Imaginary Presidents

On a lighter note, thanks to Kottke for this retrospective of the imaginary Presidency of Al Gore.

And why did he pressure the universally admired Fed chairman Alan Greenspan to step down early in 2002? Replacing him with that old warhorse Paul Volcker was a nasty surprise, especially when Volcker choked off a promising housing boom in 2002 and imposed old, outdated regulations on lenders. Some properties lost as much as 8% of their value that year. Now housing prices are rising really slowly, and GDP barely grew by 3% this year.

Happy President's Day

While many of us enjoy the day off and golf, bowl, or spend time with our families, please take a minute to think about why we have this day off. It's a big year for Presidential History, but I really loved this post looking back at our first president's trip across the Delaware. And this post about the painting getting a new frame.

A lot different

I get asked at least once a week just how much different is my life as a teacher different than mine as a lawyer? Someday I will come up with a comprehensive list (that will continue to evolve), but for now suffice it to say, that a year ago my week of vacation in February would have been spent on conference calls, checking my blackberry, and angering everyone I was on vacation with. Now, it's pretty much just what you see here (which is a story for another time).