De-I and Wife vs MUPGT on the Streets of Paris!

Yesterday was a travel day. Because of our little sojourn in Avignon, we were faced with driving back to Nice, a 2.5 hour drive) to drop off our rental car and catch a train to Paris. Fortunately the train was not too early and we gave ourselves plenty of time. That was good as it took longer to turn the car in than we thought and we didn't have very long to wait until we caught our train.

As we were the first stop for this train we had no problems with space for our luggage. I'm not quite sure why but the TGV (high speed train) in France has relatively little room for luggage. When you consider these are long distance trains and people going long distances are going to have luggage, it is a bit of a mystery why they don't do something to add more.

It was a bit of irony that this train went back through Avignon. I joked with Wife that we'd been traveling for 6 hours just to get back to where we started. But it would have been difficult and expensive to change all the reservations particularly without internet access at the Avignon rental.

So we got to Paris without problem, got our cab, went to the new rental apartment, one that is a number of apartments in a building owned and operated by a friend of ours in Albuquerque. We'd communicated just days before and I'd sent our arrival time. Got there, rang the door bell. Nothing. Rang the door bell, nothing. I'd texted that we were on our way in the cab. I called the owner's cell, right to voice mail. It's cold, it's starting to rain. I get out my computer and call the office number. No answer. We see a light on upstairs on the third floor. We ring the door bell many more times.

The Magical Unicorn Pony God of Travel is quaffing mead and laughing her horn off. Surely now she has defeated de-I at last. He will die miserably of exposure among his bags on the streets of Paris. How sweet. But her glee and ecstatic joy are interrupted. "What? Not the use of technology again?" De-I, he is using Booking.com to make a nearly instantaneous last minute reservation! He is using Uber to get picked up exactly where he, Wife, and bags are. In less than an hour from the time to bail, he and Wife are installed in a warm, nice comfortable hotel! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

We were exhausted and went to a bistro right next to the hotel to eat. While eating the apartment owner called, profusely apologetic. His partner was in the building and for whatever reason he did not hear the bell (Did he have headphones on or what?). He said he would reimburse our hotel cost (without my even asking) and we will be back at the rental this morning.

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Dinner or How I Knocked Many Things Off My Bucket List

Funny as in 'not normal' as opposed to 'ha, ha'.

Last Sunday we had friends Dr. Debbie and Cabinet Lady (I need to change their blog names as one has retired and the other is soon to) over for dinner. They had never made polenta from scratch and I was showing them how.

On the Thursday prior I had gotten a flu shot. I had no reaction to it to speak of until Saturday night when I felt I was coming down with something. On Sunday I had a full fledged upper respiratory infection, as if I had caught the flu.

We were plating everything up and coming to the table (it was around 6:30 PM) and I suddenly felt very ill like I was going to throw up. I dashed to our master bathroom. Nothing was going to come up but I was suddenly shaking like I was freezing to death, was terribly cold and my breathing was labored to the point of being hard to even function. I managed to get on a vest for warmth and went back to the kitchen and announced, "Something weird is going on!"

I collapsed on the living room sofa and Wife and the two ladies jumped to my assistance. Wife was very calm. They got blankets plied on me. They tell me my lips were blue. Every muscle seemed to be spasming. My upper thighs were going so bad the pain was agony. During all this mentally I was very lucid. I tried to use yogic techniques to slow my breathing but I had no control over my physical functions. So you are in this bizarre space of mentally being alert and aware while being totally helpless as your body flails around and gasps for breath.

Wife called 911. During the call she mentioned that I had recently been diagnosed with asthma. the operator asked if I had an inhaler. I was able to direct them to where mine was. They sent the paramedics to the house. Within 10 minutes or so of using the inhaler, my breathing started to calm down as did the spasms.

The paramedics arrived...9 of them! I guess it was the slowest day ever in violent Albuquerque and they were bored out of their mind. Either that or they get a bonus if they arrive there first. I was clearly improving but we made the call to go to the emergency room. By the time I got there I was feeling substantially better and all metrics were improving. Within an hour and a half of arriving, I was pretty much normal They were most concerned with how the episode had affected my heart so they had me stick around for another four hours so they could do another EKG and look for markers in my blood.

