Time for a new sport

We had a sports filled Sunday as we watched the Cleveland Indians win over Oakland, then watched the Cleveland Browns lose to Oakland ( the stunt Oakland pulled during the final play of the game is the topic of another rant yet to come).

The Browns and The Raiders were playing in Oakland where the stadium is used for both baseball and football. It makes for a strange looking gridiron.

In any case, the combination of a football field and baseball diamond in one facility got me thinking that it is time to start a new sport in the U.S. combining football and baseball. My daughter Stefanie suggested that if we could somehow pull a marching band into the scene it would really round out the new game.

So here it is. The name is still in development and I am open to suggestions for same, as well as suggestions for additional rules of play. In the meanwhile, the game basically looks like this...

There are two teams ( of course ). The game is played on a conventional baseball diamond shape, but the field is all grass. A team is up to bat. Upon hitting the baseball the batter attempts to run to first base. The opposing team however is permitted to tackle the runner. If the runner actually makes it to first base, then he/she must reach into a large box located near the plate and withdraw at random a brass instrument. ( trumpet, trombone, sousaphone, etc). Whatever they withdraw, they must be able to play. The opposing team chooses the musical selection that they must play. After their performance, the crowd rates the performance. If they score a 5 or less ( on a scale of 1-10 ) they are OUT. If they rate a 6-8 they may advance to second base. If they rate a 9 they advance to third. If they rate a 10 they get to go home and score. 6 points.

Since it is a somewhat violent and difficult task to get to first base, instead of 3 outs, each team gets 4 outs and only 4 innings are played.

So there it is... your comments and suggestions are requested.

Economic Indicators Part II

Evidently, things are looking up. Interest rates on adjustable rate mortgages are starting to stabilize and even run down a little. The job market seems to be improving although slightly.

The key economic indicator however is what I call the loose change factor.

A few posts back I discussed "lost change" and shared my wisdom regarding the fortune in lost change available for the taking. In recent months however the available change seemed to have dried up.

But lo and behold, only a few days after that post... what do my wandering eyes see but 6 cents laying next to my car at the Giant Eagle parking lot. Another 2 cents today at the Home Depot.

My son reports that he found 3 dollar bills yesterday. The recession is definitely coming to an end!

I got your anniversary right here Binny

So Bin Laden is issueing another video tape... what does he think he is BMG Music? Every video has to come out with advance hype that another Bin Laden video is about to be released. Why doesn't he just make them available for 19.99 on late night TV..."Call now, and get all the "fundamentalist Islamic terrorist hits".

Listen up "Binny" you probably haven't noticed but REAL world leaders do live press conferences. They don't issue videos from the comfort of their cave.

1935- 2007

Economic Indicators

A few years ago, I read a study conducted at the Mall of America in Minneapolis. The study had to do with the "value of money".

The research went something like this; researchers dropped pennies throughout the mall and then observed as teenagers came in and out of the mall. The idea was to gage how many people would bend over to pick up the pennies. After several hours, virtually no one expended the energy to pick up the pennies. Next they tried nickels. They found that a relatively low number of people would stop and pick up the nickels. When they went to dimes the number fell below that of the nickels. ( They theorized that it had to do with the size of the coin versus the value. ) Next they started dropping quarters and the number of people bending over to pick up the quarters increased to about 1 in 10. It wasn't until they started dropping dollar bills that they were able to get more than 90%. Even with the paper money, people seemed to be more concerned with "their image" than with the value of money. This led the researchers to theorize that there was little understanding of the true value of money, at least within the teen age demographic.

I shared this story with my son who was about to go off to college. I suggested to him that even a found penny had huge value as it was tax free, investment free, virtually labor free money. In other words; Pure Profit.

I further challenged Tim to keep his eyes peeled as he traversed the campus and pick up any loose change he spotted. I suggested that there was a virtual fortune in lost coin just laying around on the ground, and that based on the Mall of America study, the college campus would be an ideal hunting ground.

I don't remember the exact amount but after his first year of college I believe he found somewhere around $60 in change. (Not bad for just "wandering around income".

At the same time, I embarked on my own coin hunting adventure and had similar results. I was absolutely astounded at how much change could be found laying around on the ground.

Interestingly enough however, I have noticed that in the last 5 months or so, the "change well" has dried up. I haven't found even a penny in weeks.

Could it be that with the rising cost of food and gas, rising interest rates, rising taxes, and increased consumer debt, the American public is finally starting to understand the value of money?