RSSPerso Biz Notes Archives
March 03, 2008
Decimals, Finance & Maghrebine Staff.
Of little general interest, but instead of playing with my damned outlays model (I almost wrote 'spend model' as I find it harder and harder to resist that horrible barbarism that some semi-literate American biz school undergrad created - due to sheer weight of usage), I shall complain about Maghrebine "financial engineers." Sadly by the way, ordinary financial staff, often are "engineers" - stemming from I think the French obsession with slapping engineer on any damned thing in applied maths.
Decimals. It's a petty obsession of mine. I like my numbers to be presented in a certain fashion. Round, and preferably with some clear signaling of roughness - if a model, some up-down scenarios, else 'roughly.' My philosophical point is to hammer home again and again that unless we're talking actual cost accounting, financial projections, and above all any kind of sector data is fuzzy. It's a human trait to be fooled into thinking there is precision in forecasting, etc.
My complaint then is that my Maghrebine staff, well trained as they are in Maths - far smarter than I on purely theory-technical I readily confess - are obsessed with giving me numbers to three or more decimals.
Which, in valuation terms, is fucking stupid. (Well for what we do, let me acknowledge that in many contexts those decimals can be on volume major profit or less) Well, not stupid, but I think - perhaps too philosophically - self deceiving. But they can't shake the bloody habit of (false) precision. Drives me bloody mad. Rigidity and blind adherence to theory, and false precision.
I would also like to add that this quarter was/will be a fucking disaster. Everything is frozen, nobody wants to move. Markets are all holding breath(or letting it out and ducking).
Posted by The Lounsbury at 11:52 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
February 04, 2008
So, if one's major client is arrested...
What does one do? And when I say arrested, I do mean the client, not just one stupid whanker in middle management, but a whole judicial brigade and the like descending.
Continue reading "So, if one's major client is arrested..."
Posted by The Lounsbury at 09:48 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack
January 16, 2008
Alive Not Dead
However, the global financial sector meltdown is causing me no small amount of issues. Although I think I have doged such bullets, I suspect the economy (global) will not.
Ah, American financial innovation, etc.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 08:04 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
December 24, 2007
Finally in perso electronics observations
After endlessly whinging on about phones, and constantly dithering, I am happy to say I found my perfect phone - PDA. I went for a Nokia E61i, which I find absolutely indispensable now, and at 400 euro, not bad. Unfortunately I had to bribe the chica with a ridiculously overdone phone for her, despite knowing that she'll use nothing besides SMS.
Continue reading "Finally in perso electronics observations"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 07:14 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
November 13, 2007
Emerging Markets Financing and Aid, experienced bollocks
Although I would very much like to delve into the guts of this, sadly - well not sadly as this is life - general interest and client confidentiality requires circumscription.
However the main point of this comment is a disgusted practitioner's cris de couer as to the sheer idiocy of various "business development programs either pimped by EU or US or ... well you bloody well can guess the actors. I should add that I do not think that these programs are not ipso facto pissing money down a rat hole... as I think some American Senator said in the 90s. Even as a .. well highly value added oriented actor entirely willing to admit that I am both a a profit whore and that most aid is shit (due to utterly fucked incentives) - well there having said the necessary.
Aid Development programs run by kids are ... just doomed. Kids, however talented just don't know enough not to propose either to me (and I bloody well as fucking connected enough to hear independently even if said Dev Prog had not openly confessed...)
Continue reading "Emerging Markets Financing and Aid, experienced bollocks"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 10:11 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
November 05, 2007
Clarity
Well, Fin Crisis is coming home to roost.
My Titanic Masters told me I have until mid-08 to triple our figures or they're shutting down their attempt to penetrate these markets. Retrenchement.
While I rather regard my home office as fundamentally uncompetitive in this market, the challenge of trying (and affirming my achievements as newly appointed regional director) does concentrate the mind.
