The word "mortgage" these days conjures up the same feelings as the word "leprosy." So in this era of poor underwriting, mixed with the creative investing brought to you by hedge funds, we have some new companies pitching new products to help homeowners extract the equity from their property without actually taking out a "loan."

Just got back from visiting my sister in Humboldt County, in Northern California, where she was appearing in a community theater production. There is nothing like local theater--the good, the bad, the ugly, and the surprisingly wonderful.

Like much of the economy, Starbucks isn't completely healthy. But PR executive Michael Levine, author of "Broken Windows, Broken Business," goes so far as to suggest the company has come down with a potentially fatal "virus."

Gas prices have gotten so expensive it costs more to fuel your car than to fuel your body. My family is spending $150 a week on gasoline, A WEEK, and that is more than I spend on groceries. One reason for this disparity is that food suppliers are offering steep discounts as "loss leaders" during these tough times.

They came, they saw, they paused. Tesco, the world's third largest retailer, finally invaded the world's largest retail market--the U.S.--last November, opening its first Fresh&Easy store in Los Angeles.

Northrop Grumman and EADS want to assemble the KC-45 tanker in Mobile, Alabama--assuming the Air Force ever buys one. With Boeing successfully challenging that award, a Mobile restaurant called Foosackly's (what?) which specializes in chicken fingers is putting up billboards and selling T-shirts...