Whether identifying changes in public policy that could do exponential good or revealing internal assumptions about the way the world works, mental models are the best construct I’ve ever come across to categorize, analyze, study, document, and reflect upon the universe. Yesterday, The Washington Post published an example of cognitive bias when it detailed how how subconscious beliefs can…
The Executives at Edward Jones Should Feel Humiliated About Their Mutual Fund Practices Trust departments, trust companies, and money management firms provide a valuable service to the civilization. For centuries, men and women who had built up a nest egg could go down to their local branch, meet with the bank, and sign a contract…
The older I get, the more amazed at I am at the power of compounding in all areas of life. Compounding is one of the most powerful forces at work in the universe. It exerts itself in all sorts of arenas, ranging from finance to farming. To illustrate: As I sit in my home study, publishing a few…
Good morning, fellow Nestlé stockholders! It’s that magical day of the year when the annual dividend gets paid out to American owners (or, technically, those who have opted to buy the ADR). While those of you who hold your shares of Nestlé through Switzerland directly got your 2.15 CHF per share dividend on April 17th, those of you who opt for the Nestlé ADR traded here in the United States (which is likely most of you) get your dividends today!
Goodbye, California. In the words of your famous Governor, “I’ll be back”, but for now, it’s time to go home to Kansas City. We returned the rental car after driving 1,000 miles exploring your beaches, mountains, groves, vineyards, and deserts to consider whether it would be a good fit for our business and life. Now,…
We fly out tomorrow morning, so we decided to call it a trip, check into a hotel near the airport, and get up early so we can sit in the gate without having to rush or fight traffic. I’m going to try and get some work done, maybe read a bit. I bought 5-6 new…
We are staying The Langham Huntington in Pasadena. It’s a very cool, old hotel with a unique history sitting on 23 acres. The gift shop sells a book detailing the timeline, which I bought and hope to get to later. For now, I’ll paraphrase Wikipedia: It was originally constructed in 1907 by civil war veteran General Wentworth. Four years later, railroad tycoon Henry Huntington – we visited his home and gardens earlier today – bought it and, within 36 months, had it reopened under his name.
After viewing the fields of Ojai yesterday, we decided to go to Pasadena today, with a quick detour to La Cañada Flintridge. A big thank you to A Patel, who suggested in the comments on the post about Montecito that we stop by The Huntington Library, Art Collection and Botanical Gardens. This place is wonderful! I knew next…
I’ve never seen land like the real estate in the Ynez Valley, including the drive to Ojai, California. This is one of, if not the, most beautiful place in the United States. Once you make it out of the cities, it’s nothing but huge, rolling fields with tractors going through them, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, citrus, cattle, and horses; it’s perfection.
We finally arrived after our drive from Santa Barbara to Solvang and this place is like a time warp! The whole village is old-school Danish, complete with windmills, brewing companies, bakeries, toy stores, candles; it’s legit. You can rent bicycles and ride around the streets or go pick up an expensive carved cuckoo clock. I…