Make a run for it, and if they play ABN AMRO, well, it was fun and move on.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 04:01 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
October 01, 2007
Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks, bloody quitting on me
Me bloody number two just up and quit today. Bastid. Whinging on about long hours and blah blah. Says he's taking a government job that is more human.
Well, this gives me the opportunity to slash costs - overpaid bastard got far too many raises from my idiot predecessor - and hire some young nubile creature who'll work twice as hard for half the pay (and regardless of half the experience No.2 was so bloody governmental in his approach to work, I should be in for a 50% gain in productivity).
This does, however make me doubly fucked on bailing out problems and keeping things moving.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 05:25 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
September 18, 2007
Going Silent
Comrades, readers, suckers.
Afraid I have to go silent. Major biz disaster at the Titanic needs rescuing. Lucky for me, not me generated, and if it falls through, I can probably slime me way out of responsability as merely being the Fix It Guy given crap, but it also might endanger my SSAMENA emerging fiefdom (i.e. boom) or it will confirm.
Interesting weeks ahead. Perhaps some people can recommend some Ramadan compliant stress reduction pills. And maybe some anti-ulcer strategies.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 07:39 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
September 05, 2007
Bloody Monkeys
Afraid to say I think hiring some bloody monkeys from goddamned Gibraltar might be more efficient than trying to get my local staff to show a smidgen of initiative or, just for the sheer fucking novelty value, self-motivation to take a bloody lesson....
Continue reading "Bloody Monkeys"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 07:48 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
August 16, 2007
The Evils of Government
When one works in emerging markets, above all in direct investment - none of the silly portfolio investment in stable listed firms - one brims over with examples of why government licensing in emerging markets is a general evil.
Here is one live example, from a start up: going to company registry - the so-called "one stop shop" (of subliterate paper-pushing parasites) that pretends to have the authority to review corporate bylaws, the no doubt literature major hired to absorb the flood of useless graduates from the state universities, refused to accept the by-laws with a 331/3 division between the founders. Didn't add up to 100% claimed the sub-literate. After much arguing the said entrepreneurs were forced to change the bylaws. By one little cretin with the maths skills of ... well a literature major.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:07 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
Credit credit credit
Sorry all, I am afraid this little credit storm, while necessary at some level is beginning to impact me life. I confess at first I rather shrugged this off, thinking, "ah those wild fools in the Hedge Funds will be properly spanked, no worries."
Continue reading "Credit credit credit"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 01:19 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
July 31, 2007
Self Indulgence & Financing Reflexions
Another self indulgent comment.
Continue reading "Self Indulgence & Financing Reflexions"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 08:32 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
A self indulgent comment on in-house lawyers who do not know their place in the world
This is of no concern to wider readership. It will however make me feel better, above all as I need more venting as I find that drinking the national per capita income in Cuban products on monthly basis is worrisome.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 08:18 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
May 28, 2007
Bloody Holidays
Spent 15 minutes calling home office and then rang a colleague on her cell, to find out it's a US holiday today. Fuckers call me on my bloody holidays, but get all bent out when I call them. Like I'm supposed to recall these stupid holidays.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:19 PM | Comments (15) | TrackBack
April 27, 2007
Am I Evil
If I design a deal where I bear .4% equity risk and the overall deal is levered up 70 times?
Posted by The Lounsbury at 07:51 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
April 24, 2007
Cretins, Cretins, Cretins
Bloody opened my mail to find my cretinous MD has sent me his new numbers projections that we wants me to achieve. If the time difference and too much time with a fat Bahraini cretin yesterday out late did not have me half dead, I'd go ballistic. Since taking over I already have my region's pipeline up 50%, but there are some deals that are not doable. I fucking was explicit about that, but.... no the motherfucker as usual game.
I am going to go insane. All I ask is to be allowed to grow the business successfully. I already have that on track, it's fucking clear even to the idiots in HQ who hate me.
Continue reading "Cretins, Cretins, Cretins"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 08:37 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 19, 2007
Pissing Off, Bahrain edition.
