  Everyone is wondering when the crisis will end, who will remain standing and what changes will occur that will forever change our financial landscape. 

Working in the financial industry I have seen ups and downs of various cycles but this cycle hits close to home when major competitors are wiped off the scene and thousands of people have their livelihood cut off at the knees. While I am fortunate to work for one of the financial institutions that remain in business it is impossible not to be rattled by the recent events.  We are all in a wait and see mode as the markets open again this morning to more turbulent financial news relating to AIG but having been in this business for quite a number of years you have to keep your chin up and ride the tide.  No one knows how things will unfold in the days, weeks and months ahead.  All I can say is fasten your seat belt as it will be a bumpy ride.

This turmoil is certainly thrusting both our political candidates into a mode where they have to address what they will do to fix the economy and it doesn’t appear to me that either candidate sounds overly confident when speaking about their action plans.  Both have been part of a government that has contributed to the situation we are in today and neither one has yet to convince me that they are capable of implementing a solid plan that would help put us on track.  Obama needs to show he is qualified and capable of reacting to a crisis by putting forth a solid and detailed plan on how to fix the economy.  McCain needs to do the same thing.  And they both need to somehow convince the American people that although they have been part of the government that has let this happen in the first place, that they are catalysts for major reforms and can effectively administer change.  With seven weeks to go I don’t have a lot of confidence in either person.

Any woman who is pregnant or has been pregnant knows that in the third trimester you can’t help but suffer from some sort of back pain, leg cramps or other aches and pains.  If you haven’t then you are extremely lucky and very rare.  Since Labor Day my back pain has kicked in along with some acid reflux and I’ve had to say goodbye to heels at the office as the strain on back and calves just got to be too much.  To treat my ailments I took a friends recommendation and headed to the Tranquility Spa in Scarsdale for a much needed and long overdue pregnancy massage.   I have had tons of regular massages but never a pregnancy one and I have to say I really enjoyed it.  Lying on my side with pillows to provide support, all of my aches and pains were massaged away.  I felt the tightness in my legs go away and the strain on my back lessened.  It was a very relaxing hour that flew by way too quickly.  Relaxing in the peace and quiet of my treatment room really helped soothe my sore muscles.  If you are pregnant and feeling similar strains on your back and legs then I highly recommend making an appointment.  After all, you deserve to be pampered while lugging around your precious little one inside.

As for the Tranquility Spa, I really didn’t know what to expect.  I have been to several higher-end spas in NYC but this was my first try at a relatively unknown spa in Westchester.  A friend had been there a couple of months ago and was satisfied with her massage so I decided to give it a try.  I didn’t go in with any expectations but I was pleasantly surprised.  The staff greeted me nicely and showed me around the spa area.  The locker rooms were clean and pleasant, with numerous lockers, private changing areas, a steam room, showers and areas to get ready.  They provide everything from towels to soap, shampoo, deodorant, hairspray, hairdryers and brushes.  The waiting room before your treatment is an array of modern couches in browns and neutral colors with soothing music playing.  Water with lemon and a tray of cookies are provided while you wait or after your treatment.  The treatment rooms are on the small side but the massage table was warm and comfortable and the music playing during my treatment was very pleasant.  The technician gave a nice massage and worked out my kinks.  While it wasn’t the best massage I’ve ever had, it was very relaxing and did just what I was hoping for – soothe my aching back.  I would definitely consider going back as my experience was positive but I would also love to hear other recommendations for spas in the lower Westchester area.  I am sure I will need a little more pampering before Baby Herman arrives.

Seven years ago, we all remember where we were and what we were doing when the news broke of planes hitting the World Trade Center.  I was sitting at my desk in midtown when all of a sudden we heard the news and everyone poured into conference rooms watching as the events unfolded downtown.  Everyone knew someone down there; family, friends, colleagues, etc…  Watching and listening to the news we all went numb.  Some of us rushed back to our desks franticly calling people to see if they were okay and to find out where they were.  My father worked blocks from the WTC and his office overlooked the buildings as they burned.  It took awhile to reach him but finally we heard that he was okay and in the lobby of his building awaiting further instructions.  Having been on a high floor he and his colleagues unfortunatetly witnessed people jumping from the buildings realizing if the option to jump was the best option then there was little or no hope for survival depending on where in the WTC you were.   When given the okay to leave his building, he and others silently walked the streets of downtown in search of a way to leave the area.  Fortunate for him he ended up on a ferry to Hoboken.  As he got off the ferry he had no idea that he was covered in ash from head to toe and was immediately hosed off and questioned by FBI who was gathering information from everyone who left the area as they tried desparately to piece together the events.  After being hosed off, my dad proceeded to walk several miles to his car in Weehawken and then drove home.  To this day, he will rarely speak in detail about what he saw as the memories are probably still quite vivid and something that will stay with him for life. 

I was in midtown that day and soon after the buildings came down we all left.  As I walked out of my building and looked down Broadway all you could see was a dark cloud of smoke hanging over downtown and the smell of fire filled the air.  Silently thousands of people were walking the streets including me.  It took an hour to make it to my apartment where I met up with friends.  We all stayed together, lunching and watching the news.  We were all numb.  We were in disbelief.  Call after call poured in for each of us from friends and relatives near and far checking to see that we were all safe.  Fortunately for us all tragedy did not strike close to home.  We all knew of people that perished in the rubble but no one close to us thank goodness. 

These memories stay with us and with each passing year those of us who were here in NY or anywhere in the US for that matter will remember this day vividly.  Our children will not know a world with the twin towers but they will learn of them in school and through us.  May tragedy of this magnitude not strike again in our lifetime or anytime thereafter.  For all who perished on 9/11, rest in peace.  You are forever in all our hearts.

Last year published reports regarding Bisphenol-A , a hormone-disrupting chemical considered to be potentially harmful to human health and the environment, generated a lot of concern from the public – in particular mothers although they aren’t the only ones that should be concerned – everyone should be.  Plastic products such as bottles, rattles, teething rings as well as plastic drinking containers (like the popular Nalgene) are now considered health hazards if they are not BPA free. 

Prior to several manufactures taking the lead in manufacturing BPA free products, published reports indicated that plastic containers or products containing BPA are hazardous to our health.  Infants and toddlers are particularly vulnerable considering all the bottles and sippy cups they drink from as well as from all the plastic toys they put in their mouths.  The warning is still hazardous for adults so hikers, bikers, walkers, joggers – if you are carrying a plastic bottle with you, make sure its BPA free.

A great site to find BPA free products is TheSoftLanding. While their site primarily targets products for infants and toddlers, there are also links to products for adults.  If you haven’t read much on this topic, its worth doing a little research especially before you drink from your next water bottle.