What’s Next?

As a dramatic year comes to a close, it is often a great opportunity to examine where we are and where we’re going.

The stock market has seen huge surges and multi-year lows. Unemployment is increasing. Companies are turning to government bailouts to avert bankruptcy, in part due to flaws business models and overzealous lending (and the trading of securities backed by that lending). Mortgages are foreclosing. And the media can’t stop talking about the Clintons, except when they’re talking about Sarah Palin. The shadow President has eclipsed the real one. And morale is so bad for Republicans that they saw a morale boost from keeping hold of an incumbent Senator in the Deep South, in a Red State that has consistently stayed red this year (except where a fluke rule required a run-off).

Me? I’m behind on my self-imposed deadline for writing the novel, although I’ve recently resolved a sticking point in the plot that should end my writer’s block. I’ve made minor changes to my eating habits that has resulted in losing 11 lbs between Halloween and Thanksgiving, and probably more since. I’ve all but quit my main Internet hobby (AGS), and have given up a temporary office at work for a brand new, oversized cubicle with a corner window view.

So where to next? President-Elect Obama will be sworn-in to office in front of a crowd that’s rumored to be nearing 5 million (the previous record was 1.5 million, I believe). He’ll have a recession to contend with, and will respond largely by adding to our already high national debt. And I will enter into my 6th year at The Funds, as I wrap up work on my novel (cross my fingers).

How about UF? The opposition Orange & Blue Party, after putting in one of the best performances in a Fall campaign, is rumored to be gathering rebellious Greek support, but perhaps at the cost of a contested nomination. No, I don’t support Ben Dictor (don’t even know him), but I do join groups on Facebook just as often to keep an eye on things as I do because I’d support them. It is awfully fishy how a group forms in the week of Thanksgiving, picks up maybe 200 members including at least some alumni, and “convinces” this guy to run. I’ve seen such false-draft efforts before, and they rarely work as a substitute for real grassroots enthusiasm – see Fred Thompson.

So, what’s next with you?