South Jersey seeing no foreclosure recovery

From the Press of Atlantic City:

South Jersey home sale prices hit by large distressed market

South Jersey real estate continues to be hit hard by distressed properties, Atlantic County most of all.

Lenders started foreclosure actions against 399 homeowners in the county in the first three months of this year. There were also 476 notices of sheriff’s sale and 328 bank repossessions, all as reported by RealtyTrac, a company that researches foreclosure data nationwide.

Combined, this meant there was some level of foreclosure activity on more than 1,200 homes, or one out of every 106 homes in the county in the first quarter. That kept Atlantic County in the top position on RealtyTrac’s list of more than 3,100 counties across the U.S. for foreclosure activity.

Atlantic County Sheriff Frank Balles says that when he took office in 2009, “we were probably averaging about 200 to 250 (sales) a year. Last year, there were a little over 2,100.”
When he started, it was normal to see one or two people looking to bid. Now, he sees closer to 50, often more.

“We’re seeing the biggest year-to-year increases in the number of distressed assets hitting the market that we’ve ever seen,” says D’Alicandro, a past president of the Atlantic City & County Board of Realtors.

“These are properties not cared for and maintained by homeowners. In a lot of cases, they were abandoned, in some cases years ago. They may be damaged, vandalized and sometimes stripped on the way out,” he says.

“When you go from 5 to 6 percent bank-foreclosed properties up to double digits … being distressed sales, and when they’re selling for 25 to 30 percent below what they would sell for in good condition, that has an impact on the median sales price,” D’Alicandro added.

March figures from the New Jersey Association of Realtors show part of that impact.

The median sale price for an Atlantic County home last month was $184,000, down from $211,500 in the same month last year. That’s a 13 percent drop, NJAR reported.

Median prices also dropped in Cape May County, from $305,000 last March to $260,000 last month for single-family sales, a 14.8 percent cut.

NJAR also reported gains in Ocean County in both categories, with the total number of sales going up 18 percent and the median price hitting $261,000, a jump of 5.7 percent over a year earlier.

Still, foreclosures are a concern all around South Jersey, with the four local counties all showing up in the top 11 percent in nationwide foreclosure activity.

In Cumberland County, one home in every 159 had some foreclosure activity in the first quarter of this year. And in Ocean County, the rate was one out of every 221.

This entry was posted in Foreclosures, Shore Real Estate, South Jersey Real Estate. Bookmark the permalink.

131 Responses to South Jersey seeing no foreclosure recovery

  1. Mike says:

    Good Morning New Jersey

  2. grim says:

    From NJ1015:

    Proposed law in New Jersey takes aim at lead paint threat in homes

    The issue of lead exposure is now a national issue after the lead-contamination water crisis in Flint, Michigan, grabbed the spotlight.

    In New Jersey, however, most lead poisoning is a result of lead-based paint in old homes, not water.

    Assemblywomen Elizabeth Maher Muoio, D-Mercer, and L. Grace Spencer, D-Essex, have introduced new legislation that would require lead paint inspections during home sales and rental turnovers in an effort to protect more New Jerseyans from the effects of lead exposure.

    “We definitely have a lead issue here in New Jersey,” Muoio said. “We have 11 communities with higher lead infection levels than in Flint, Michigan.”

    The bill would exempt homes that would were built during or after 1978, because that is when the use of lead-based paint became prohibited.

    “It’s more of a problem in areas with aging housing stock, and we certainly have large numbers of those areas here in New Jersey,” Muoio said. “Part of our effort’s to shift the focus from treatment towards prevention.”

    Rental properties that have been certified to be free of lead-based paint are also exempt.

  3. grim says:

    Wonder if this would play out like radon – if lead is found, buyers/lawyers would push for remediation and testing prior to sale. It would make sense.

    But in some on NJ’s older, lower income areas, this would likely be a massive burden to sellers.

  4. grim says:

    Ok – let’s send Eddie into an absolutely fuming rage.

    Thanks for continuing to subsidize retirements in Bergen County, from the Record:

    Bergen OKs funds for seniors facing foreclosure

    The Bergen County Board of Freeholders on Wednesday approved $20,000 in funding for legal assistance for low-income seniors facing foreclosure on their homes.

  5. grim says:

    Wow disappear for a day and I miss all this news..

    From Reuters:

    U.S. home sales rebound signals strong spring selling season

    U.S. home resales rebounded more than expected in March as supply improved, suggesting the housing market recovery remained intact despite signs that economic growth probably stalled in the first quarter.

    The sales surge at the start of the spring selling season was a sign of confidence in the economy, and the momentum is expected to be sustained given low mortgage rates, recent stock market gains and a firming labor market, analysts said.

    “There cannot be too much wrong with the economy if consumers keep buying new homes. It shows confidence,” said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at MUFG Union Bank in New York.

    The National Association of Realtors said on Wednesday that existing home sales surged 5.1 percent to an annual rate of 5.33 million units last month, beating economists’ expectations for a 3.5 percent increase. Sales were up 1.5 percent from a year ago.

    Existing home sales rose in all four regions in March, jumping by 11.1 percent in the Northeast and 9.8 percent in the Midwest. Single-family home sales vaulted 5.5 percent, while purchases of condominiums rose 1.8 percent.

    Sales were concentrated in the middle part of the market, with lack of inventory constraining transactions in the low-end segment.

    “It points to a very strong start to the crucial spring selling season, and initial anecdotal indications point to this positive momentum being sustained in coming months,” said Millan Mulraine, chief economist at TD Securities in New York.

    While the number of unsold homes on the market in March rose 5.9 percent from February to 1.98 million units, supply was down 1.5 percent from a year ago.

    With inventories tight, houses are selling fast. In March, houses typically stayed on the market for 47 days, the fewest number since August, and down from 59 days in February.

    “The quickening speed of inventory movement is a reflection of demand growing faster than supply,” said Jonathan Smoke, chief economist at Realtor.com in Washington. “The majority of buyers … are looking to buy within the next six months, but the biggest challenge is the tight supply.”

    At March’s sales pace, it would take 4.5 months to clear the stock of houses on the market, up from 4.4 months in February. A six-month supply is viewed as a healthy balance between supply and demand. The median house price increased 5.7 percent from a year ago to $222,700 last month. The rise in house prices is outstripping wage gains. While that could make it more difficult for first-time buyers to purchase a home, it also is boosting equity for homeowners, which could encourage them to put their homes on the market.

    The share of first-time buyers was 30 percent last month, unchanged from both February and a year ago.

  6. grim says:

    Massive jump in the Northeast, nearly off the charts.

    http://www.realtor.org/sites/default/files/reports/2016/embargoes/ehs-4-20/ehs-03-2016-overview-2016-04-20.pdf

    7.7% increase year over year (SA), the Non-adusted numbers are up 8.5% yoy.

