Housing Market Continues Slide

From the Times 'Plunge in Existing-Home Sales Is Steepest Since ’89':

-"Sales of existing homes plunged in March by the largest amount in nearly two decades, reflecting bad weather and increasing problems in the subprime mortgage market..."

- "The steep sales decline was accompanied by an eighth straight fall in median home prices, the longest such period of falling prices on record."

-"There was weakness in every part of the country in March."

- "The steep slump in housing over the past year has been a major factor slowing the overall economy. It has subtracted around 1 percentage point from growth since mid-2006."

Remember, a lot of people have been counting an improvement in housing to shore up [or at least not hinder] overall economic growth. All signs continue to indicate that a turnabout is not in sight. Expect housing to continue to take its toll on the broader economy for some time to come.

Also, keep in mind that there may be many more hidden surprises out there, especially if the continued cooling of the housing market leads to greater defaults/delinquencies in the mortgage market. [Specifically I am referring to the possibility of a de-rating of the mortgage backed securities which could conceivably trigger all sorts of hell in the financial markets.]

Major Honeybee Die Off - Almonds Next

It looks as though the massive die off of honeybee populations here in the US is worsening. Right now nearly 1/4 professional bee keepers has reported losing as many as half their hives. This might not seem important except that honey bees are a vital link in our agricultural system. Little know but true:
- "Honeybees are arguably the insects that are most important to the human food chain. They are the principal pollinators of hundreds of fruits, vegetables, flowers and nuts."

There are literally guys who drive around the country going farm-to-farm with trucks of bee colonies for hire. And a great deal of our crop production relies on the ability of their bees to pollinate crop plants.

The gist of the article is that scientists are rushing to understand what is causing the "colony collapse disorder". If they aren't successful, and the die-offs continue, this could become a major story.

The Sad State of Our Overbusied Lives

Very cool article from the Washington Post, in which they did a bit of guerrilla journalism.

The Post got Joshua Bell, one of the world's premier violinists, to take his Stradavarius to L'Enfant Plaza Metro Stop and play for 43 minutes incognito. The man played some of the greatest pieces in his repertoire with passion and verve. Out of the 1000+ people who passed by, something like 10 actually stopped to take note of what was, in all likelihood, the most transcendent piece of art they are likely to encounter in their lives. All told, a man who earns $1000+/hr on stage, took in ~$32. It's sort of a sad commentary on the hurried, myopic state of modern life.

What's just as sad, is that despite playing violin for >10 years, I'm not entirely sure that I would have stopped either. I'd like to hope that I would, but who knows...