Whew

Well, I made it through another Mardi Gras. I'll admit it was touch and go there for a little while. I thought I was going to have to hurt a few people along the way but the good news is that everyone made it out alive and no relationships were ended in the process.

It's interesting that such a fun time can have the potential of causing huge problems, but it's true. It usually has something to do with alcohol and loss of patience, but the truth is that, in general, Mardi Gras can be stressful. I always want to make sure that people have fun and stay safe and those things don't always go hand in hand. We all survived, though, and that counts for something.

Now it's time to return to worrying about what happens next with what's left of my retirement savings. Thank goodness I wasn't looking to call it quits any time soon. I feel sorry for my parents and other people their age who had hoped to earn some extra cash in the stock market before turning in their notice and taking things easy.

Work isn't stable and that's stressful too. Add to all of this the recession and the general direction we're headed as a country. I'm not talking about Pres. Obama, I just think we're on a slippery slope and I'm nervous about what happens next. If history repeats itself things will have to get worse before they get better. The last time the world was in this kind of shape we needed World War II to pull us out of it. What will it take this time? So many countries have atomic weapons now that I'm really scared about where all of this is headed. People are doing horrible things to themselves and their families because they can't deal with the stress of it all. Where does it end?

All of this is a little weighty for my first post in almost a month, but it's on my mind so now it's on "paper." Lighter fare later.