    Sales price up 5.8% yoy (SA) and 3.8% (NSA) yoy. Also big jumps comparatively.

    If that wasn’t surprising enough, the Single Family data shows an even BIGGER jump:

    http://www.realtor.org/sites/default/files/reports/2016/embargoes/ehs-4-20/ehs-03-2016-single-family-only-2016-04-20.pdf

    9.3% increase in sales year over year (SA) and 10.0% yoy (NSA).

  7. grim says:

    Given the spectacular weather the last two weeks, April pending is going to be through the roof in the Northeast.

    That warm spring air and the smell of forsythia is heroin to home buyers.

  8. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    Chalk one up for the borough- I guess if you are not looking for something you wont find it. Oversight??

    http://www.nj.com/passaic-county/index.ssf/2016/04/officials_used_outdated_tests_at_ringwood_superfun.html#incart_river_home

  9. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    3 grim says:
    April 21, 2016 at 7:07 am

    Wonder if this would play out like radon – if lead is found, buyers/lawyers would push for remediation and testing prior to sale. It would make sense.

    But in some on NJ’s older, lower income areas, this would likely be a massive burden to sellers.

    If so,
    Time to buy stock in arson.com….

  10. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    For those of you on here who pay the most taxes, sleep well in knowing that your money is being spent well. Thanks for your support….

    http://bit.ly/1Tf966U

  11. grim says:

    What a boondoggle, I’d rather we spent the money on monorails.

  12. The Great Pumpkin says:

    What I was trying to get Rags to understand.

    “Critics of global monetary policy regularly argue that the current level of interest rates is artificially low. A simple medical analogy might help them understand how wrong this thinking is.

    Picture a young woman diagnosed with Type I diabetes, in which the body fails to produce the insulin needed to metabolize sugar. Her life changes completely. She must constantly monitor her blood sugar levels, adjust her diet and take insulin via injection or pump. Otherwise she will die.

    Unthinking observers could argue that her insulin intake is “artificial” — in the sense that a typical human doesn’t need it to survive, and that she has done fine without it in the past. They might even argue that she should follow a simple dietary rule of eating regular healthy meals at fixed times, rather than basing her insulin intake on constant measurement of her blood sugar.

    Happily, we don’t have such outside observers in the world of medicine. Doctors and patients follow courses of treatment that vary as needed to achieve desirable outcomes. There is no hue and cry among legislators, financial market participants and academics to eliminate the “artificial” levels or variations in insulin being prescribed.

    Monetary policy makers are not so lucky.

    A disease — persistently low demand for goods and services — has afflicted the world economy. Monetary policy makers need to use low interest rates, their version of insulin, to at least manage the symptoms. Yet they are constantly hounded by those who want them to stop the treatment, or to administer it in unhealthily regimented ways, such as following a mechanical rule rather than observing the data and using their judgment.

    Sadly, many central banks are succumbing to this pressure. Here in the U.S., the Fed is planning to continue the tightening of monetary policy that it initiated in mid-2013. Its main goal is to gradually eliminate the use of monetary insulin, even though the symptoms of low prices and low employment persist unabated.

    The insulin analogy is imperfect in two important ways. First, Type I diabetes is chronic, while there are reasons to hope (though not to be certain) that economic forces will eliminate the syndrome of low aggregate demand, in which case the long-term treatment would no longer be necessary. Second, there is no known cure for Type I diabetes, whereas governments have ample tools to heal inadequate demand — including investment in education and infrastructure — if only they would use them.

    It’s puzzling and deeply disturbing that fiscal policy makers aren’t doing what they can to cure the global economy’s disease. But forcing central bankers to stop treating the symptoms would be a terrible mistake.”

    http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2016-04-21/low-interest-rates-are-just-what-the-doctored-ordered

  13. Comrade Nom Deplume, One Percenter for another year says:

    [3] grim

    Spot on. And in keeping with my theme of being consistently inconsistent, I am all for this legislation.

  14. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Housing stats are great. This will only bring more people to the market. People are finally looking at real estate in a positive light, it will travel through the population like dominoes, slowly changing people’s minds to look at real estate in a positive light again. It’s all setting up for a large boom in the 2020’s.

    We will prob hit a recession sometime before 2020, but after the recession, get ready for the boom.

  15. joyce says:

    13
    The diseases the economy is facing are fraud as a business model going un-prosecuted, encouraged and protected by the government… govts/business/individuals being over-leveraged due to the previously enacted (and wrong headed) federal reserve & government policies… and mal-investment resulting from the above two causes.

    Prosecute fraud
    Allow interest rates to rise
    Liquidate the bad debt

  16. In case anybody wants to pay a high price for bullion today, goes on sale at 12PM: http://catalog.usmint.gov/mercury-dime-2016-centennial-gold-coin-16XB.html

    Apparently there is substantial collector demand for this series, they are already being “pre-sold” on ebay for double the price, higher if they go out for grading by NGC. Household limit of 10, they should sell out in an hour.

  17. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    13. Pumps.
    In medicine, chronic= profits. One of the major reasons most drug companies had given up on new antibiotics (Obama Gain law made some changes).
    Take antibiotic for 10 days (little profit)
    Take cholesterol medicine for 30 years (high profit).
    Follow the money…..

  18. The Great Pumpkin says:

    I agree with your solutions, only problem, the elite class will never take it on the chin. They will never allow for prosecution or liquidation of bad debt, therefore, fed is in no position to raise rates because it will crash the economy by bringing activity to a halt. Such bs, but that’s what happens when money corrupts our govt institution/society. Instead of govt being setup for the benefit of the majority in our society, it has slowly been hijacked to represent the interests of the elite corporate class who are the first to renounce their citizenship.

    Bring back the Carnegie’s of the past! People that cared about the society they lived in. Man wasn’t perfect (treatment of his workers), but he was a damn good man.

    “”Many of his (Carnegie’s) biographers trace it back to the experience of having been the son of a Scottish weaver, who absorbed from that family a set of values; a belief in democracy and a belief in a ‘society that provides opportunities for everyone’ and not just the super-rich.

    Andrew Carnegie wrote prolifically about wealth and what to do with it, famously writing that the “man who dies…rich, dies disgraced”.

    Sir Tom Hunter says: “When I was doing my thinking about what to do with wealth, I went to New York and I visited the Carnegie Corporation of New York and went in to see the president, a gentleman called Vartan Gregorian.

    “He’s probably my philanthropic mentor and Vartan basically challenged me to say the money wasn’t really mine.”

    http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-22246173

    Joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 9:29 am
    13
    The diseases the economy is facing are fraud as a business model going un-prosecuted, encouraged and protected by the government… govts/business/individuals being over-leveraged due to the previously enacted (and wrong headed) federal reserve & government policies… and mal-investment resulting from the above two causes.”

