Ok, yes I grew up in Central New York, with enormous amounts of snowfall and a school district that never closed school regardless.  Yes, I have felt cold weather.  Does it mean I always necessarily want to “suck it up” and go outside…. let alone go skiing.  It was ridiculously cold yesterday (we had frost the insides of our windows and handles).

I watched most of the Iowa caucuses last night, and found them more fascinating than I expected I would (last time there were Iowa caucuses I sort of just watched day-to-day progression of the primaries in general).  There is a lot to be said about the results, and nothing that I’m sure you haven’t heard.  I’m pleased with the outcome for several reasons (this is where I hope my dad and my brother are not reading…. at least I know my dad isn’t).

Firstly, Guiliani is way down.  Whether or not his tactic of “skipping” Iowa campaigning works or not (he seems confident it will), I’m glad he got low numbers compared to the front runners.  Frankly, I don’t like the guy, and think that US in the international setting would not fare particularly well if he were to be elected, and that’s an issue I deem important.  He’s also really milking his 9-11 experience to death.

Secondly, while I haven’t necessarily “decided” upon a Democratic candidate (or if I will even vote Democratic…. yes, I’m middle-of-the-road, deal with it), I do think this was a great win by Obama.  Taking politics out of it, the mere fact that a black man won over a state with 95% white residents is strong move in a positive direction.  Putting politics back into it, I don’t want to be redundant with the loads of commentary there is out there this morning,  It looks like change and trust are what the people of Iowa want… we’ll see how that plays out.

Question of the Day (which I’ve of course already messed up)

What is the mathematical equation that calculates how many more minutes the average person/idiot leaves their car running based on how many degrees colder it is outside?

I’ve decided to institute a Question of the Day, which in theory may turn into Question of the Week depending on how much I actually post.  I was considering having the first question be “How many days will Kate go before she misses a Question of the Day?” but have decided that it’s a waste of a question.  We’re going to also make this business days only.

So the first Question of the Day is:

Why is it that all of the people on the sidelines of football games can never forsee player flying out of bounds, and end up getting mauled or having their legs taken out from underneath them while they stand and stare?  Why can’t they ever move??

Thank God, because the last three weeks have been absolutely non-stop. My MBA is unofficially done, and with that, I’ve decided that I can no longer jam any more information into my head without doing something with it. It’s just getting shoved and smashed in there with nothing to do. I have a hard time learning without doing, and to boot, pretty much all we learn in business school is skills. As far as I’m concerned, those don’t settle in until you apply them.

So I’m going to apply them. Done and done. And it’ll most likely be in some unconventional way, shape or form.

As for the holidays, there is snow a-plenty on the ground. Actually, it’s ice in Boston. I’m excited for Christmas, and hopefully it won’t be as rushed a trip home as Thanksgiving was. I’m crossing my fingers it’ll bring me a full week of relaxation, and that’s just awesome. So until then…..

In the meantime, it’s time to ski. I will leave you with this: 101 Dumbest Moments in Business. Number 14 is great.

I have nothing more fitting to say than that we’re just the greatest city in the entire world.

I don’t even know if this is real, but I’ve seen this craigslist posting three times this week and it’s so damn funny. I wish this guy were my friend………….

THE QUESTION (from bright, single woman)

What am I doing wrong?

Okay, I’m tired of beating around the bush. I’m a beautiful
(spectacularly beautiful) 25 year old girl. I’m articulate and classy.
I’m not from New York. I’m looking to get married to a guy who makes at
least half a million a year. I know how that sounds, but keep in mind
that a million a year is m iddle class in New York City, so I don’t think
I’m overreaching at all.

Are there any guys who make 500K or more on this board? Any wives? Could
you send me some tips? I dated a business man who makes average around
200 – 250. But that’s where I seem to hit a roadblock. 250,000 won’t get
me to central park west. I know a woman in my yoga class who was married
to an investment banker and lives in Tribeca, and she’s not as pretty as
I am, nor is she a great genius. So what is she doing right? How do I
get to her level?

Here are my questions specifically:

- Where do you single rich men hang out? Give me specifics- bars,
restaurants, gyms

-What are you looking for in a mate? Be honest guys, you won’t hurt my
feelings

-Is there an age range I should be targeting (I’m 25)?

- Why are some of the women living lavish lifestyles on the upper east
side so plain? I’ve seen really ‘plain jane’ boring types who ha ve
nothing to offer married to incredibly wealthy guys. I’ve seen drop dead
gorgeous girls in singles bars in the east village. What’s the story
there?