Sorry all, have to fuck off for meetings in that lovely little hotspot, Bahrain, for about a week - unless something blows up of course. Kha, I kill myself.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:57 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
April 06, 2007
Executive Bathrooms
Mine to be precise.
I am presently very distressed that the simple -ostensibly at least- repair of my fine executive bathroom for the trivial issue of a problem with the light fixtures has now entered into the third day.
Three days. Work never seems to be able to be executed for more than an hour at a time.
Nevermind I authorised the repair.... a month ago.
Continue reading "Executive Bathrooms"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:37 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
March 30, 2007
Bloody fuckers
Called to board meeting, Monday. Goddamned tickets, and I have to prepare in one fucking day. Mothefuckers and their desperate fucking scrambling. I should have told them to go to hell with this stupid job. Three goddamned days notice to prep?
Posted by The Lounsbury at 12:26 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 27, 2007
Fever & Negotiations
I spent today trying to negotiate a deal while running a fever of a rather extraordinary level.
It was interesting.
Luckily the big guys had asked for some deal breakers, my incoherence might have been the cause.
A deal might happen, but fucking need anti-bios... or something. Room is moving. Well at least the biz class lady knows me and will treat me like a baby.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 12:47 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
March 23, 2007
My Staff
Can not write a damned marketing document in their own bloody language if their lives depended on it.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:40 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
March 05, 2007
Externalities: Some Uses for Scum
Externalities.
In haircuts. Now that the authorities have shut the Khaliji whoring hotel across the street from my overly expensive hair cutter, the visual quality of the support staff has noticeably declined.
Continue reading "Externalities: Some Uses for Scum"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 04:27 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
February 28, 2007
Controls
Internal controls, important things.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 10:09 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
February 25, 2007
Fuck.
Working flat out and bam, one of the motherfucking principal parties has his fucking father die and cancels the meetings.
Priorities, motherfucker! Close the fucking deal.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 11:27 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
February 18, 2007
Reflexions on Talent, Markets, MENA & Development - The Value of Initiative
Inspired in part by a comment by Shaheen, and in part by some convo I dimly recall from a few months back somewhere in bloggy land about the value of expats and overseas educated and experienced staff, I thought I might make a comment on the value of staff with international experience.
While perhaps potentially self-serving, I really mean to briefly reflect on barriers to growth in MENA, as a business as well as a social problem.
Continue reading "Reflexions on Talent, Markets, MENA & Development - The Value of Initiative"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 12:30 AM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
February 16, 2007
Oh Who Will Deliver Me From These Unturbulent Employees?!
I wish I could fire them.
Continue reading "Oh Who Will Deliver Me From These Unturbulent Employees?!"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 05:23 PM | Comments (9) | TrackBack
February 14, 2007
Oh bloody bollocks - V Day
I forgot.
Must send my assistant out to buy my woman something. Yes, yes, pitiful to outsource such things, but such is life.
Continue reading "Oh bloody bollocks - V Day"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 10:52 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
February 11, 2007
Depressing in a way, amusing in others
Purely personal business.
Continue reading "Depressing in a way, amusing in others"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 08:09 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 29, 2007
Pissing Off
Biz trip to the younger half of the Old World, shall be in flight hither and thither for much of the next week.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:43 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
January 26, 2007
Brilliance
This is about me, so I shall now indulge meself.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 07:10 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 24, 2007
PIPES
One doesn't realise how bizarre jargon is, often enough, until one has to render it in another language.
Take PIPES. Just had to explain the phrase to someone not an English speaker, took a couple tries before I hit on a formula that clicked.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 05:35 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
January 23, 2007
Biz Dev Bollocks
Exhausted, working madly on massaging a market penetration strategy for some new areas that I have to implement, but had not a jot of input in, have no power to change except on the margins, and which is so entirely wrong-headed I spend half my time thinking maybe I should resign rather than be responsible for it.
Continue reading "Biz Dev Bollocks"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 11:29 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
January 19, 2007
And the toothaches
It's done.