    Prosecute fraud
    Allow interest rates to rise
    Liquidate the bad debt

  19. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    This lead thing is the most overblown crock of sh1t. Parents… don’t let your kids chew on your door frames. The pussification of America continues. It will be much better when we are sh1tting in the street and bathing in the rivers once we all go broke from stupid government regulations that have such minimal returns. We really need to start all over before it’s too late.

  20. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    I raised my two kids in lead infested homes. Neither got lead poisoning. But to remove all of the plaster in my two houses would cost no less than 200K. If the government charges everyone a tax and subsidizes it, great. If not, fcuk off.

  21. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    BTW, I got my rental lead tested for like $300 about 4 years ago. There was no lead accept where wood had been painted in places where objects rub. Such as wooden window frames and door jambs. Of course, when the regulation comes out, it will be for the entire home, interior and exterior. I really have to join the public sector.

  22. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Man, did he get it.

    What do you want in life? What’s the purpose? Is it to accrue massive wealth and die? Or is it to help people and make society better for everyone, not just your immediate family? We have the ability to make society great for everyone, we just can’t let greed and the hunger for power to get in the way.

    “Andrew Carnegie wrote prolifically about wealth and what to do with it, famously writing that the “man who dies…rich, dies disgraced”.

    “He’s probably my philanthropic mentor and Vartan basically challenged me to say the money wasn’t really mine.””

  23. joyce says:

    19
    Do me a favor and post another 100% wrong article by Krugman saying that the rich aren’t the biggest benefactors of ZIRP.

  24. The Great Pumpkin says:

    That might be the best solution; burn it all down and start it over from scratch again.

    Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary’s Cankle fluid. says:
    April 21, 2016 at 10:08 am
    This lead thing is the most overblown crock of sh1t. Parents… don’t let your kids chew on your door frames. The pussification of America continues. It will be much better when we are sh1tting in the street and bathing in the rivers once we all go broke from stupid government regulations that have such minimal returns. We really need to start all over before it’s too late.

  25. joyce says:

    “If the government charges everyone a tax and subsidizes it, great.”

    I know you don’t mean this. Would be your typical boondoggle.

  26. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    27. Just remember to make that tax retroactive to all homes sold in the past 20 years…

  27. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    Joyce, that was sarcasm. Video of how this would go over with the public….

    https://www.facebook.com/usawtfm/videos/10154208113753606/

  28. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Well the alternative was total destruction of the economy. Although this outcome might indeed be more favorable, that’s a chance I don’t think anyone was willing to take. It will lead to chaos, and you can never predict the result of chaos. Will it be like the French Revolution, all that misery for nothing? Well, I shouldn’t say nothing, it did lead to the spread of individual rights and independence movements, along with spurring a nationalist movement(basically ending the rule of monarchy in the mainstream), but for the people who participated in that revolution, was it worth it? Their lives turned into a horror story. What did they actually gain besides more misery? So it’s tough to say if we would be better off without ZIRP, just like the people of France were not better off without the king. Sure, just like the king, ZIRP has its problems, but if you eliminate them, are you better off with the resulting chaos?

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 10:29 am
    19
    Do me a favor and post another 100% wrong article by Krugman saying that the rich aren’t the biggest benefactors of ZIRP.

  29. D-FENS says:

    https://twitter.com/NumbersMuncher/status/723141244222763009

    Josh Jordan
    ‏@NumbersMuncher
    Whoever made this image deserves an award and job w/ the treasury. I’ve seen it all over and it’s great every time.

  30. For anybody who follows the S&P 500:

    This is the 3rd day in row that the S&P has traded through 2097.5, having not seen that level sinc 12/2/15 . It first traded at this level on February 13th, 2015. Since last February the S&P trades at this level, on average, 1 out of 6 days. That’s about 50 out of 300 trading days it traded right at this level.

  31. joyce says:

    Yes, a painful restructuring would have ensued and yes the average person much better off in the long run.

    Otherwise, stop crying about the financial industry ripping you off; stop crying about the health care industry ripping you off; stop assuming your real estate will increase faster than inflation without effort.

  32. joyce says:

    I know it’s tough since you ‘work’ in Finance and and have an weird infatuation with Real Estate.

  33. D-FENS says:

    Huh. Harriet Tubman was a gun toting Republican.

    Cool.

  34. D-FENS says:

    http://news.wfsu.org/post/harriet-tubman-underground-railroad-artifacts-display-tally

    Harriet Tubman, best known for helping hundreds of slaves escape the South during the Civil War also played a role as a Union spy. But she wasn’t an Underground Railroad “Conductor” with just a flash light and dream. Two of Tubman’s tools for freedom and espionage are now on display at the Florida A and M University Black Archive.

    Harriet Tubman’s personal pistol and her 3 foot long ivory-handled sword are on temporary loan to the Florida A&M Black Archive Research Center as part of an exhibit called “The Struggle Continues”. The Tallahassee family of Alex Brickler owns the pieces and considers them a family heirloom since he’s a 5th generation decedent of Tubman. He said Harriet found the sword and kept it with her, just in case.

    “You know it’s a very threatening kind of a weapon, she was a spy so she may not have had direct recourse in order to use the saber, but you know if you’re walking around the south in the woods with a big saber like that people are gonna take notice and they’ll be out to not necessarily threaten you as much,” Brickler says.

    As far as the pistol, Brickler family members aren’t sure if she ever fired it, but say she did take it with her on a slave raid. The Bricklers are considering loaning the pistol and sword on a long term basis to the FAM-U Archives, or the National Museum of African American History and Culture, in Washington DC.

  35. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Fair enough. Although, I believe it is possible to fix this without crashing the system. The greed at the top has to change their ways, if they do change, capitalism can and will thrive.

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 11:54 am
    Yes, a painful restructuring would have ensued and yes the average person much better off in the long run.

    Otherwise, stop crying about the financial industry ripping you off; stop crying about the health care industry ripping you off; stop assuming your real estate will increase faster than inflation without effort.

  36. 1987 Condo says:

    HT- as reported in the WSJ..a gun toting, evangelical Christian, Republican as well

  37. joyce says:

    37
    If one of the problems is too much leverage, you cannot fix it with more of the same. christ

  38. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    Did someone just summon me?

  39. Fast Eddie says:

    joyce,

    Why even bother? She’s not real, she’s trolling and punking the forum.

  40. homeboken says:

    RIP Prince

  41. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    I bet Morris Day is happy.

  42. joyce says:

    You’re right why bother… but i thought she was anon

    Fast Eddie says:
    April 21, 2016 at 1:03 pm
    joyce,

    Why even bother? She’s not real, she’s trolling and punking the forum.