- Jobs I should look out for? Everyone knows – lawyer, investment
banker, doctor. How much do those guys really make? And where do they
hang out? Where do the hedge fund guys hang out?

- How you decide marriage vs. just a girlfriend? I am looking for
MARRIAGE ONLY

Please hold your insults – I’m putting myself out there in an honest
way. Most beautiful women are superficial; at least I’m being up front
about it. I wouldn’t be searching for these kind of guys if I wasn’t
able to match them – in looks, culture, sophistication, and keeping a
nice home and hearth.

it’s NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial
interests

THE ANSWER (from intelligent, unfooled man)

I read your posting with great interest and have thought meaningfully
about your dilemma. I offer the following analysis of your predicament.
Firstly, I’m not wasting your time, I qualify as a guy who fits your
bill; that is I make more than $500K per year. That said here’s how I
see it.

Your offer, from the prospective of a guy like me, is plain and simple a
crappy business deal. Here’s why. Cutting through all the B.S., what you
suggest is a simple trade: you bring your looks to the party and I bring
my money. Fine, simple. But here’s the rub, your looks will fade and my
mon ey will likely continue into perpetuity…in fact, it is very likely
that my income increases but it is an absolute certainty that you won’t
be getting any more beautiful!

So, in economic terms you are a depreciating asset and I am an earning
asset. Not only are you a depreciating asset, your depreciation
accelerates! Let me explain, you’re 25 now and will likely stay pretty
hot for the next 5 years, but less so each year. Then the fade begins in
earnest. By 35 stick a fork in you!

So in Wall Street terms, we would call you a trading position, not a buy
and hold…hence the rub…marriage. It doesn’t make good business sense
to ‘buy you’ (which is what you’re asking) so I’d rather lease. In case
you think I’m being cruel, I would say the following. If my money were
to go away, so would you, so when your beauty fades I need an out. It’s
as simple as that. So a deal that makes sense is dating, not marriage.

Separately, I was taught early in my career about efficient markets. So,
I wonder why a girl as ‘articulate, classy and spectacularly beautiful’
as you has been unable to find your sugar daddy. I find it hard to
believe that if you are as gorgeous as you say you are that the $500K
hasn’t found you, if not only for a tryout.

By the way, you could always find a way to make your own money and then
we wouldn’t need to have this difficult conversation.

With all that said, I must say you’re going about it the right way.
Classic ‘pump and dump.’
I hope this is helpful, and if you want to enter into some sort of
lease, let me know.
Kinds regards,

xxxxxxxxxx

So my roommate found a domestic rabbit out in the parking lot of our complex on Thursday.  She new it was domesticated because of course she used to raise them (she manages to have past experience in anything completely random, but pertinent at certain times, such as this).  She brought her (we realized….she realized) inside and put her in the dog cage in my room.

We put up signs on Friday morning, to no avail.  Roslyn thinks that someone didn’t want the cute little thing anymore, but thought that it would be able to live in the wild?  Sounds like a case of not thinking to me.

Anyway, she’s in my room right now, rattling a little in the cage.  I had let her run around the room for an hour or two today, and she tasted freedom, so now she’s getting anxious.  She’s pretty adorable, but I can’t help thinking what a sissy pet she is.  I mean, who has bunnies?  I almost want to ask who has indoor pets, but that’s just because I grew up in the middle of nowhere and only had outdoor animals.  A rabbit seems like a cop out of a pet to me.  They don’t particularly like to be cuddled (although this little one is really soft, and at least she doesn’t mind being pet).  They’re not loyal.  I’m not even sure she knows who I am, or cares.

Is that lame of me?  Some people really like their rabbits….

This week has been non-stop, and let me tell you how wonderful it is that I don’t have classes the next two days…. we’re supposed to be “reading.” Thank God for literacy.

On a much heavier note:

The Sox are making me nervous. Papi brought out the guns last night, but it wasn’t quite enough. One more weekend, we’ll watch and wait and I will likely be on the edge of my seat the whole time. At least I just got a sweet new sweatshirt from Chad to show my support:

In other news, while reading a gossip mag at the gym this morning (they just make the elliptical fly by!), I’ve been mildly pleased at how *people* are now commenting on “too thin” women. Someone is worried that Jennifer Aniston isn’t eating enough.

I mean, I don’t know about that, but the whole thing is probably a good move, even if they’re just saying it to please a lot of ticked off people who blame *the industry* for the entire face of self-conscious American women. We’ll take it. Although wouldn’t it be funny if everyone just started to eat uncontrollably? Gotta love the media.