Continue reading "And the toothaches"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:48 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
January 17, 2007
Afraid may be offline for a bit
There has been a bit of a corporate coup d'etat.
Afraid this presents some toothaches for me, and much work.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 05:44 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack
December 01, 2006
Back to the Dollar Obsession
Being dollar denominated in terms of compensation is getting painful again. The FT notes fears of a hard landing, which you may read as a dollar collapse cropping up.
With the extremely poor fiscal management on the part of the so very clearly generally incompetent Bush Administration, there is real fear in the circles I travel in that a dollar valuation slide could provoke a serious crisis. Not a necessary crisis, but one provoked by delusional policy response.
There is a MENA angle as well with respect to the sustainability of commitments.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 09:36 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 28, 2006
MENA Govs - Still don't get Free Market
I just came away from an interesting yet profoundly frustrating meeting with some Sr. officials from the Maghreb on investment projects in the "Technology Space" - one can interpret that broadly to mean any technology new to the Maghreb, not just North American style Hi Tech.
Motivated folks, smart and well-educated.
And without the slightest fucking clue as to how the bloody fuck the private sector invests. Painfully clueless.
Continue reading "MENA Govs - Still don't get Free Market"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:51 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
November 10, 2006
Wasta
I've come to understand that I enjoy generating Wasta. Schmoozing.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:51 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
October 30, 2006
Bollocks
Bloody bastsrds ask for a motherfucking memo on the bloody PPM's outstanding issues, in detail. I bloody write the fucking thing, exec summ and gruesome detail about damned issues like attribution of the off shore structure, advisory boards and other mind-numbing nonsense they've avoided deciding on for I have no idea how many conference calls .... and I stay up to the wee hours working on this. To do the call, and they haven't read the bloody thing, nor decided on any of the issues, nor any goddamned thing at all.
Fucking useless clients. No wonder lawyers bill by the fucking hour. Concentrates the mind of the useless fuckers. Ah well, the fee will pay for the entire goddamned production of Cuba, I can kill my brain cells later.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 02:24 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
October 28, 2006
Private Placement Memorandum
I am trying to overcome the urge in writing this stunningly long, detailed masterpiece of marketing to insert phrases in the boilerplate such as "And I know Actual Investors Never Read This Rubbish So Go Fuck Yourself Stupid Lawyers for Forcing Us to Write Lots of Utterly Useless and Unenforceable Rot."
I bet I could and it would get by.
Continue reading "Private Placement Memorandum"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 09:11 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
October 03, 2006
Queer
Well, I just was approached to raise 15 million for a second closing. Strange. I wouldn't trust me to raise 15 million Euro, but it is flattering. Why they think I can do this for them escapes me, but obviously I am more convincing than I think I am. Hell, I wasn't even pimping this.
Of course I realise I know fuck all about raising 15 from Khalijis or HNWs.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 01:40 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
September 16, 2006
Country People & Airports (Umra Inconveniences)
On the road as part of a futile flurry of activity, as all signs are that the Titanic has finally taken on enough water to go under. Thanks to airport Wi Fi, however, I can complain about travelling while packs of country bumpkins head off to do pilgrimage. While it is most uncharitable of me to say so, I hate travelling when a bunch of under-bathed farmers with the habits of farmers pack airports, jostling each other and me like a heard of semi-literate beasts. A decade or two ago, I would have found these scenes charming and picturesque. Now I am merely irritated and annoyed.
Of course besides the pilgrims, there are the West African contrabandiers whose gauche displays of gold and equally atrocious lack of public politeness get on my ever more sensitive nerves. I can in part excuse my irritation by at least identifying a public point of interest - the sharp elbows and lack of public order are all symptomatic of underlying issues that undermine economic growth.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 01:40 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
September 13, 2006
Buried
As I have noted in comments, afraid am buried in crisis work. Trying to save my morons from losing several million USD. Will resurface as soon as possible.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 08:21 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 29, 2006
In applying for positions in a financial firm
Electronically, do give your CV a name besides "mycv" or something else generic. I get pissed off looking at the files trying to discern which is which.