  43. Anon E. Moose says:

    Boken [42];

    You know, these celebrity death watch things were much funnier before Abe Vigoda died.

  44. homeboken says:

    45 Vigoda < Prince

  45. The Great Pumpkin says:

    For the 100th time, you are wrong. I’m not trolling anyone. I’m serious with my debate positions. Joyce is a great person to debate. Highly intelligent, just wish she wasn’t so snarky.

    Fast Eddie says:
    April 21, 2016 at 1:03 pm
    joyce,

    Why even bother? She’s not real, she’s trolling and punking the forum.

  46. Anon E. Moose says:

    Gourd/Anon [23];

    You know who told Carnegie what to do with his money? Nobody. Why can’t you leftists get the difference between philanthropy and confiscation through your thick heads?

    Sorry to say, you’re just not smarter than the person who the money belongs to — and even if you were, you’re still acting like a common thief, and often a classless one at that.

  47. Anon E. Moose says:

    Gourd/Anon [23];

    You know who told Carnegie what to do with his money? Nobody. Why can’t you leftists get the difference between philanthropy and confisc@tion through your thick heads?

    Sorry to say, you’re just not smarter than the person who the money belongs to — and even if you were, you’re still acting like a common thief, and often a classless one at that.

  48. The Great Pumpkin says:

    If the top (owners of debt) were not so greedy, they would suck it up and deleverage this mess they created. It’s not more of the same at all. I just want these people to stop gaming the system and play by the same rules as everyone else. A healthy economic system shouldn’t be based on making a class of citizens debt slaves. Growth should not not come about by increasing the amount of debt being held by the debt slaves.

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 12:58 pm
    37
    If one of the problems is too much leverage, you cannot fix it with more of the same. christ

  49. Juice Box says:

    re# 46 – Flu can be a killer. RIP Prince.

  50. joyce says:

    “I’m serious with my debate positions.”

    truly embarrassing… wonder how you tie you’re able to tie your shoes in the morning

  51. joyce says:

    49
    You come on here and rant and rave with keynesian and MMT nonsense and now you’re saying that certain people need to de-leverage. Do you have a clue?

  52. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Did you read Carnegie’s quotes? He was in the same position as me. He understood the evils of too much money in a few hands. Sad that you are incapable of understanding why. The money is all yours, right? It doesn’t belong to the economic system, right? The system is there to serve you the individual, right? It’s not for the common good of a stable society?

    “Andrew Carnegie wrote prolifically about wealth and what to do with it, famously writing that the “man who dies…rich, dies disgraced”.

    Sir Tom Hunter says: “When I was doing my thinking about what to do with wealth, I went to New York and I visited the Carnegie Corporation of New York and went in to see the president, a gentleman called Vartan Gregorian.
    “He’s probably my philanthropic mentor and Vartan basically challenged me to say the money wasn’t really mine.”

    He laughs as he admits that was quite a challenge to do.

    “And to do some good while you’re still here, don’t be the richest man in the graveyard, which certainly resonated with me.”

    And when Andrew Carnegie became extremely wealthy, Scotland and more specifically Dunfermline was one of the first to benefit.”

    Anon E. Moose says:
    April 21, 2016 at 1:23 pm
    Gourd/Anon [23];

    You know who told Carnegie what to do with his money? Nobody. Why can’t you leftists get the difference between philanthropy and confisc@tion through your thick heads?

    Sorry to say, you’re just not smarter than the person who the money belongs to — and even if you were, you’re still acting like a common thief, and often a classless one at that.

  53. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Sad that a brilliant mind is wasted, due to no patience and lack of empathy.

    “3. Ad Hominem Argument (also, “Personal attack,” “Poisoning the well.”): The fallacy of attempting to refute an argument by attacking the opposition’s personal character or reputation, using a corrupted negative argument from ethos. E.g., “He’s so evil that you can’t believe anything he says.” See also “Guilt by Association.” Also applies to cases where valid opposing evidence and arguments are brushed aside without comment or consideration, as simply not worth arguing about, solely because of the lack of power or status of the person making the argument. The opposite of this latter is the “Star Power” fallacy.”

    http://utminers.utep.edu/omwilliamson/ENGL1311/fallacies.htm

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 1:35 pm
    “I’m serious with my debate positions.”

    truly embarrassing… wonder how you tie you’re able to tie your shoes in the morning

  54. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Based on not taking the system to the ground, keynesian economics was the right call in 2008. The fed did the right thing under those circumstances. If you wanted to crash the whole system and start it over, then yes, the application of keynesian economics was wrong. I was in the boat of not crashing the whole system. Chaos is unpredictable, and there is no time-line for when things would actually improve if we crashed the system. It might have never come back. Society could have went the way it did in Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire.

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 1:40 pm
    49
    You come on here and rant and rave with keynesian and MMT nonsense and now you’re saying that certain people need to de-leverage. Do you have a clue?

  55. joyce says:

    Your [lack of] arguments have been refuted countless times here, and yet you keep repeating them… along with posting links that you do not understand which is fully demonstrated by your preceding or follow-on commentary. And that’s why you’re an idiot. Not an attack, just a fact.

  56. joyce says:

    The money is all yours, right?
    yes

    It doesn’t belong to the economic system, right?
    no… and unless it’s under a mattress, it is still playing a role in the economy (I could make an argument that even under a mattress is play an indirect role)

    The system is there to serve you the individual, right?
    yes, the individuals

    It’s not for the common good of a stable society?
    no

  57. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Now I understand why you call me an idiot. We have a much different philosophy when it comes to this subject.

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 2:09 pm
    The money is all yours, right?
    yes

    It doesn’t belong to the economic system, right?
    no… and unless it’s under a mattress, it is still playing a role in the economy (I could make an argument that even under a mattress is play an indirect role)

    The system is there to serve you the individual, right?
    yes, the individuals

    It’s not for the common good of a stable society?
    no

  58. The Great Pumpkin says:

    This is why your economic beliefs are backwards. First thing to understand about economic systems is why they exist. They exist solely to bring stability to society. A way to fairly divide the resources among the population and keep progress going. Under capitalism, it doesn’t mean everyone gets an “even share” of the resources, but it also doesn’t mean a few get “all” the resources. Either side means capitalism is broken. If too much resources are in the hands of a few, the system is broken, if the resources are evenly divided among the participants, the system is broken. Call me an idiot, but it is what it is.

    “It’s not for the common good of a stable society?
    no”

  59. joyce says:

    You’re an idiot.
    No they do not exist solely to bring stability. An economy is a system of resource allocation, production, distribution, and consumption. Yes the system of capitalism is broken here in the US. So what, how is this on topic? Who was debating that?

