Random Thoughts with Oil Spiking

In the summertime when all the leaves and trees are green, and the gas prices double, I’ll be blue… OK, that is not how that song goes, but it looks like we are in for another summer of spiking gas prices again. Certainly can’t be blamed on demand this time, since the number of unemployed folk and folks not driving their gas inhaling SUV’s is up and down respectively, wonder what might be causing this? Maybe a secret Canadian Conspiracy to force the U.S. to rely heavily on the Tar Sands in Alberta? Not a bad concept, except this is driving the Canadian Dollar back up to equal value with the U.S. dollar, which will spike the Canadian Economic recovery if we are not careful.

What I wrote that Week

• More Pensioners in 2008 but Cheaper Cell Phones ? surprisingly there are a lot of folks in pension plans, but the concept of cheap cell phones in Canada is a fairy tale.
• Canadians are Charitable which is a good thing, given how spread out we all are.
• Giving Away Free Crap or simply decluttering is a good idea
• Employment down (again) Unemployment Up (again) for May 2009 back when we were starting to recover from the great credit explosion of 2008
• What goes up… a great animated short talking about the Stock Market. From the National Film Board of Canada.
• Random Thoughts: Stay In Balance remember always stay in Balance.

Financial Blog Highlights

This week’s treasure trove of nuggets of wisdom are a wide spectrum of financial discussions:

• Million Dollar Journey does a comprehensive comparison in High End Chequing Comparison, a good read for those who might be shopping around for a new bank.
• Michael James’ cynicism shows through in his post A Phone Call From Bell, but he isn’t wrong either. I’m sure if he asked the young lady to repeat “Peter Piper Picked a Peck of Pickled Peppers” five times fast, and he’d agree to the deal, she might do it.
• The Canadian Capitalist tackles a topic near and dear to my heart in Tips on Safety Deposit Boxes. One thing he missed that you shouldn’t put in your safety deposit box, your spare dentures or eye glasses.
• Preet’s attempt at Television fame at Where Does All My Money Go continues on with Watch Me Compete on the W Network, he is entertaining to drink with, let’s hope it translates well to TV.
• Larry MacDonald discusses the Deflation Threat and is skeptical about hyper-inflation and deflation as well. I like reading cynics, makes me feel safer.

Don’t miss my weekend post on the one sure fire way to make some coin!