Wal-Mart

I recently got this in an email. I don’t know what it means. 1. Americans spend $36,000,000 at Wal-Mart every hour of every day. 2. This works out to $20,928 profit every minute! 3. Wal-Mart will sell more from January 1 to St. Patrick's Day than Target sells all year. 4. Wal-Mart is bigger than Home Depot, Kroger, Target, Sears, Costco, and K-Mart combined. 5. Wal-Mart employs 1.6 million people and is the largest private employer. 6. Wal-Mart is the largest company in the history of the world. 7. Wal-Mart now sells more food than Kroger & Safeway combined. 8. During the last 15 years, 31 supermarket chains have gone bankrupt. 9. Wal-Mart now sells more food than any other store in the world. 10. Wal-Mart has approx 3,900 stores in the USA of which 1,906 are Super Centers; this is 1,000 more than it had 5 years ago. 11. This year 7.2 billion different purchasing experiences will occur at a Wal-Mart store. (Earth's population is approximately 6.5 billion.) 12. 90% of all Americans live within 15 miles of a Wal-Mart. Maybe Wal-Mart should bail out Wall Street?

Macy's

By now, everyone knows that Macy's is closing eleven stores here and there. If you looked carefully at the list, these are all stores that have been in operation for a long time - some from as long ago as 1956. I think the newest among these stores being closed was opened in 1990 - eighteen years ago. I have no idea what that tells us but I'm sure someone out there does. My guess is that the older stores were under performing because they were old and Macy's was not about to spend a small fortune refurbishing them. What do I know??? Perhaps this woman used to model at one of those stores.

Target or Wal-Mart

From a story on Yahoo!: "NEW YORK – Shoppers hit the stores Friday to return unwanted gifts and take advantage of drastic price cuts offered by retailers desperate to get rid of old merchandise and boost their less-than-cheery holiday sales. Many retailers opened before 6 a.m., offering 50 percent to 75 percent off on toys, furniture, electronics and clothing. Stores were hoping the discounts would entice shoppers to redeem gift cards and use cash from returning unwanted gifts to buy something new." I did the same except I went to Target. Target had no deals for me. All the prices were about the same or higher. Shame on Target - a very, very bad store. Go to Wal-Mart instead. I think that's where this woman is headed.

Hemlines again

Again, I must say I told you so. I'm no guru when it comes to investing but you just have to know that when prices are low, that's the time to buy. The following is a quote from an investment advisory but I forget which one: "The stock market is presenting you with one of the great buying opportunities of your lifetime – perhaps the greatest. Stop trying to pick the bottom." That's what 41-year market veteran Steve Leuthold, of the Leuthold Group, just told his clients. "The most difficult decision is not what to buy," he says. "Just buy!" Leuthold is one of our favorites, primarily because he doesn't follow the crowd... even when it's to the detriment of his own business. For example, for much of the last decade, he's been bearish on stocks. Clients don't line up to give you money when you're bearish. But Steve launched the Leuthold Grizzly Fund in June 2000, near the top of the stock market bubble. The Grizzly Fund is up nearly 80% this year. He was right to be bearish this decade. As he told his clients, stocks lost as much over the last 10 years as they did from 1929 to 1939, which was "the worst 10-year performance in U.S. stock market history. " Also, if you must be certain, observe hemlines - they're not coming down so that means the stock market is gearing up for a spectacular rise. Need I say more???

Didn't I tell you?

Now - everyone is coming out and saying that the financial bailout of Wall Street was not meant as an economic stimulus - it was just a bailout of the banks. Now, if we behave ourselves, the banks will again start lending us some of our own money. Thanks a lot Congress. All this time, just as I said, the major investment banks were living from paycheck to paycheck.

Target or Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart seems to be the store of choice for many. Not so much for me. I prefer Target. The reason is simple. Target is not as messy and not as cluttered and not as dirty as Wal-Mart. I'm not saying Wal-Mart is dirty or cluttered or messy. I'm saying it's just got a little bit more of that lived-in look and feel. Of course, one feels more at home at Wal-Mart. At Target, you probably feel like you should not disturb or handle the merchandise too much because the housekeeper might get mad at you. It's like going to a house where a friend has put everything in its place and you have to watch where you step and where you put your glass and all that. That makes one feel uncomfortable. However, the quality at Target is just a tad better, though the prices are higher.