We (a crotchety old male nurse and I) convinced Wife to go home and wait until the tests were over.  This 1)  got her out of sitting for hours in a freezing ER room in an uncomfortable chair and 2) allowed me to get some sleep as I was no longer guilty about Wife being freezing in the uncomfortable chair.

By 2:00 AM the tests had been done and everyone was happy to let me go. It took another couple of days to get back to feeling fully okay after all the trauma.

So what caused this?

We don't know. We have three different theories offered by three different healthcare professionals.

Theory One (the ER doctor) - Taking the flu shot caused me to either get a viral infection or aggravate one I already had. The combination of infection, flu shot and asthma caused this reaction.

Theory Two (the Pharmacist) - Said the flu vaccine had dead viruses in it so can't cause you to get the flu. He thinks I have an allergy to some protein in the flu vaccine and therefore suffered an allergic reaction.

Theory Three (my Doctor) - She feels something triggered an asthmatic attack. That can in turn trigger a massive surge in adrenaline causing the spasms.

Theory Three would explain as well why as soon as the inhaler took affect I started to get better. I have problems with the other two because why would it take so long (three days after I had the shot) for some reaction to occur related to it?

In conclusion we don't really know more that we did before BUT we are starting a process of asthma control which is about the best one can do. I am, however, very happy that I can now take a number of things off of my life experience list.

• Be a 911 Patient - On the whole an interesting experience seeing the whole thing unfold from the patient side of things. Don't need to do it again. Thanks for the opportunity
• Go on the Ambulance Ride to the ER as a Patient - Again interesting but not necessary to be repeated
• Go to the ER - As bad as every says it is (in terms of the waiting around, not the quality of the care though they forgot to tell me they were holding me for the four hours until we were an hour into the wait). Definitely not interested in repeating.

 

Are We Going to Rise to the Challenge?

Over the last few months I have perusing a much broader selection of blogs and the comments thereof. I don't want to sound pedantic or holier than thou, but in a lot of cases I am simply amazed at some of the comments related to the current circumstances that we (the country, the populace, the economy, the individuals) find ourselves in.

It is not that people are upset, scared, concerned about what is going to happen to themselves and their families. That is perfectly natural. What is upsetting me are the cries that all of this is "unfair", and that this "shouldn't be happening". "Shouldn't be happening?" "Unfair?"

How did we get to a position where people assume that living in the lap of luxury by any historical or current international standard is a given? When people read about Zimbabwe or Somalia or Afghanistan or any of the number of other places that comprise the majority of the human race do they think they reading fiction. Do they stop for even a second to understand that they have been living in an incredible rare period of time when they are literally wallowing in luxury? This is mandated to us? We're supposed to expect that without having done anything to earn it it should just keep coming?

If you are a religious or spiritual person, I'd ask you this. Do you think God put you on this Earth for the purpose of having everything you want without worrying about it? Do you know the story of any saint or holy person that has ever achieved those higher states without suffering and sacrifice?

If you are a secular person, surely you believe in evolution, in the survival of the fittest. What happens to species that become over specialized, that can adapt to changing, harder, challenging circumstances? Oh that's right, they become extinct.

So what are we as a people going to do now that we are being faced with challenges - serious challenges - challenges that are going to demand sacrifice, fortitude, perseverance, will power, and a tolerance of pain and suffering. Are we going to huddle in groups a cry and whine because we are being challenged, because all the luxury we once had is going away?

Or are we going to understand that the only real growth, the only real reason for being alive is to respond to the challenges of life no matter how hard, no matter how long?

Charting Your Course Through Troubled Waters - Part 5

Time for a bit of the metaphysical - the spiritual.

I usually stay away from this in the vast majority of my public discourse. I think I only have touched on it once in my blog right after my kidney donation operation. But during the times we are in now when I see so many going through so much pain and fear, especially those close to me, I am reminded of my own journey.

I've written about my history in dealing with crisis and talked about the emotional and tangible steps one can take to try and take charge of one's destiny. But on a deeper level it is important ot understand that things come into our life for a purpose. Through out much of my life I have learned that the things that were so painful, so difficult to deal with, were the things that ultimately, allowed me to become happy, peaceful, even successful.

So what do we do that thing that comes to our life is not pleasant? How do we react? What do we do with it?

A very sweet soul, Becky, who is another living organ donor with her own foundation, put a poen from a Sufi saint and poet, Rumi on her blog last week. The words are so apropos to this that I copied them for you.

