How many times in our lives have we heard the saying, Save it for a rainy day? For some, over and over again. With the financial crisis now circling the world, Save it for a rainy day, means more now than ever.

During the summer we always know when a heat wave hits, eventually storm clouds form to bring it to an end. On the other hand, when a storm is howling, after a period of time has passed the clouds break and the sun shines. Why then financially do we think the rules of nature do not apply? The stock market is quite cyclical…so too is the housing market. I know, this time the buffoons did quite a bit of damage…but the rules of nature still do apply. Still, humanity has a hard time believing that sun and rain are two sides of the same coin.

Many are asking themselves out there, how worse can things get? Well, short of the world coming to an end, we should be close to the bottom of this madness. Why do I call it madness? Because of a strange dilemma of human emotions. When the market is sky-rocketing, a fever grips the community where people can’t buy enough stocks fast enough….hey folks, this is what’s called, Buying at the top, and it can be a long way down. On the opposite end of the spectrum, when people are dumping their stocks at a feverish pace, where they can’t get out of their positions fast enough, this is called, Selling at the bottom. Our emotions tell us to buy when things are wonderful, and sell when things are horrible! It’s crazy….but the opposite, I believe, is true.

As we speak, there are trillions of dollars waiting on the sidelines for all the sellers to exhaust themselves. At that moment, it will look like a cattle stampede to get back into the market. Sadly, it is many of those who need the money, who sold their shares last. Is it truly the rich get richer? Or do cool heads prevail…..

So what do I mean by Save it for a rainy day? When things look like they can’t get any better, take a little off the table, and put it in an emergency fund, for when the rain comes….it always comes.

I remember during the dot.com madness in year 2000, many companies that made no earnings were bid up to astronomical levels. A floor manager on Wall Street remarked, I’ve been here 40 years and I’ve never seen anything new…the same things keep happening over and over again. This was before the housing bubble…well friends, it just happened again! And like the housing mess we are in now, it too will pass, with something else or a new fad waiting to take its place.

The sun shines….the rains come….and the sun shines again. Until the world ends, always keep an umbrella handy, just in case.

Be calm,

Jennifer Avalon

© 2008 Jennifer Avalon

All around us the storm is raging….financial, natural, and unnatural. Many of us in one way or another have been touched by a storm these past couple of months. As we may know, the storm has yet to subside, but as long as we have faith that out there somewhere is a lighthouse swirling a beam to bring us home, there is a better than average chance we will make it back to shore safely.

The Lighthouse….maintained and run by the light keeper, fully aware that out across the sea ships search for a beacon of hope and guidance. These days more than ever we too look for the guidance from the lighthouse. Storms come in all shapes and sizes, affecting the few, and the many….still, the lighthouse never wavers, never goes out, and never gives up. Within each storm there is always the feeling that there has never been one like this before….perhaps, or perhaps not. One thing is for sure, there have been storms before and many have survived and come through stronger. Tonight and every night, always keep an eye out for the beam of the lighthouse….it shines for you, and for me.

Some ships around us may be taking on much water and are in a state of peril. If possible, reach out, make room on board your ship, and give them rest. The waves have a strange way of helping those who are lost, be found. The brave and the faithful always grow stronger with a storm. Sometimes when it is most dark, all of a sudden out the corner of our eyes we spot it….a beam of hope that swirls around to guide us into safety.

Sail on sailors….battle on through the storm….and keep an eye out, for as we are looking for it, the lighthouse is looking for us. Like all storms, the ones we face today too, shall pass. We will have time to look back and wonder why it happened…but that is for another day. For now, we search, we reach out, we scope the horizon, waiting for the lighthouse to deliver us to peaceful waters.

Sail on,

Jennifer Avalon

© 2008 Jennifer Avalon

Every time I think it’s different, I’m always reminded by something happening currently that the world is not black, nor white, but grey. There are those on one side, those on the other, and those in the middle…over and over again, it falls to the middle ground to determine the outcome.

Case in point…the upcoming American elections….on one side Senator Obama…on the other, Senator McCain. The polls show that most people have lined up in support on either side…all that is left are the Independents…those people that each election cycle can go one way or the other. In this case, the Independents are the Grey Zone…they, the experts say, will surely determine the outcome of the elections. The Independents, or Grey People, are never locked into a party or ideology…they walk the middle ground. They view the landscape, see what they think is needed, go into the voting booth and pull the lever. Obama and McCain are fully aware that unless they reach and convince the Independents, they have no chance of winning, no matter how many supporters they have accumulated. This year, with the polls showing that the candidates are in a dead heat, the Independents have never been more powerful.

Wars, conflicts, economics, competitions….the Grey Zone People always hold, in their hands, the ultimate outcome. Grey Zone People are always fluid….never locked in their opinions, constantly looking at both sides of an issue to render a decision. Many feel they are the ones that keep everything in balance.

What the other two sides find quite frustrating is that they can’t always rely on Grey Zone support…each time they have to go out and earn it, which sets both sides crazy. Just because they are on one side of an issue, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they will always be on that side on every issue. They can vote Democrat one year, Republican the next…be a Yankee fan, and then all of a sudden, be a Met fan. The Greys, or Independents, cannot be easily defined….and they like it that way.

Black, White, or Grey….we all have to ask ourselves one time or another, which one are we? One thing’s for sure….you kind of have to admire the Greys a little….they are what they are. They may agree with you on one issue, and argue with you for hours on another. Whatever subject or topic you bring up, you never quite know for sure which side the Greys will be on.

This election cycle, like many before, Senator Obama and Senator McCain have fully entered the Grey Zone.

Vote,

Jennifer Avalon

© 2008 Jennifer Avalon

This time of the year in the northeast as Summer heads toward Fall, many of us know that Winter is not so far away. You can feel it as you walk the street, as you drive in your car, and shop in stores. Each year as Fall rolls around The Look never changes….neighbors begin talking more, phone calls increase, and outside of the local churches on Sundays the conversation eventually turns to the weather.

The Look, yes indeed….That Look….I’m sure people who face tornadoes and hurricanes are fully aware of The Look. The Look represents the acceptance that we share much more in common than we care to realize sometimes. Whenever there’s a blackout, or a storm surge, we all become One. We all face the elements together. The Look becomes entrenched on our faces. Human beings swaying between indestructible, and fragile.

So what does The Look say? “I need you, and you need me.” You can only go so far in this life alone. After God, who else do we have but each other? Perhaps that’s the way it’s supposed to be….the realization that no man or woman is an island. Illness, tragedy, trauma….you name it, out of the blue it can become written on our faces. As a community, storms and seasons are something that we all can experience as a collective body.

So whenever storms approach, or seasons change, take a look…you just might see and be surprised how many have The Look….especially when you gaze into the mirror in the morning.

Join hands,

Jennifer Avalon

© 2008 Jennifer Avalon