new job starting soon, good Monster deals???, seesawing economy

Ahoy out there! It's been I guess about a week since my last blog so off with the lid, and away we go.

Jenny will be starting her new job next Monday, which means that she has about 3.5 more days of freedom before she jumps back into the workforce. She's enjoying a relaxing week off, and of course nervous about starting the new job, but Penny, our dog, is ready for her to start... Much like people, Penny has no problem letting you know when you're disturbing her rest. She'll let out a *sigh*, followed by putting her head down, or if particularly perturbed, walking out of the room while looking back accusingly whenever she gets annoyed. This happens enough even when we're both at work most of the week, but with Jenny being home and interfering with her naptime, I hear that Penny is running out of patience. What a rough life this dog must live!

Many of you non-geeks have probably never heard of Monster Cable, but it's a company that sells cables for audio and video components. Their cables are, by all reasonable accounts, SEVERELY overpriced. I mean, $275 for a cable to connect your Blu-Ray player to your HDTV? Gee, doesn't it do the exact same thing as this $25 cable? (answer: yes, yes it does.) Anyway, they have issued a press release, stating that they will be lowering prices on their cables to make them more accessible to people in the economic recession. Wow...I wonder what the $275 cable that functions the same as a $25 cable used to cost??? Please note that I am in no way arguing that Monster Cables are of inferior quality- they are quite good quality. But if I'm paying an extra $250 for a cable, I'd like a free Blu-Ray player with it at least.

I've noticed that people I know who have lost jobs are starting to get interviews and even job offers, which is great. On the other hand, the news still seems to paint the picture as pretty sour. What do you think- is the economy improving? Or are we in for a long and wild ride still?

-Douglas