The Guest House
Rumi

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.

Be grateful for whatever comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

Charting Your Course Through Troubled Waters - Part 4

Dealing with the Threat or Actuality of Job Loss

Most of you aren't in business for yourselves. You have jobs. And you feel that you are not in control of your destiny. To an extent that is true. But not completely. Not at all. What is more true is that we don't like change so that in spite of obvious signs that there is trouble ahead we just keep staying at the job until we get the ax. I know because I've done it. I also learned that you can tell the signs and not just let yourself be thrown out of work.

Let's start with some simple math. They are projecting unemployment rising to 8%. Assume they're overly optimistic. Assume that it is 10%. Yikes! What does that mean? It means that 90% of people are working! You need to make sure you're in the 90% and not the 10%.

Now - Practical Advice

1. Analyze the company you're working for. Come on. You know if they're doing good, bad or indifferent. If they're doing bad, you need to accept it and accept that you need to get out of there.
2. Analyze your position in the company. Come on. You know that too. You know if you're essential, one of many, totally superfluous. If you're not on the short list that they might want to keep, accept that you need to get out of there.
3. Don't just let the bus run you over. You can feel it. You can see what's happening. It never really is a total surprise. You have to take action before they let you go.
4. Take your action with urgency. Don't do a halfhearted job. Write that resume. Get on the web sites. Talk to the head hunters. Make it a priority.
5. If your region is totally in the pits consider relocation. That's a tough one. But there are times when a state, city, region is just totally in the pits. If it is for the good of your family and your economic well-being, you might have to move on even if it means leaving family and friends. I've done it.

Hard times are never fun. But they don't have to be the end of times. I said this in an earlier post - don't be a victim.

Charting Your Course Through Troubled Waters - Part 3

In the NY Times online this evening there was an article on how the world wide financial crisis was morphing into a major recession and how that might lead to serious deflation. Most people are familiar with inflation - the ever upward spiral of prices. But deflation is just as bad or worse, when prices keep dropping. It becomes its own vicious cycle because there is no incentive to invest into new production capability when you can't even sell what you already have - and that leads to fewer jobs and lower incomes.

I'm not that good a prognosticator to know if this is in fact what will happen. However, I think that it is a good bet that the conditions in the US for the next few years will be one where everyone has to do less (see explanation in last installment). So how does one adjust.

I'm not going to give the lecture about cutting your costs/spending less, etc. You can read that anywhere. What I want to talk about is opportunity. Yes, opportunity. Because whenever there is significant change there is opportunity - winners and losers. Take automotive for example. The ability to sell lots of very reliable vehicles with easy financing has made winners of auto dealerships and losers of auto repair businesses over the last 10 years. When you take easy credit out of the system and people don't have the income to afford to buy a car what's going to happen. They are going to run their cars longer and they will need more repairs. I think the opportunity is going to be in the repair business.

Looking at this further, the new car sales business has other disadvantages in the new economy. It is based on lots and lots of borrowed money...borrowings for that big lot, showroom and repair facility, borrowings for all that inventory, and borrowings for the purchasers. Not a very good model for an economy that is de-leveraging and in recession. On the other hand your typical independent auto repair shop is a pretty low overhead operation and uses very little leverage.

Whether you are in business, and independent worker or an employee, I would urge you to look at what you are doing and where you are working and say this to yourself...

• How dependent is this business on borrowed money?
• How dependent is it on having to sell lot's of stuff?
• How high is it's overhead?

If you want to be one who is taking advantage of what is happening rather than be a victim, you have to be in the areas that are going to provide benefit.

So I'd like my 6 or so loyal readers to do me a favor. I want you to think about all the kinds of businesses and economic activities you know, and to the best of your knowledge predict one or two that you think can actually benefit from the new de-leveraging/recessionary environment.

And remember what my new motto is for the coming years - How do we do more, deliver more, achieve more by using less and less.

In my next segment I will be addressing what you can do on a personal level to cope with a crisis such as a lost job or a business going down the tubes.

Charting Your Course Through Troubled Waters - Part Two

What Happens Next?