  60. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    Some of us trust our government to do a better job of sharing the wealth than our economic system does. The smarter group of us see our government as being way, way more corrupt than the average Buffet, Zuckerberg or Gates. The average rich guy is very philanthropic. It’s the government that is not. They will take whatever they can get from our corporate masters to enrich themselves. Look at the Clinton Foundation. How much of their money goes to pay salaries for the Clinton Foundation. Or look at Obamacare. I am experiencing the US healthcare system more than most and can’t believe how sh1tty of a return I am getting on my $7,500 a year.

    The way I see it, the majority of the ultra rich are giving a ton back. The only jerks out there are the ones who have figured out that if you pay the government enough, the government will enable legislation which will allow these businesses and the individuals who run them to profit with no concern everyone else.

    So who are the greedy ones? The politicians who will both profit while in office and after office from lobby bribes and eventual placement on the corporate boards in which they legislated for? Or the Gates and the Zuckerberg’s and Buffets who plan to give most of the money they make away. I firmly see the issue is with the Clinton’s and the Bushes. You are clearly drinking the Kool Ade.

  61. joyce says:

    If someone legally acquires money (or property or tangible goods), it is theirs. Not yours, Not society’s, Not the system’s.
    If someone acquires money, the overwhelming majority of time they put it in a bank, or invest it, or spend it or whatever… and therefore it stays in the economy.

    The Great Pumpkin says:
    April 21, 2016 at 2:16 pm
    Now I understand why you call me an idiot. We have a much different philosophy when it comes to this subject.

  62. The Great Pumpkin says:

    A system of resource allocation, production, distribution, and consumption to achieve what? Stability! So that we all work together to achieve progress and a better life. Capitalists help the workers, workers help the capitalist. Too bad capitalists have been shi!ting on workers in the equation, by taking advantage of the pressure being placed on the labor market due to automation and offshoring. So the relationship is not currently working the way it was meant to be, causing the economy to become sick, unable to grow.

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 2:54 pm
    You’re an idiot.
    No they do not exist solely to bring stability. An economy is a system of resource allocation, production, distribution, and consumption. Yes the system of capitalism is broken here in the US. So what, how is this on topic? Who was debating that?

  63. The Great Pumpkin says:

    No way. The system owns all. When someone dies, what happens to the money? It die with them, or does it remain a part of the economic system? You technically don’t own anything if the system does not exist.

    joyce says:
    April 21, 2016 at 2:56 pm
    If someone legally acquires money (or property or tangible goods), it is theirs. Not yours, Not society’s, Not the system’s.
    If someone acquires money, the overwhelming majority of time they put it in a bank, or invest it, or spend it or whatev

  64. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Without a system, finders keepers says the strongest guy.

  65. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Lib, good write up. Where we differ, I blame human nature, not the govt. Where do the Clintons get their power/money from? The wealthy that are corrupting our govt by using their money to buy individuals like Hillary. You need to get money out of politics/govt. That’s the bottom line.

    Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary’s Cankle fluid. says:
    April 21, 2016 at 2:55 pm
    Some of us trust our government to do a better job of sharing the wealth than our economic system does. The smarter group of us see our government as being way, way more corrupt than the average Buffet, Zuckerberg or Gates. The average rich guy is very philanthropic. It’s the government that is not. They will take whatever they can get from our corporate masters to enrich themselves. Look at the Clinton Foundation. How much of their money goes to pay salaries for the Clinton Foundation. Or look at Obamacare. I am experiencing the US healthcare system more than most and can’t believe how sh1tty of a return I am getting on my $7,500 a year.

    The way I see it, the majority of the ultra rich are giving a ton back. The only jerks out there are the ones who have figured out that if you pay the government enough, the government will enable legislation which will allow these businesses and the individuals who run them to profit with no concern everyone else.

    So who are the greedy ones? The politicians who will both profit while in office and after office from lobby bribes and eventual placement on the corporate boards in which they legislated for? Or the Gates and the Zuckerberg’s and Buffets who plan to give most of the money they make away. I firmly see the issue is with the Clinton’s and the Bushes. You are clearly drinking the Kool Ade.

  66. The Great Pumpkin says:

    67- Who are the wealthy to be using their money to influence my life? Why do the wealthy think they know what’s best for everyone? Why do they force their agenda on everyone else? Politics has become nothing more than a bunch of rich guys throwing their money around to push their agenda. Who died and made these guys kings over us? Because they have lots of money, they know what’s best for me? Give me a break.

    Look at how the wealthy hijacked education in the past 10 years and try to push their agenda on the rest of us(corporate reform movement in education that is now dying due to no results).

  67. joyce says:

    You’re retarded

  68. Joyce says:

    How the F are you defining stability? People produce so they can provide for themselves and their families. If they voluntarily choose to help other people, good for them. The economy is nothing more than the [should be voluntary] interactions of all those individuals.

    If by system, you mean govt policies… yes that’s for stability in part, but it’s primarily for CONTROL.

    Go home child

  69. Joyce says:

    68
    You could take out the word ‘wealthy’ and substitute ‘govt, religion, liberal, or conservative, and on and on’ and it would work. But keep defending the stability of your system.

    Idiot

  70. leftwing says:

    Been away for bit.

    Good to see nothing changes…Pumps, hopeless. I just spent a bunch of time in one of the last self proclaimed egalitarian paradises. I can assure you it is neither. Joyce, marry me.

    Lib, seems something serious is up with your boy. Prayers and hope to you and yours.

  71. Wouldn’t it be cool if we all went to some grim 2.0 blog without telling pumpkin? We could each take our turn in the barrel by volunteering a day every two weeks to post here pretending to be the standard cast of characters just to keep pumpkin anchored here? Or…did we already do that?

  72. Essex says:

    if a pumpkin falls in the woods….

  73. So Prince was a heroin addict? I wonder if Purple Rain, Purple Rain was a euphemism for Grape Soda, Grape Soda.

  74. libturd still chopping says:

    It’s all good. Still in Philly and close to fighting round 2. What month is it? The D has been home for 3 days since March 2nd. Another 10 days and we get a break maybe. Nothing major has gone wrong and our boy is stable. Just a whole bunch of little things have not gone smoothly.

  75. [76] Great to hear, Stu! CHOP in Philly is the best, probably in front of Children’s in Boston. Your little guy is in the right place with people who only want to do that job, and do it well.

  76. leftwing says:

    Glad to hear Stu. Pulling for him for recovery.

  77. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    Same here Stu. Best wishes always.

  78. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    He’s really a trooper. D is like a walking pin cushion yet he still keeps on smiling,

  79. Comrade Nom Deplume, One Percenter for another year says:

    Stu, if you’re around this evening, I’ll provide the Happy Hour. Let me know.

