As a non-finance person I am still flummoxed by what those values actually mean. It suggests a lot of wealth is somewhere, but all I see on the news and in the streets is poverty and people struggling to make ends meet, not just in the global south but also in the US and UK. If all that wealth is concentrated in the pockets of a very few, why do we allow it to influence everybody’s lives so much? Would love to know why the DOW is generally considered a bell-weather for success - especially as its increases seem to be correlated with environmental damage.
I sense there is a story here! and 2nd layer level to why you enjoy moving around so much! It explains why I enjoy your weekly postcards (when is the next one?)
Karena, what a cool essay that is a compelling integration of your personal experience with the upward march of all that value and ingenuity that is reflected in the line of the Dow. As I think we touched upon in our zoom call a while back, I can recall exactly where I was on Black Monday (in Washington DC) and being so young (21) that I had no idea why adults were walking around shellshocked!
(And what are the chances we both wrote essays about murals of the stock market at almost the same time!)
My hope is the same as yours: that our collective brainpower, and hearts, can address climate change.
I just re-read your essay at leisure (instead of snippets between hikes) and it is a masterpiece, James! The Met - particularly the Impressionist Gallery - is one of my happy places, so you 'pinged' so much of me in that essay!
Wow Karena I love this. What an innovative set of markers to use to reflect on your own past. As for my own metrics, you've got me thinking. I'm inspired to find my own unique set of signposts to chart the past.
Oh, you have so much to choose from, Rick! Cities, stages, street fairs come to mind. But then - as always - you pull something out of the hat and surprise the rest of us!
As a non-finance person I am still flummoxed by what those values actually mean. It suggests a lot of wealth is somewhere, but all I see on the news and in the streets is poverty and people struggling to make ends meet, not just in the global south but also in the US and UK. If all that wealth is concentrated in the pockets of a very few, why do we allow it to influence everybody’s lives so much? Would love to know why the DOW is generally considered a bell-weather for success - especially as its increases seem to be correlated with environmental damage.
This is now my favorite non-finance reference to the Dow.
My second-favorite is Rihanna and Jay-Z's Umbrella: Let it rain, I hydroplane in the bank / Comin' down like Dow Jones
Wow! You put me in the same sentence as Rihanna and Jay-Z? I am honoured, Becky! Going to have to deflate my head so I can walk through the door.
We moved many times when I was growing up, so I use the places where we lived to track major life events.
I sense there is a story here! and 2nd layer level to why you enjoy moving around so much! It explains why I enjoy your weekly postcards (when is the next one?)
Tomorrow!
Oh wow Karena, high five! This is an amazing article! 💖
Thank you for our chat together, Meike. Each conversation helped me distill what I wanted to share.
Karena, what a cool essay that is a compelling integration of your personal experience with the upward march of all that value and ingenuity that is reflected in the line of the Dow. As I think we touched upon in our zoom call a while back, I can recall exactly where I was on Black Monday (in Washington DC) and being so young (21) that I had no idea why adults were walking around shellshocked!
(And what are the chances we both wrote essays about murals of the stock market at almost the same time!)
My hope is the same as yours: that our collective brainpower, and hearts, can address climate change.
👏👏
I just re-read your essay at leisure (instead of snippets between hikes) and it is a masterpiece, James! The Met - particularly the Impressionist Gallery - is one of my happy places, so you 'pinged' so much of me in that essay!
The numbers tell stories!
Wow Karena I love this. What an innovative set of markers to use to reflect on your own past. As for my own metrics, you've got me thinking. I'm inspired to find my own unique set of signposts to chart the past.
Oh, you have so much to choose from, Rick! Cities, stages, street fairs come to mind. But then - as always - you pull something out of the hat and surprise the rest of us!