The Sun Will Come Out, Tomorrow

Have those pesky traders on Wall Street been secretly watching "Annie" to boost their morale and the markets? Can't you see it now, the trading floor breaking out into a spontaneous rendition of "It's a Hard-Knock Life for Us?" Genius! Whatever they are doing down in the pitt is working since the markets are all in the green this morning.

This is great news, right? Well, my friends, I feel Kermit the Frog might be right, it's not easy being green. Why do I say this? It seems as though this bump is the direct result of Merrill Lynch & Co. trying to turn their frown upside down by selling off a large amount of their asset-backed securities & issuing loads of new stock, all to raise $8.5 Billion in cold, hard cash! It is hard for me to understand how an act of such pure desperation can result in a rally, but whatever gets you through the night, right?

Also making headlines this morning is Sony announcing they are reporting a 47.4% drop in profits for the 2nd quarter. What? People are not spending money on electronics, TV's and gaming systems? Puzzling!

One thing is remaining constant through all the ups & downs of Wall Street however, and that is Americans decreased demand for Black Gold & Texas Tea! Combine that will a strengthening Dollar and you have oil prices falling toward $123/barrel- Yippee! The fact that I am so excited by this 'lowered' price makes me want to slap myself & call me Sally! It is really quite reminiscent of the time, not so long ago, when I almost caused a 6-car pile up by making an illegal U-turn in the middle of 158 for $3.79/gallon gas...since when did that become a bargain-basement price? Luckily, no one was injured in my quest for gas, and I continued home feeling glorious about my purchase, almost like I had gotten one over on the man! In reality though folks, the man is clearly getting over on us. Why do I say this? Well, could it be the crazy profits in the food industry while I now hate to go grocery shopping, or is it that BP reported a 28% rise in 2nd Quarter Profits! Sometimes I wish I was part of the man, then I would teach them how to roll around the floor in piles of money while hysterically laughing! A girl can dream, right?

Finally, the gossip world is all a-buzz with our favorite "Rehab" singer, Amy Winehouse. Apparently, she was rushed to the hospital last night after she had some kind of reaction to a drug or medication. Luckily she was released this morning and is once again roaming the streets of London...can't her parents go all Britney on her butt? It seems to be working for the former Pop-Tart!