  80. Raymond Reddington formerly Phoenix says: says:

    Lib,
    Kids are like that. I had a child as a patient that held an incredible amount of bad news from her parents cause they did not want to see them hurt. Told me all about further injuries but wanted to spare her parents the grief…

  81. Comrade Nom Deplume, One Percenter for another year says:

    [81] redux

    That goes for anyone else in or around Center City.

  82. ccb223 says:

    Pumpkin – why do you let your self be called an idiot and a retard and feel the need to be nice to this internet woman, calling her a genius/smart or whatever?

    Irrespective of who is right and wrong in your “arguments” she is not being very polite or respectful….grow a pair.

  83. Comrade Nom Deplume, Right Wing Extremist (per anon) says:

    Food for thought amongst those watching the “ejumacation bubble”. And this “sounds in” immigration policy as well.

    “After a year and a half working for ESPN in Connecticut, Brendan Gilbert was eager to return to his native Maine. Armed with a degree in communications, he landed a job with Parta Co. in Brunswick, doing Web-based marketing. And, to his surprise, he was able to net a lucrative state tax credit that he has used to help pay his student loan debt.

    Gilbert has been telling his friends he considers the Opportunity Maine credit “a great benefit for people who want to stay in Maine.” Gilbert and about 4,000 others have tapped the little-known program that awards tax credits to recent college grads who choose to work in Maine. Now, state officials hope a round of legislative tweaking and new promotional efforts will attract more recent college graduates – and in the process help build a more skilled workforce for Maine.

    “What we really want is for them (college graduates) to come back and live and work in Maine,” said Tracy Coughlin of Maine Education Services, a nonprofit that helps students and families plan and pay for college. MES has been administering and marketing the Opportunity Maine program since it was created in 2008, although the Maine Development Foundation will take over the marketing effort this year.
    When the program started, taxpayers had to be graduates of Maine colleges and working in Maine to qualify for tax credits, which can range up to $4,500 per year.
    Over the years, the rules have been loosened and, for the 2016 tax year, it will be open to all post-2008 college graduates – not just those from Maine colleges and universities – who take jobs in Maine.
    The new rules will also offer more incentives to Maine companies to pay some or all of their employees’ student loans, even for employees holding graduate degrees. A company making student loan payments for an employee can claim the payments as a tax break on its annual filing. This year, the Legislature lifted the cap on the amount employers can pay on their workers’ student loans and still qualify for the tax credit. The credit is over $4,000 for a bachelor’s degree or nearly $800 for an associate degree, per eligible employee.

    . . . . .

    THE VALUE OF A ‘STEM’ DEGREE
    The amount that taxpayers can claim under the Opportunity Maine program varies, based on their individual tax and loan situations. Gilbert said his credit ends up covering about two-thirds of his annual payments on a $10,000 student debt he accumulated while earning a bachelor’s degree from the New England School of Communications at Husson University. He said he’s stretching out his payments to take advantage of the credit, which can be claimed over 10 years.
    The federal government allows taxpayers to claim a deduction on interest paid on their student loans, but Coughlin said she thinks only one other state – Kansas – offers a state credit like Maine’s.

    In 2014, the latest year for which figures are available, nearly 4,000 taxpayers claimed a credit under the program. Credits are higher for the highly desirable tech worker with a STEM (science, technology, education or math) degree. The average amount was $1,832 for people with a STEM degree. For college grads without a STEM degree, the average credit was a little more than $1,000.

    Coughlin said with Maine’s unemployment rate below 4 percent, it may seem odd to push a program to invite more workers to move here. But she noted that many employers say they are having a hard time finding skilled workers . . . “

  84. Comrade Nom Deplume, Right Wing Extremist (per anon) says:

    [83] redux, redux,

    And if 30 yr wants to attend, I left my gun at home.

  85. Anon E. Moose says:

    ccb [85];

    Standard leftist MO: Better dead than Rude.

  86. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Thanks for pointing that out. That’s why I have not replied to her last posts. I can only take so much.

    Brains doesn’t make you the better person even though it should. Why so much hate for someone that thinks about economics in a different light. There is not one road to economics, many paths can be chosen. Too bad some people are incapable of understanding that.

    I wish we could give the Joyce’s of the world their desired govt and economic system, would love to see how it works out. Guarantee it’s not perfect. I would love to just try it out and show these individuals once and for all how wrong they really are. Let the Rands of the world have their desired govt, let it fail, and teach them why they are wrong. It’s the only way they can learn, from their mistake.

    ccb223 says:
    April 22, 2016 at 10:30 am
    Pumpkin – why do you let your self be called an idiot and a retard and feel the need to be nice to this internet woman, calling her a genius/smart or whatever?

    Irrespective of who is right and wrong in your “arguments” she is not being very polite or respectful….grow a pair.

  87. Comrade Nom Deplume, Right Wing Extremist (per anon) says:

    Pumps, I appreciate your passion and (and I’ll get shiite for this), your open-mindedness, but you overdo it.

    I get being sucked in; it’s easy. But, ATEOTD, I get paid for my opinions, as do you, so why devote so much time to giving them away here?

    My circumstances permit me to post pretty freely but even I get busy. Just what do you do that allows you to be here so often?

  88. leftwing says:

    Re: Maine

    Spent some time looking up and down the East Coast recently trying to figure out what/where I want to be when I grow up.

    Outside a couple areas Maine is Alabama North. Demographics are not good.

    Wonderful natural beauty, friendly and sincere people, but…wow.

  89. Comrade Nom Deplume, Right Wing Extremist (per anon) says:

    [90] leftwing

    Yeah, its rural. That’s rural life. Go anywhere in the US that’s rural and you can pretty much say the same thing.

    You have to want the life there. You know how folks in NJ say “it’s different here”? Mainers say the same thing and it’s true, it really is different there. Whether their motto “The way life should be” is for you, well, only you can say. But I do know folks who love it.

  90. Comrade Nom Deplume, Right Wing Extremist (per anon) says:

    [91] redux

    Of course, some things take getting used to. My sister and BIL own a farm in South Paris and the top of the driveway is crossed by the Maine Central RR. And there is a road crossing here. Nothing like getting blasted out of bed by a train horn at 4 am.

  91. Comrade Nom Deplume, still fcuking around at work says:

    The funny thing is that this is supposed to alleviate the high cost of living in SF. And it does, for the people getting the benefit; everyone else however, they get to pay.

    “San Francisco becomes first U.S. city mandating fully paid parental leave
    SAN FRANCISCO April 21

    San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee on Thursday signed a paid parental leave ordinance, making the city the first in the United States that requires full pay for parents on leave to care for their new babies.

    Current California state law allows partially paid leave for new mothers and fathers who have paid into a state disability insurance. They receive 55 percent of their full salaries for six weeks, with the money coming from the state disability program.
    The new ordinance, which was unanimously approved by the San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors early this month, is a supplement to the state regulations. It gives new parents six weeks of fully paid leave, with the remaining 45 percent to be paid by employers which have at least 20 employees.

