Here is a list of what I read this week. All the book title links refer to the Amazon website. Feel free to purchase if you choose; I do not participate in any affiliate links; therefore, I receive no remuneration for the referral. Unfortunately, all articles from the Wall Street Journal will require a subscription (sorry) for you to read. Any blog posts I cover have piqued my interest enough to include them for one reason or another.
I've decided to change the blog format, switching from a simple title, date, and author format to a description of what I found interesting about the article. I mentioned this change in my January 8, 2023, What I’m Reading blog.
Books
I, Asimov: A Memoir by Isaac Asimov. Reading 63% complete.
Younger Next Year by Chris Crowley and Henry S. Lodge. Reading 51% complete.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab. Completed. I don’t know that I have read any “Romance Literary Fiction” before; however, I found the story engaging and very creative as the author jumps the reader back and forth between experiences wrought over a 300-year life. I give it a five-star rating.
Articles and Blogs
Winter Cleaning. By Jamie Todd Rubin. Jan 15, 2023 (Blog). Another blog article about year-end reviews and cleaning up your life.
It's time for investors to change their thinking if they want to get to the finish line. By Martin Pelletier. Jan 16, 2023 (Yahoo Finance). Mr. Pelletier's article asks, “What happens if interest rates stay where they are?” A reintroduction to value investing and “companies that can grow cash flow even with the higher cost of capital.”
Bonds Over Stocks: The New 60-40 Portfolio. By Matt Wirz and Jack Pitcher (WSJ). BlackRock suggests reversing the general order of 60-40 (stocks vs. bonds) and placing 65% in bonds and 35% in stocks (also known as balanced toward income strategy at some companies). BlackRock assumes that the current inverted yield curve will remain with bond yields falling, creating a “6.5% annual yield at current prices.”
U.S. Retail Sales Fell 1.1% in December. By Harriet Torry and Sarah Nassaur. Jan 18, 2023 (WSJ). Not surprisingly that U.S. Retail Sales fell in December as “rising interest rates, still-high inflation and concerns about a slowing economy pinched American consumers.” The “total household spending figures” will be released later this month, covering spending on “goods and services.”
The SEC Seeks to Supplant the Market. By Phil Gramm and Hester Peirce. Jan 19, 2023 (WSJ). The article regarding the Securities and Exchange Commission’s regulatory attempt to “substitute its own judgment for that of investors, corporate directors and managers” should concern everyone. The SEC has no business “telling companies how to run themselves and investors how to invest.”
The Biden Classified-Document Payback. By Daniel Henninger. Jan 18, 2023 (WSJ). Who doesn’t love stories about Karma?
Tags, Reports and Todo List Features for Year End. By Matt Caton. In this short video on Dec 19, 2022 (TheBrain), Matt describes his end-of-year review to help “clean up” his note-taking system to prepare for the new year.
Personalization vs. Hyper-personalization in Programming. By Carl Hardwick (OPEX Fitness), “simple resistance, aerobic, and anaerobic progressions done consistently will work for a large percentage of people forever.”
Microsoft to Lay Off 10,000 Workers as Slowdown Hits Software Business. By Tom Dotan. Jan 18, 2023 (WSJ). A discrepancy between the headline and the body of the article. The headline refers to a Lay off; however, the body says that Microsoft “plans to eliminate” jobs. A layoff assumes the individual will be recalled to the same job. Elimination assumes there is no longer a position to return to. Microsoft joins other high-tech companies saying “artificial intelligence” will be the “next major wave of computing.”
Writing in Obsidian - A Comprehensive Guide. By Diana Demco. Nov 10, 2022 (Medium). Diana introduces a “Swipe File" intended to add “swiped” notations from reading material that is inspiring, well-written, or a metaphor that you might want to use in your own writing someday.
9 Free Writing Tools That Make My Life Easier. By Diana Demco. Nov 2, 2022 (Medium). Nine free writing tools were linked to Diana’s first article and contain accessible internet sources to help with writing.
Senators, Facing Long Odds, Seek Border, Immigration Deal. By Eliza Collins and Michelle Hackman. (WSJ print edition Jan 20, 2023, p.A4.)
Justice’s Double Standards. By Kimberley A. Strassel. (WSJ print edition Jan 20, 2023, p.A13.)
High Court Probe Fails to Identify Leaker. By Jess Bravin. Unfortunately, the months-long probe into the leaked Roe v. Wade opinion in May has not resulted in the identity or identities of the individuals involved. (WSJ print edition Jan 20, 2023, p.A3.)
Adam Schiff, Disinformation Man. By The Editorial Board. Jan 20, 2023.