Continue reading "In applying for positions in a financial firm"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 10:35 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
August 26, 2006
Speech Recognition [Software, Thoughts & Qs]
A Question that has nothing at all to do with MENA or whatnot - well not directly at least.
I recently started playing around with XP's speech recognition, which is not that bad but not really that useful. A toy. It did provoke a search and I see many writers indicate that the Dragon Naturally Speaking software has become worth one's while. Wondering if any readers have recent experience with Speech Recognition Software and have observations. Nota bene, my particular situation leads me to have a penchant for potential multilingual applications as I regularly write in 3 different languages. Arabic, I am sure, remains a disaster of course. Goes without saying. I would also observe that I tend to have to use rather complciated financial jarbon (i.e. phrases like "embedded optionalities in mortgage based cash flows" sadly are regularly used despite their ugliness).
Posted by The Lounsbury at 01:49 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
August 24, 2006
Joint Ventures & Coops: Reflexions in real estate and coops in MENA
My side Joint Venture has given me the keys into experience and personal fashion the intricacies of communal property practices in MENA, and outside the context of a multinational with all kinds of influence and the like to throw around, but rather in the context of being a weak foreign investor without corporate structures. While surprising, the experience has highlighted the sometimes incredibly irritating but always illustrative of under-development incentives and practices in ways that have been somewhat intriguing.
Continue reading "Joint Ventures & Coops: Reflexions in real estate and coops in MENA"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 09:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 17, 2006
Bollocks - Stupid American AML rubbish
My fucking wire to pay for my fucking Hadide Alamani Djdid from my USD account has been fucking blocked by some cretinous moron system in the Land of Delusional Pants Wetters as possible Money Laundering.
Fuck, I hate these people. now it's going to take a week or more to get some cretin to undo this.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 12:30 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
August 09, 2006
Frothy: Fund Developments, Private Equity & MENA
A queer indicator of the amount of froth that characterises the MENA capital markets at present, my very own self got a call from an American firm looking to enter the MENA market for the first time and raise a private equity fund. Looking for a "face."
Quite frankly, they need someone grey-haired and I told them that right out, for the kind of investment they're thinking of; but on the other hand, I would be a decent face to give an image of.... "best practices" given me rep as Mr Clean.
This being said, this is not really about me, but the froth. With oil at nearly USD 80 and likely to remain well above USD 70, the amount of money flowing into the Gulf - and to a lesser extent places like Algeria and Libya - is astounding and looking like a replay of the 1970s.
Continue reading "Frothy: Fund Developments, Private Equity & MENA"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 12:44 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 04, 2006
Unbelievable
My local staff is quitting it appears, last sec. just resigned on the spot.
The completely idiotic scum that I work for uniltateraly changed their compensation from USD to local currency (which is not fixed against USD). Despite the fact of contracted salaries in local, and did not bother to inform anyone. My assistant (who's leaving anything) happened to notice despite an augmentation, she got less in the account. And then they came clean.
First, it suggests more serious financial problems than I had previously suspected. Second, it's simply illegal.
I'm now literally trembling with anger on their behalf. I have never, ever seen anything quite like this. (Well, not w someone I draw my salary on).
Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:16 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
July 31, 2006
Joint Venture
My joint venture, launched last July is a year old now. An achievement.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 09:03 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
July 18, 2006
Adding Insult to Injury
I find that not only has my incredible super duper assistant quit (well in the process) but our goddamned air conditioning has given out, such that in the middle of this fucking heat wave (37 odd degrees or so) I'm in me office in a suit with only cold water to chill me. Fuck it, I am fucking off.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:13 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
July 17, 2006
Madre de puta
My bloody 2nd just quit.
Fuckers in NY decided not to give me staff bonuses, and she quit.
Good for her but fuck me. I'm never going to get someone this good.
