TOP DRAWER INK NEWSLETTER

 

Here's the latest issue of Top Drawer Ink, the newsletter written by author HL Carpenter that's chock full of humor and common sense information.

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July 24, 2004
Volume 2, Number 14
ISSN 1554-6330

In this issue:

1. Carpenter Country Essay

2. Top Drawer Article

3. Top Drawer Tips

4. Top Drawer Book Review

5. Top Drawer Satire

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CARPENTER COUNTRY

What's Happening in Our Neck of the Human Experience

Wild bird watching is an ever-increasing activity in many parts of the country. Currently there are over 50 million birders in the US.

Some birders walk the woods, fields and marshes counting and accounting for birds of all kinds.

Others, too busy at desk jobs or less inclined to be out in the wilds (with no-see-ums and deer flies) often sit by a window, binoculars near computer, ready to catch occasional glimpses of the goings-on of feathered friends.

Makes no difference which method you choose. If you’re looking at a wild bird, you’re a birdwatcher. (For more information about birding visit [Broken Link Removed].)

Here in Carpenter Country we’ve observed three separate bluebird hatchings this year. A pair of adult bluebirds feathered their first nest in early March and haven’t stopped raising chicks since. Last week’s count stands at three nestings and 14 successful hatches.

During that time, four hummers no bigger than bumblebees began vying for the sugar water in the feeder hanging in a nearby tree. After much darting, zigging and zooming, everyone got their fill of nectar.

July also marked the hatching of two mockingbird chicks. Their nest, cradled in the crook of a Crepe Myrtle, was rocked one afternoon by thunder, lightning, wind, and three inches of rain. Mom Mockingbird held down the fort through it all and the next day stayed the course again while the grass under her bush was mowed.

So what makes us watch birds?

Could be hearing morning birdsong calms our senses and fortifies us for the day ahead.

Perhaps their dedication to work of nest building and raising their chicks inspires us to do our jobs better.

Or maybe when a bright red cardinal flits past our window we just like to glance away from the computer screen and for a little while be in touch with nature.

Then again, we might not even need a reason - birds are simply amazing and we love watching them.

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TOP DRAWER ARTICLE

Predicting the Market

by
HL Carpenter

Strategies on how to predict the stock market abound. Algorithms, theories and effects fill books, magazines and newspapers. Some methods are new, some are old, but they are ever evolving – and investors are ever hopeful of their success.

Here’s an example of each:

Read the entire article here

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TOP DRAWER TIPS
Topics and Tidbits

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TOP DRAWER BOOK REVIEW

by
HL Carpenter

The Wright Way
by Mark Eppler
205 pages; hardcover; $21.95
Amacom, New York, 2004

There’s no question Wilbur and Orville Wright accomplished an extraordinary feat on December 17, 1903 at Kill Devil Hills in North Carolina.

There’s also no doubt Mark Eppler, speaker, consultant and author, is a Wright Brothers fan of the first order.

Instead, the issue is whether the way the brothers tackled - and famously overcame - the problems of powered, heavier-than-air flight can sustain a business book on the topic.

Read the entire review here

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TOP DRAWER SATIRE

Politics as Usual

by
HL Carpenter

Strong demand for an item in short supply sounds like an entrepreneur’s dream.

But the golden rule of capitalism has proven less than successful for Common Sense, Inc. The company’s recent expansion bid into Washington, DC has cut into revenue and driven the stock price down 30% from last month’s high.

What’s going on? Price-fixing? Competitive distortions? Market regulation?

Read the rest here