As of this writing, the stock markets are gyrating. Also the world's authorities are pumping massive amounts of funds into the banking system to get the flow of interbank lending (the life blood of the financial system) going again so the normal everyday business can be funded again but they are far from stable. While there is a lot of uncertainty, there seems to be just a bit less outright panic and terror.

So what does this mean to those of us who are just little folk buried way down among all the statistics? Well for one while you can stop panicking that does not mean you should not be concerned. Bubble and stock market crashes are preceding indicators of economic recessions. For most of us in the work-a-day world it is not the value of our investments declining that will have the major effect, it will be the influence of real economic decline over all in the economy. That is what causes loss of jobs and loss of income - the part that we little folk fear and dread.

Before I start going into what one might be able to do about one's future in this environment (which will be in Part Three), I want to get you really, really focused on what I believe is the magnitude of what we are dealing with. Because I don't think we are having just a run of the mill major recession - which for those of you too young to have gone through one is not pleasant. We are going to go through a prolonged period of learning to deal with much, much less than we've had before.

Now I'm not a Nobel Laureate economist, but I do have a pretty good track record for calling these things. (It has been gratifying in a perverse way the last few weeks as a number of business clients and associates have reminded me that I called this collapse starting two years ago).

The world economy is now awash in new debt and financial commitments that have been thrown in trying to restart the flow of business funding. Before this the U.S. was already way in debt both as a country and as a mass of individuals. Where is the money going to come from to pay down this debt? It's going to come out of taxes. It's going to come from less monies governments have to give services. It will come from individuals not being able to buy things because they are going to be paying down debt and higher taxes.

When all these things happen, that money paying down debt can't go into building new products and new infrastructure. When that happens the businesses that produce products and do infrastructure can't hire people. All of this causes a decline in economic activity and a reduction in jobs and income. Add to that something I've written about in the past - the fact that there are lots of places in the world that have cash (China, the Middle East) and they want what we've had and are going to be able to pay for it. That's going to mean less of everything for us.

This is a new world and it's going to last for a long time. We are going to be in a situation in the U.S. where we just don't have the capital to make things happen. People are going to find out that a lot of stuff that they think they are entitled to is - guess what - not an entitlement at all. In fact they are going to learn that they have been very, very, very lucky to have been alive during a period when one country dominated the world's economic output and a corresponding lifestyle - and all that is over.

They are going to find that they are not entitled to:

• Multiple cars
• All the electronic gadgets anyone could desire
• Being able to eat all our meals out whenever we want
• Having a system pay hundreds of thousand of dollars per individual just to keep them alive 9 more months
• Own a house
• Use all the energy they want
• Go on vacations anywhere and anytime they want
• And a host of other things
  

We've been on a wonderful ride - but it's over.

But that does not mean one has to despair. Because in every circumstance there are winners and losers. If you want to be winner, you have to understand that the rules are all changing. Accept and embrace that and you are on your way to charting your new course.

Charting Your Course Through Troubled Waters - Part 1

It is obvious that the economic crisis isn't going away and that we are probably going to be living under less than optimal circumstances for at least the foreseeable near term future. So what do you do to make it through this? I laid out some basic principles last month. But as:

1. I've seen in my own business and with the lives of my children that the need for constant reappraisal and adjustment of action and,
2. I've lived through numerous of these and,
3. I do crisis management for a living

I'm going to keep a flow of information related to how one can deal with the current environment.

This post will deal with "Don't Be A Victim".

So your job is at risk. Your savings are depleting. Everything you've worked for is threatened. What are you going to do? Are you going moan about you're fate? Lose sleep worrying? Go into general depression about FAILURE?

The answer if you are normal is probably - yes I'm going to all those things. And you know what, it's OK. It's OK to be miserable, depressed, angry, scared, frustrated, etc...for a while. Depending on how you're coming into this (a sudden event like losing your job, or a gradual realization that things are deteriorating) this can be a few days or a few weeks.

But then you have to determine - what am I going to do. How am I going to make it through this (which I will talk about in a later post). What you can't do is give up, be a victim. There are all kinds of studies of prisoners of war and concentration camp victims that show that those with the will to survive are those most likely to.

Most of us are not complete Stoics, capable of taking an emotional hit to our chin and not reacting. A good wallow of self-pity is a pretty realistic reaction to a crappy event. But don't let it be the guiding light. Let it be a fling. Then let it go and get on to the process of figuring out just what it is you're going to do.