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  It's a bit after 6 PM New York time. Dow Jones futures  are up 31 points. Traders expect to end 2025 on a strong note.  Meanwhile, there is buzz that we Boomers are focusing too much on angst about running out of money and not enough on purchasing experiences. Okay Betty White made it almost to her 100th birthday and Dick Van Dyke will probably celebrate that. But the rest of us will be fortunate to last until the end of our 80s. I decided to spend more. Tomorrow I will chill at Geneva on the Lake, about three hours from where I live. Will pony up the bucks to sleep in one of those quaint inns. The beach is a great place to collect rocks with interesting contours. Sure, there are those who are without our financial reserves. I recommend that they consider relocating from a HCOL (high cost of living) area to a LCOL (low cost of living) one. Toledo, Ohio is among the latter. No longer is most of Arizona. Homelessness doesn't have to happen. UPDATE: It's about 8 AM New Yor...

 The headline today on  Bloomberg reads: "What I Learned About Five-Star Service at the Harvard of Hospitality" Despite all its troubles, ranging from its president stepping down to the association with Epstein to alleged grade inflation, it remains the pop culture way of indicating a kind of gold standard. But, for how long?  The whole mystique of an institution which dates back to 1636 could collapse. That's because what it represents is currently being questioned and challenged.  For example, Arizona State has gained brand equity becoming known as the "Anti Harvard." Instead of priding itself on how few applicants it accepts it's thriving through not being exclusive.  In addition, how well is Harvard preparing its students - undergraduate, graduate, professional - for today's economy? Well-known is that some recent graduates of its iconic MBA program are unemployed.  Not unthinkable: Harvard on a resume could become a liability. Do employers want to ...

In the late 1960s, when a doctoral student in Ann Arbor, Michigan I tried to shop exclusively at Goodwill. That started out wonderfully. Low prices for real finds.  Then, something happened. Maybe the management got it that the merchandise could be sold for more. Prices across the board went up. I bought less. Eventually I found better bargains elsewhere. Even back then those in the "used" retail category had to compete. Now, it's become a dogfight.  In play is the gentrified versions of Goodwill.  Linkedin  reports that the makeovers have increased sales.  But, have prices also been boosted? In addition will the spruced-up look scare away hard-core bargain-hunters.  After I relocated to Toledo, Ohio from Arizona, where I had donated the contents of my habitat to charity, I needed furniture. Reynolds Road could be called Thrift Alley. Store after store in the gently-used category.  Here is one find for 10 bucks. Look at the classic lines. But I didn't ...

  No big bang. But the bull market seems to still have life left. Dow Jones Industrial Average Index Index: DJI Compare 47,503.48 USD ▲  +76.36 (+0.16%) today November 28, 9:34 AM EST  ·  Market Open UPDATE: Dow Jones Industrial Average INDEXDJX: .DJI Market Summary  >  Dow Jones Industrial Average 47,716.42 +289.30  (0.61%) today Nov 28, 1:20 PM EST  •  Disclaimer

  Dow Jones Industrial Average Index Index: DJI Compare 47,522.90 USD ▲  +410.45 (+0.87%) today

  As the holiday season kicks in so does nostalgia. We Boomers recall the days of the big snow as standard. We spooned our Campbell tomato soup with too many saltines as we watched cartoons on the new medium of television. Then a clever hustler who wanted fame - Andy Warhol - captured that bit of Americana in what was supposed to be art.  Now that bit of American history is under attack. In dollar stores cans of Campbell's are on the shelves. Yes, it's come to that. Simultaneously, the corporation's public relations department is struggling to convince consumers that the ingredients aren't artificial.  In addition, what about how one of its executives (now put on leave) sized up the product as for "poor people." As the polar vortex rolls in, don't dare serve up any of its soups to guests coming in from the cold.  In coaching, with so much shifts in the law of supply and demand, I am guiding clients how to reset their brands for a fresh start. Campbell...

  Dow  Jones Industrial Average Index Index: DJI Compare 46,722.99 USD ▲  +274.72 (+0.59%) today November 25, 9:33 AM EST  ·  M

  Hope I won't regret it when the market open tomorrow. How it closed this evening: Dow Jones Industrial Average INDEXDJX: .DJI Market Summary  >  Dow Jones Industrial Average 46,448.27 +202.86  (0.44%) today Nov 24, 4:20 PM EST  •  Disclaimer

 The labor market is strong, sizes up CNBC.  But who are getting the jobs? While overall unemployment is at 4.4%, for youth 16 - 24, it's at 10.4%. However, it's unlikely any Nepo Babies are among those without work. Actually, probably they have the good jobs. Even the glam ones.  The labor market never operated as a level playing field. The access Nepo Babies have always ensured quite the edge in getting, holding and moving on to better work. Currently, though, the situation has mutated into an economy of work scarcity. There are fewer slots. The shelf life of those slots keeps getting shorter. Actually locked out are the non-nepos. Things look dismal for Class of 2026. In this Substack column I submit a radical proposal for bringing work to those who aren't the offspring of the ruling class. Peeks into the Epstein files disclosed how those folks succeed. That doesn't have to continue.   Thrown off your game, maybe the first time since you started working? You mad...

 Dow futures rise 200 points. More details from CNBC.

Currently the economics of keeping a roof over your head tilts toward renting versus home ownership. Yahoo Finance documents: "An analysis from Zillow and Thumbtack estimated hidden costs alone have climbed to nearly $16,000 a year on average, or an additional $1,325 a month on top of a mortgage ... CBRE calculates ... the monthly costs of a mortgage payment, taxes, insurance, and maintenance are more than double the cost of renting, on average." An added incentive to renting is that in a growing number of cities rents are coming down because of apartment over-building. There are even promos in which free rent for a month or more is part of the deal. But the wrench in the works, at least for those generations socialized to being concerned about status, is the stigma associated with the negative perception that "you aren't able to own your own home." That reflects what research proved out: Ownership of whatever is rated higher than renting whatevers. We boomers...

  In this Substack column I give a peek into how networking operates among the ruling class. It's necessary. And it can be dangerous.  In intuitive coaching/tarot reading I warn about guilt by association. That could be simple as chumming up with a CEO who winds up getting forced out.    Thrown off your game, maybe the first time since you started working? You made all the right moves and then the world moved in another direction. Intuitive Coaching. Special expertise with transitions, reskilling and aging. Psychic/tarot readings, upon request. Complimentary consultation with Jane Genova (Text 203-468-8579, janegenova374@gmail.com ). Yes, test out the chemistry. Zero risk.

  Dow Jones Industrial Average INDEXDJX: .DJI Market Summary  >  Dow Jones Industrial Average 45,921.57 +169.31  (0.37%) today Nov 21, 10:42 AM EST  •  Disclaimer UPDATE: Market Summary  >  Dow Jones Industrial Average 46,107.79 +355.53  (0.78%) today Nov 21, 11:35 AM EST  •  Disclaimer UPDATE: Dow Jones Industrial Average INDEXDJX: .DJI Market Summary  >  Dow Jones Industrial Average 46,460.07 +707.81  (1.55%) today Nov 21, 12:14 PM EST  •  Disclaimer

  Dow Jones Industrial Average INDEXDJX: .DJI Market Summary  >  Dow Jones Industrial Average 46,745.77 +607.00  (1.32%) today Nov 20, 9:34 AM EST