This rather upends me applecart, obviously going to be a bit of a distraction.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 04:23 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
June 27, 2006
Queer Invitations: Perhaps They Mistook Me Role?
I got an invite from some odd globalisation "Alternatives" organisation to a round-table which appears to be aimed at denouncing "savage neo-liberalism."
Someone has either had extreme case of mistaken identify, or in the alternative, want to ambush me.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:40 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
May 25, 2006
On Being Scum
You know you work with scum when you do some Biz Dev, you make intros, you do legwork, then when in a spot of cancer that exiles you from your home and office, your own management goes behind your back to contact the Jefe of the target firm, and tries to launch the effort without (i) involving you, (ii) informing you, (iii) using your name and rep to do so. Funny though, I gave said Jefe a call and we had a fine convo where this came out. There's a bridge I am not building for them.
Scum, and clumsy stupid scum at that.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 09:29 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
May 23, 2006
Relationships
Today was another day confirming that in what I do, it's relationships. Not Knowledge Management software and other rubbish that my idiots think can substitute for the relationships and depth, its relationships. After two days of fucking around with the irritating fucking little Asian Bitch Pekinese know-nothing grad who thinks fucking agenda points and her "really understanding" by forcing me to irritate my clients is business, I ring up the old Battle Axe and she gets me 2 names at one of the big boys on the Street, I make a couple calls and bingo.
Relationships.
And my fucking management thinks their KM software is a substitute for the loss of blood. "Institutionalising" they call it.
Idiots. At least in MENA we don't pretend it's anything but relationships.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 12:59 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
May 11, 2006
Translation - rather more difficult than monolinguals think
Working on polishing a docy translated for a project. We spend serious dinero on translation, but my idiots keep trying to 'save' money by not going to more expensive financial specialist translators.
So, to have something usable, I end up polishing (because I work for monolingual semi-literate Americans) which if one costs me in.... rather eliminates the supposed savings.
The problem here is that monolinguals - well also people who've not had to focus on the issue for professional real money implications if there is a miswording - just don't get how hard it is to get idiom right in translation, above all for texts that are jargon / specialty language intensive. You can really fuck up meanings and say the exact opposite of what is meant in such situs. I've gained a lively appreciation since my present cretins have more or less obliged my semi-converstion to translator (and interpreter from time to time when the hired interpreter falls flat - although frankly translating things like "mortgage linked cash flows with embedded optionality" on the fly makes the brain hurt) of how much meaning can be destroyed in this manner. As well as how much the monolingual who's unaware of such challenges really thinks they are getting full meaning. After all, its been translated....
Besides my personal rant, I think one might reflect on the American efforts in its 'War on Terror' and how much poor language facility is handicapping that. Certainly in Iraq besides incomptence, lack of linguistic competence (and awareness of the same) I think plays a role in handicapping.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 04:11 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
Pondering Morality
Cancer.
I am pondering the morality of talking about cancer. Or mentioning it rather.
Continue reading "Pondering Morality"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:51 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
May 10, 2006
Cretins - Oh Cretins.
My Cretinous Colleagues have truly fucked me. I knew we shouldn't have gone for that big local guv advisory bullshit. I just read our product. It's so stunningly bad, off-target, completely inappropriate for the market and just plain dimwitted I am actually taken aback. Even the cretinous fool who commissioned us to do this is not likely to be taken in.
I feel ashamed even being vaguely associated with this sub-standard piece of idiocy.
Why do my cretinous idiots think, still, that after almost two years or so of trying to penetrate this market that foisting off complete junk is going to work? They've already observed that the local (financial) market is more sophisticated than they expected, requires different things than the other emerging markets where they've supposedly successfully done business (although I understand we're shutting some offices....) I guess they can't just change their vision of anyone in emerging markets fin sec as gullible fools like the Khaliji bastards.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 07:58 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 29, 2006
Asset Weighting Methodologies
Would by some bizarre chance anyone have some recommendations on quick online sourcing for Asset Weighting Methodologies, discussions.