    The rules will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2017, for businesses with more than 50 workers, and one year later for those with at least 20 or more workers. . . . ”

    And since it is a SF ordinance, not a state law, one need only move the office to Oakland, avoid the cost, and qualify for tax credits.

  92. Essex says:

    90. The politics of Maine are completely different than anything you’ll find down south. Bet on that.

  93. Comrade Nom Deplume, One Percenter for another year says:

    [94] Essex

    Oh no doubt. I can readily attest to that. But rural living is rural living with allowances for geography and climate.

    Maine is distinguishable from southern politics because of some industries like tourism and the influence of transplants from places like Mass.

  94. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    I have only one good Maine story, and its one that only Moose will appreciate probably:

    When I was in my last year of law school, I scored an interview with the Maine Supreme Court for a clerkship. They interviewed candidates en banc (you met all the justices at once at a conference table). They did not have a courthouse but met in the Cumberland County court building in Portland (unusual since the capital is Augusta).

    I did my research on the court and questioned, among others, Justice Thayer of the NH Supreme Court, and some of the current law clerks. One of the things I learned was that Justice Rudman always wore bow ties. Useless tidbit I figured but whatever.

    I go to Portland and the Chief Justice comes out to meet me and do a pre-brief so I am at ease with the process. Apparently many students were intimidated by the en banc interview but at that point, I had been in banking several years. Some of my clients were also former clients of these judges. I told him “no worries, let’s get on with it.” When we went in, I noted they were one judge short and so I asked “Will Judge Rudman be joining us?” The chief raised an eyebrow and said “Oh, do you know Judge Rudman?” I said “No, I just don’t see anyone wearing a bow tie.”

    At that point all hell broke loose. There were six justices of the Maine Supreme Court, practically rolling on the floor, laughing themselves silly. Literally slapping the table.
    At that moment, Judge Rudman walks in–he had apparently been in the men’s room. All the judges started laughing again when they say him. This flustered Judge Rudman who quickly checked his fly.

    At this point, I thought to myself “damn, I’ve either nailed it or I totally lost the room here.” The Chief says “I have to know where you get your information” and I said something about keeping my sources confidential.

    At the end of the interview, he asked if I had any questions and I said I had one, from Justice Thayer in NH. The chief said “Oh, what does Steve want?” I said “Justice Thayer wants to know when you’re going to get yourself a building.” The Chief didn’t miss a beat and said “Tell Steve we’ll get a building when New Hampshire gets itself an appeals court.”

    A lot of laughs all around. I didn’t get an offer. But then, neither did the EIC of our law review, my chief competition. That was the last time I was in Maine.

  95. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Nom, I know we have our differences, but I always respected you. Never had a problem with you. Honestly, never had a problem with anyone here. Might not agree with their ideas, but don’t hate them for it.

    Trust me, I should not be posting as much as I do. I hear it from my wife on a regular basis if I get home late, or if I post late night from home. I suffer from OCD. It’s why I’m able to think so deeply(I’m able to block out all other thoughts and concentrate only on what I’m thinking about) and it’s why I still hang around here. I love these topics (real estate, economics, and politics). It’s like a fat kid in a donut shop for me. I can’t resist. Most people don’t have a clue when it comes to these topics. You can’t even spur conversation with them, and if you do, it’s so elementary that it is boring. You are just talking to yourself because they don’t even understand what you are talking about. So it’s pointless if they can’t even counter your ideas or thoughts.

    My job comes in bursts. It’s a lot of work, but it is not constant due to having to wait on other people for their reports. So for two hours you might be doing nothing, and then boom, you get hit with all the work at 5 pm, and end up being stuck at the office till 8 or 9 because the report is needed asap. Quarter ends are terrible times, and end of year is the worst. I enjoy the demands that come with the job, though. It makes time go by quickly. I refuse to do jobs where I’m sitting around looking at a clock, that’s torture. Did that with a part time job in my teenage years. Pure torture. God bless the people that have those jobs.

    Comrade Nom Deplume, Right Wing Extremist (per anon) says:
    April 22, 2016 at 11:43 am
    Pumps, I appreciate your passion and (and I’ll get shiite for this), your open-mindedness, but you overdo it.

    I get being sucked in; it’s easy. But, ATEOTD, I get paid for my opinions, as do you, so why devote so much time to giving them away here?

    My circumstances permit me to post pretty freely but even I get busy. Just what do you do that allows you to be here so often?

  96. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    More Maine, and one of my favorite places

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxXua_0afaQ

    The vid poster cleaned it up. We all know this spot as “Oh sh1t corner”.

  97. Essex says:

    96. …1992 … I worked a summer job in Maine at an all girls’ camp.
    As one of a handful of guys employed there I found that summer to be one of the best I had….

  98. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [97] pumps

    “So for two hours you might be doing nothing, and then boom, you get hit with all the work at 5 pm, and end up being stuck at the office till 8 or 9 because the report is needed asap.”

    Jesus, that sounds like my life at Skadden in DC. Except getting home before 10 was considered exceptionally early. One night I walked in at 9:30 and my wife asked me “what are you doing home so early?”

  99. Essex says:

    Interesting….Based on how Americans have been investing, it appears the average citizen really hates the stock market.

    Tom Lee of Fundstrat laid out just how much, in a note to clients on Friday.

    “Households have not been buying equities generally since 2007,” wrote Lee.

    “This is evident on the chart on the left below. As shown, there has been a substantial liquidation of equity ownership, most notably in direct ownership of stocks.”

    Part of this effect may be that Americans have been burned by two serious drawdowns in the stock market since 2000.

    Lee points out that since 2007 households have been a net seller of stocks, and have shrunk the amount of their financial assets in stocks by 18.6% since that time.

    “This is the largest liquidation in history and surpasses the 10% liquidation during the decade from 1979 to 1989—that was the precedent decade before the massive inflows into equities in the 1990s,” said Lee.

  100. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [99] essex,

    Not sure that the statute of limitations have run out on that yet, Essex.

  101. Essex says:

    ….I almost lost my beverage into the keyboard on that one….

  102. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [101] essex

    Not sure he was the first to note this, and it makes sense. After the Depression, people avoided banks for decades.

    It is also a contributor to income inequality. Only the top households were back in the market so a lot of folks in lower quintiles who could have benefited, missed the bus.

  103. The Great Pumpkin says:

    This sums up why I always say most of the country is not desirable. It’s not that some people don’t enjoy living there or they are not beautiful, it’s just not desirable to people that grew up in places like Jersey or Los Angeles. Two different worlds. So people that grew up with the accommodations that come with a place like jersey or Los Angeles, will have a hard time finding happiness in some rural location. It might be cheaper, but not so sure you will enjoy the lifestyle.

