201 Street

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan helped send the stock market reeling in the last half-hour of trading today, after he warned in a CNBC interview that the U.S. was living through a “once-in-a-century” crisis tied to the housing market’s plunge.

He said falling home prices were “nowhere near the bottom,” and he supported the idea of nationalizing mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, saying they were a “major accident waiting to happen.”

Note, though, that this is the same Fed chairman who on June 13 said that “the worst is over in the financial crisis or will be very soon.” Hopefully no one took that as a sign to buy bank stocks in mid-June.

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I joined a classic Corvette car club recently. I belonged to one when I was younger but I stopped going when I got too busy with college. Now I have a little more time and I’m restoring one so I really feel like I get a lot out of it. Some of the other members helped me find rims for sale that were just right. And a few of them helped me install the rims.

Restoring cars is something that a lot of people love to do. I enjoy it because it gets me away from my everyday life and it keeps me from watching television. I don’t want to be stuck inside all of the time with nothing to do. Instead I want to be fixing up my Corvette. And if I’m not fixing it up, I want to be deciding what needs to be done next and where I’m going to get the parts. For instance I knew I was going to need to find great tire and wheel packages.

Fixing it up helps me to feel valuable. I spend over 40 hours a week at a desk, looking at a computer screen. When I get home the last thing I want to do and should do is stare at another one. Fixing it up myself helps me to save money and that makes me feel good. So not only do I enjoy it, it builds my self-worth.

The U.S. Open tennis coverage is always excellent. The Tennis Channel deliver quality coverage with excellent commentary. Most are retired pros. This year will also be great because the Olympics are in the middle of tennis season. The players will play for their countries, get very little rest and jump right into the U.S. Open. And my prediction is that Roger Federer is going to win.

Then again, Nadal won the French Open for a fourth time this year, then beat Federer on grass at the Wimbledon. It was a fantastic match and both men were great sports and wonderful examples. Noticeably missing from the stands is Nadal’s secret girlfriend, Xisca. It’s not a secret any longer that he’s taken. Federer girlfriend, Mirka Vavrinec.

I wonder if we will see either of these ladies at the Olympics. No matter what, the 2008 Olympics in Beijing will be exciting and the U.S. Open will too!

Choosing the right window blinds for you house can seem very trying at times. But getting the right blinds is easy when you go with Next Day Blinds. They have every possible type of blinds available. And they will even go to your home for an in-home consultation.

Next Day Blinds helped me to pick out the blinds I needed and stay within my budget. Their products are reasonably priced and the quality is outstanding. I would recommend Next Day Blinds to anyone.

I was worried that I would not be able to choose the best kinds but with their help, I found the perfect blinds for my decor. I got honeycomb blinds for my bedroom, plantation shutters for my kitchen nook, bamboo window blinds for my living room and wood blinds for my kitchen. It’s amazing how much of a difference new blinds can make.

Next Day Blinds was there every step of the way. And they are even replacing their car fleet with hybrids through the attrition process. That means a lot to me because I am very concerned with the environment. I know that they will do the best job possible for me because they even care about the environment.

In the recent past, most people thought that in order to update the look of their homes, they had to almost re-model and spend a large sum of money. But updating the look of your home doesn’t have to cost a fortune. In fact, with just a few easy changes, you will see your home in an entirely new light. By following these simple steps, you can update the look of any room with a limited budget.

Step 1: Choose your color palette and decide on the color you want your walls to be. Be sure to choose a palette that will go with your sofa. You will keep the larger, more expensive pieces of furniture the same because changing these will cost a considerable amount of money. Decide on colors that you like and that match the larger pieces of furniture that you have.

Step 2: Pick out new rugs for the room. Be sure that you get a rug pad as this will keep the area rug in place and will prevent slips. The rug you decide you decide on should also match your color scheme. The wonderful thing about rugs is that they come in all styles, colors and some ever have patterns. Based on your preference choose one that will go with your sofa. If shag rugs will look best, choose the appropriate size and color.

Step 3: Replace your end tables and coffee tables. If the ones you currently have are expensive and you do not want to replace them, skip this step. If you cannot afford new ones but would like a new look for the ones you have, consider re-staining or painting them. A distressed white look can dramatically change the appearance of the tables and the look of your room.

By following these three steps, changing the appearance of any room is simple and inexpensive. If you are changing a bedroom, insert bedding for sofa and you will find that it is simple to change the look of that room also.

Bank of America’s acquisition of Countrywide Financial has analysts, investors and the media a bit nervous. BusinessWeek took a look at the situation and did not have good news to report. In today’s top story, they exposed the shaky background of Countrywide and its affect on Bank of America (BofA). “. . . The Countrywide buyout brings BofA lots of trouble. The quality of Countrywide’s loans is much worse than the loans on BofA’s balance sheet. BofA said July 21 it will need to deal with $40 billion in troubled mortgage loans at Countrywide.”

This news is softened by the bank’s reported share prices. Although the result was still a loss, share prices were not down as much as analysts had predicted. Kenneth Lewis, Bank of America Chairman and Chief Executive, is using this data as proof of the bank’s strength in the midst of the current economic adversity. However, BusinessWeek was not fully convinced. The upcoming weeks will show if investors buy into it.