While in many respects I am perfectly comfortable acting like a little chimpanzee seeking his banana in blindly following received and barely understood wisdom, suddently some dim intellectual curiosity has sparked.
This of course is entirely personal and has fuck all to do with any real subjects of this blog.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 08:19 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 28, 2006
Delays
Well, although we gotta get the framework for this deal in place by 5 May, and that meant I needed to already be working on this.... nothing.
Typical.
I am going to get the stuff late, work my ass off, and everything will fall through because there just isn't time. Idiots.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:54 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 27, 2006
Bloody Hell (Ooops)
Sorry, just learned my idiots over-promised and we got maybe 5 days to slap together some deal stuff. A month's worth of work in five working days.... Gotta disappear.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 11:35 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 12, 2006
Cretins and Rats?
CFO resigned, effective in two weeks. Rats.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 02:30 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 20, 2006
Sorry, some issues
Sorry comrades, readers, etc. Some little chemo issues fucking with me. I have a neat new side effect that while unpleasant at least has some colourful aspects.
Continue reading "Sorry, some issues"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 04:56 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 13, 2006
On Cold Calls & Bone Pain
I have decided after a modicum of experimentation that business calls aiming at client development of one kind of another, in my particular context, are best executed while on my meds, rather than off. I should also have a good solid slug of cafe in my to insure I am able to follow a train of thought.
Off the meds, I'm afraid the pain really gets in the way of concentration and one's desire to actually talk to other human beings really falls off when the bone marrow pain really picks up. On the meds, of course, concentration becomes a bit of a challenge. Mapping out thoughts, notes helps a bit, but in effect, not really on the fly. So the cafe.
This, is, in short, a pain in the ass. For a simple damned call, I gotta first kill off the bone pain with some nice kicking narcotics that put me off in lala land, then boost meself up with some shots of caffinated goodness.
Exhausting.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:44 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Pondering the CFA
I go back and forth about this idea, but given a somewhat enforced "hermitude," I am thinking perhaps my new hobby, besides pointlessly abusing readers of this blog and 'Aqoul, is going for a CFA. Any collected thoughts? If you don't know what I am talking about, by the way, fuck off.Posted by The Lounsbury at 06:39 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
March 02, 2006
Offline again
Afraid I shall have to disappear. My morons have completely fucked one of my clients, so completely fucked my client I am going to be lucky to be able to rescue this. Stupid fuckers, goddamned stupid fuckers. I knew these idiots were going to fuck this up, fancy fucking idiots.
Continue reading "Offline again"
Posted by The Lounsbury at 12:26 AM | Comments (13) | TrackBack
February 16, 2006
Listing to port
Not equities, the nautical one.
The Titanic announced some overseas operations are being shut. Not mine as of yet, but clearly although it has taken time, the water taken on is having an effect.
Clearly exit strategies must be less puttering about (despite my whinging there is a certain comfort). On the other hand, working on exit strategies with my current situ is challenging.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 07:08 PM | Comments (11) | TrackBack
February 09, 2006
Progress & Thoughts
Before I disappear into my due diligence, a quick thought on several items.
Re the business of this blog-centre, pleased with the Cartoon issue and our work on this.
Re my normal topic areas, reflecting on how to get back to those. Unfortunately that bit of peronsal information that slips through here rather narrows me down. Restricts what I can say about my own field.
Re progress, new pain meds. Shall see how this works. Also in review last regime, it appears a clerical error had me taking me meds at half the rate that was intended to be prescribed. One should think that would be a significant difference and why last week's bone pain just flattened me. New narcos may may this upcoming week a bit whack, but there it is. Finally, a good item to report, I have nearly full lung performance back. Suggestive of a retreating tumour. Back when this started I could achieve 200 cc at best, normal is 2500 cc. Happy to say I regularly am up in that range without undue strain. The fine tumour may be retreating from the central chest areas, which does rather inhibts its ability to kill me by cutting off blood or air, or both.
Posted by The Lounsbury at 03:15 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
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