Casual thoughts this a.m.

My wife returned from an overnight trip with her lady friends and said she had a great time shopping, watching a movie, talking, eating, and just getting away for a short time. I listened to her recount the trip (I really am a good husband sometimes) and asked the appropriate questions--What was the movie? Where did you eat? How was the motel? Did everybody get along? etc. I then asked her what kinds of things did they talk about (fearing of course that their husbands were the main topic of conversation!). She said this and that, various things like food, shopping, children, decorating, and weddings. Weddings? She then reminded me that her friend's daughter had just had a wedding.

Thinking through her time with her friends and their discussions, I realized that in all my years of talking with other men, I don't recall discussing a wedding. I think men talk a little about the expense of certain weddings and sometimes funny things that happen but for the most part men never discuss colors or flowers or dresses or cakes or really anything about the wedding. But the more amazing part of this story is that my wife actually could detail the discussions she had with her friends.

I usually forget most conversations after they occur. If I spent a couple of days with some men and were later asked to recall the conversation, I would probably only remember the funny moments or perhaps the broad discussions without detail. If I do a little pontificating on this, I might suspect that women are superior to men in remembering details. But I think I will choose, instead, to laugh at our differences and avoid qualitative analysis.

Studying economics these days and am amazed at the complexity of our economic world. And yet, in the end it really comes back to demand and supply. When we manipulate the markets without depending on the demand to determine the supply, we wreck the natural balance of the economy. It is a myth that the government can create jobs. People create jobs through demand for goods or a service. Provide a good or a service that is wanted and/or useful, and a job is the result. To force the creation of a good without a demand or to offer a service that is unwanted is to create a false world without a foundation. Create jobs by recognizing a need and find a way to fill that void. It may be time to return to the truths of supply and demand.

We tried out our new juicer yesterday. Lots of work for very little result, but what juice we drank was glorious indeed! Well worth the effort. It did, however, remind me of my time in London where I often walked to Covent Garden to experience the artistic joys of outdoor classical music, great food, and an occasional juggler or unicycle expert. On the way, I would often stop at a very small cafe and order freshly made juice. Each time I felt my body energized by the delicious drink. I also noticed that the more I stopped there, the larger the portions became. The elderly Asian lady recognized me as a return customer and treated me with extra juice. Ah, London, you reside in a place in my heart!