Odds And Ends -- July 14, 2022

Grocery inflation watch. Update.

To be clear: the following are not in my investing future --

• ESG
• CCS
• EVs; interesting commentary here; group think starting to "scare" CEOs; 
• deep down these CEOs know EVs won't "work" as a business model;
  
• RGB (regional grid batteries); this is a no-brainer;
  
• nuclear reactors in the US; again, "my investing future," not yours.
  

As an investor: I've never been in a better mood. More on that later. We're coming closer to the "Goldilocks" moment.

As an investor:

• I'm inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken;
• I'm even more exited about fossil fuel energy in general;
• I am always fully invested;
• I have a plan and have remained disciplined;
• I learned my lesson earlier this year;
• I trade twice month: the first week of the month, and mid-month;
• I have a 30-year horizon;
• I like dividends; a lot of investors don't; I understand that
• every time I add too any position, 90% of the time my quarterly dividends will increase
• monthly dividends present a great revenue stream
• no dividends, capital gains only would be better but requires more expertise with investing which I don't have
  
• I literally have no interest / concern in short term returns 
• looking out thirty years, I see no "place" I would rather invest than in the US
  

Disclaimer: this is not an investment site.  Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here.

All my posts are done quickly: there will be content and typographical errors. If anything on any of my posts is important to you, go to the source. If/when I find typographical / content errors, I will correct them.

ERCOT vs ISO-NE:

• it was never about pricing with regard to ERCOT
• for ERCOT observers, it was about "will the grid hold"
• everyone knew that ERCOT would be expensive once in awhile (due to vagaries of wind and solar)
• for ISO-NE: it's never about the grid failing
• the ISO-NE (and ISO-NY) grid will never fail
• the ISO-NE (and ISO-NY) grid is all about cost: expensive - more expensive -- horrendously expensive

The book page:

• I've just completed:
• Ken Kocienda, Creative Selection: Inside Apple's Design Process During the Golden Age of Steve Jobs, c. 2018. Amazon.
• If you are a software "engineer" and have not read this book, you either:
• have too much on your plate (and can't prioritize priorities); or,
• you are not passionate about your work.

The book page:

• Ken Kocienda, Creative Selection: Inside Apple's Design Process During the Golden Age of Steve Jobs, c. 2018. Amazon.explains why Tim Cook will not be able to match Steve Jobs
• explains why it's important for Apple's workforce to return to work (and not work remotely)
• there's an easy fix for this problem
• Tim Cook needs to tie pay to inconvenience of showing up to work
• coming into work: a 50% rise in base salary with multi-year contract opportunities
• working from home: a 50% cut in base salary and contract renewals on a six-month basis;

The movie page:

• Only Murders In The Building: everyone associated with this series was nominated for an Emmy Award ... except Selena Gomez -- talk about a huge snub from the elitist white majority
• the weekly series drops at 3:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday, or right at midnight, Tuesdays, Pacific time
• ten weeks during the year; pretty much a summer series
• I can watch any one episode several times in one evening
• this week: episode 4