    Comrade Nom Deplume, Right Wing Extremist (per anon) says:
    April 22, 2016 at 11:54 am
    [90] leftwing

    Yeah, its rural. That’s rural life. Go anywhere in the US that’s rural and you can pretty much say the same thing.

    You have to want the life there. You know how folks in NJ say “it’s different here”? Mainers say the same thing and it’s true, it really is different there. Whether their motto “The way life should be” is for you, well, only you can say. But I do know folks who love it.

  104. The Great Pumpkin says:

    lol…..exactly! Perks of the job! I just tell myself when that happens that “it doesn’t get any better than this!”

    Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:
    April 22, 2016 at 1:58 pm
    [97] pumps

    “So for two hours you might be doing nothing, and then boom, you get hit with all the work at 5 pm, and end up being stuck at the office till 8 or 9 because the report is needed asap.”

    Jesus, that sounds like my life at Skadden in DC. Except getting home before 10 was considered exceptionally early. One night I walked in at 9:30 and my wife asked me “what are you doing home so early?”

  105. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Nice, reminds me of my tennis days. Glory days!

    Essex says:
    April 22, 2016 at 1:57 pm
    96. …1992 … I worked a summer job in Maine at an all girls’ camp.
    As one of a handful of guys employed there I found that summer to be one of the best I had….

  106. Juice Box says:

    Now I think I’m going down to the well tonight
    and I’m going to drink till I get my fill
    And I hope when I get old I don’t sit around thinking about it
    but I probably will
    Yeah, just sitting back trying to recapture
    a little of the glory of, well time slips away
    and leaves you with nothing mister but
    boring stories of glory days

    Glory days well they’ll pass you by
    Glory days in the wink of a young girl’s eye
    Glory days, glory days

  107. libturd still chopping says:

    Lisa’s on duty tonight Nom!

  108. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [109] lib

    Ok. Might stop in and eat your dinner this time. Or bring her some if it isn’t covered.

    But stay awhile, willya? There’s only so many times I can hang with Gator before tongues start wagging!

  109. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [107] pumps

    Getting back into tennis after a two decade hiatus. Still using the same racket, much to the bemusement of our trainer. Both of our girls now swinging a racket.

    Joined a tennis club last fall and we are joining a country club presently so I expect to get in a lot of court time.

  110. Bystander says:

    For past 20 years, I have tried to vacation in Maine at least every other summer. My blood pressure drops 30 points just crossing over the border. If there is a prettier walk on the East Coast than Marginal Way in Ogunquit than I am all ears. I don’t think it gets more scenic or relaxing than sitting in Boothbay or Camden harbors after a nice lobster roll sandwich. Also, Acadia is the beautiful and amazing National Park east of the Mississippi (Great Smokys are a close #2 but still so wild). Vacationland is right. The south it ain’t, though I know traveling west of 95 is probably dueling banjos. South and Central coast, Lake Sebago, Lake Baxter State Park, Acadia..heaven on earth. Even Old Orchard is a white trash, people watching trip for a few hours. I might grab a six of Allagash White tonight..one of my favorite beers. Always wanted to tour brewery in Portland. Guess I’m a Maine-iac. Love that state.

  111. Libturd questioning the gender of Hillary's Cankle fluid. says:

    Nom…there’s actually enough dinner for all, but I might leave a little early just to get home at a decent hour for a change.

  112. Ben says:

    Getting back into tennis after a two decade hiatus. Still using the same racket, much to the bemusement of our trainer. Both of our girls now swinging a racket.

    Joined a tennis club last fall and we are joining a country club presently so I expect to get in a lot of court time.

    If you are rusty, give Pumpkin a call. He can give you lessons.

  113. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [114] lib

    Yeah, Gator said you’d be there. But I get leaving early to get back for lil’ gator. If I don’t catch you over there, tell him my girl said hi.

    Maybe I’ll smuggle something in for the two of you. Red or white?

  114. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [115] ben

    Gaahh, I’d probably break my racquet over his head.

  115. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    [113] bystander

    Another of my favorite places, discovered during a bike ride while dating my future wife.

    http://www.chaunceycreek.com/

    And you don’t have to drive to Ogunquit.

  116. Essex says:

    113. Completely agree, secretly hoping my girl goes to Bates, so I’ll have an excuse to buy a cabin up there and never leave.

  117. Essex says:

    112. We contributed about $5k to Obamacare on our taxes this year…

    Good times.

  118. Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:

    I’m out to brave 76 and the Walt Whitman in order to check in on Stu and Gator.

    Happy Pesach to you members of the tribe and peace out to the rest of you.

  119. The Great Pumpkin says:

    Nice!! Great way to get some exercise in while having fun. Don’t worry about the racket, just put some new strings on and you will be good to go!!

    Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:
    April 22, 2016 at 3:16 pm
    [107] pumps

    Getting back into tennis after a two decade hiatus. Still using the same racket, much to the bemusement of our trainer. Both of our girls now swinging a racket.

    Joined a tennis club last fall and we are joining a country club presently so I expect to get in a lot of court time.

  120. Waiting for Punkin’s first 100 post day…

    Goddamit.

  121. Comrade Nom Deplume, One Percenter for another year says:

    Spent a little time with Gator in the oncology wing at CHoP.

    We didn’t discuss this place once expect to promise Gator that I’ll be dragging Splat to an alcohol related event at gunpoint.

  122. [123] I’m convinced that the extent of punkin’s conversations with actual human life forms is mumbling “no” to the question, “Would you like fries with that, ma’am?”

  123. I’m trying to fathom from where Obama is going to garner his speaking fee income after he leaves office. Maybe it wont’ be that an it’ll be another book instead, POTUS ain’t crap compared to the Illuminati — Why they forced me to still sound black, no matter how much golf I played

  124. [111] Nom – I started up again a few years ago. I still use my circa 1984-5 POG (Prince Original Graphite) which is probably the only racquet from back then that is still sold today. Does anybody remember Salada (tea) taglines? I found one decades ago that simply stated, One of the rarest thing a man ever does is to do the best he can. I taped it on the body of my racquet just above the grip almost 30 years ago and it’s still there now. That was even before I made it to the pros (I was a ball boy at an exhibition match between Borg and Laver circa 1976 ;-)

    Comrade Nom Deplume, screwing around at work says:
    April 22, 2016 at 3:16 pm
    [107] pumps

    Getting back into tennis after a two decade hiatus. Still using the same racket, much to the bemusement of our trainer. Both of our girls now swinging a racket.

    Joined a tennis club last fall and we are joining a country club presently so I expect to get in a lot of court time.

  125. after, not before. dammit.

Comments are closed.