Skip to main content

Remembering Kenny Rogers

No I am not implying anything sinister - he is still among the living. However he made a prescient song album in 1978 called 'The Gambler' that still resonates today in the economic crises and the subsequent narrative coming from the large international banks, the financial analysts and their talking heads.

The lexicon used to describe today's financial morass includes terms like 'fold bad banks', 'getting rid of the weak hands', 'bailout', 'bad loans', 'over extended borrowers', 'loan crisis', 'subprime', 'balloon payments', you get the idea!

So here are the lyrics of his title song - The Gambler -

On a warm summer's eve
On a train bound for nowhere
I met up with the gambler
We were both too tired to sleep
So we took turns a-starin'
Out the window at the darkness
The boredom overtook us, and he began to speak

He said, "Son, I've made my life
Out of readin' people's faces
Knowin' what the cards were
By the way they held their eyes
So if you don't mind my sayin'
I can see you're out of aces
For a taste of your whiskey
I'll give you some advice"

So I handed him my bottle
And he drank down my last swallow
Then he bummed a cigarette
And asked me for a light
And the night got deathly quiet
And his faced lost all expression
He said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy
You gotta learn to play it right

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
Know when to run
You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

Now every gambler knows the secret to survivin'
Is knowin' what to throw away
And knowin' what to keep
'Cause every hand's a winner
And every hand's a loser
And the best that you can hope for
Is to die in your sleep"

So when he finished speakin'
He turned back for the window
Crushed out his cigarette
And faded off to sleep then somewhere in the darkness
The gambler he broke even,
but in his final words
I found an ace that I could keep

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
know when to run
You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

Can Bernanke get on a train to nowhere and find a guy willing to lend advice for a taste of whatever Ben's drinking? Let us hope!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Of chocolates

I like chocolates. Godiva Dark with Almonds - not sure of the naked woman on the horse to be the icon of some choice cocoa based products but tastes good. Started in Belgium but now owned by some Turks. Cadburys - Fruit and Nut Milk Bars - awesome combination of dried fruit pieces along with a medley of nuts makes your toungue dance - started by a Brit now owen by Kraft USA. Lindt Hazelnut spheres - made by a Swiss confectioner are divine balls that melt in your mouth with a lingering nutty taste Ghirardelli Milk Crisp Squares - crunchy and light these milk squares are easy on the palate but pack some serious calories - all good I say! Originally founded by an Italian who moved around till he landed in SF Bay today also owned by the Swiss Lindt empire.

Columbia SC

 The Palmetto state.  One of the confederate kinds. History dating couple centuries back.  We visited the capital yet again this time to take in the SC State Museum. Occupying the former digs (literally remodeled) of an erstwhile cotton mill this structure is an amazing piece of reimagination.  Four floors of excitement for kids and young at heart alike. Located on the shores of the Congaree River formed when the Broad meets up with the Saluda River, this edifice is approx. 60 years old.  The front of the building has a more modern planetarium that was added about a decade ago.  The museum itself has different areas of interest segregated on each of its four floors. The first floor has gift shop and a diorama of some of the local geography including the swamps and the state beaches with audio guides to help understand what fauna thrives locally. The second floor is all about natural history and showcases animal kingdom that may have survived on this latitud...

Cost of entrepreneurship

Last night I attended a guest lecture on the subject of disruptive technology and entrepreneurship.  Lecture was free but it was used as a pitch by the University that hosted it to attract new customers. The speaker was somewhat respectable fellow who happened to hail from India and spoke eloquently.   One of the key message was around how the professors in this university were ranked among the very best money can buy. Cost of the MBA program mere $110,000 and oh we also buy some dinner if you have late class.  So now the math is simple-  is learning to be entrepreneurial worth the cost of entry? That is assuming you end up being one.   What of those that do not?  or the ones that are not successful at being the entrepreneur?  Is that being a pessimist before even being handed the glass. What I found strange is that people will bet big money on the glimmer of hope that they might just make a entrepreneurial debut and hit it big.  The unive...