1.75%

(English version below)

Riksbanken sänker räntan med 1.75%-enheter. Den största sänkningen någonsin. Den värsta finanskrisen sedan 30-talet.

I Harare skjuter polisen mot demonstranter utanför bankerna som infört en uttagsbegränsning. Man får inte ta ut mer än 500 000 dollar. ”So what” tänker man, tills man får höra att 500 000 Zimbabwe dollar motsvarar 2.50 kronor. Man har inte längre råd med kemikalier som behövs till reningsverken. 12500 personer har kolera och 600 har redan dött. 1.75%-enheter.

I Zimbabwe har man en inflation på 220 miljoner procent vilket motsvarar 7% i sekunden. Men Zimbabwe ligger för långt bort både geografisk och kulturellt för att vi egentligen ska behöva bry oss. 1.75%-enheter.

I mitt eget så händelsefulla liv så har jag fått ytterligare ett paket från Bokus, Tim har kommit och jag går mina dagliga promenader (som lett till ökad aptit och träningsvärk).

Så, för att hålla tankarna borta från nästa veckas datortomografi och vad resultat kan tänkas komma från det, så läser jag böcker. En av de senare är ytterligare en i raden av böcker om att fokusera på det som är viktigt. Den bygger på ett citat från författaren Stephen Levine – ”Om du hade en timme kvar att leva och bara kunder ringa ett telefonsamtal, vem skulle du ringa till? Vad skulle du säga? och vad väntar du på?

En amerikansk författare vid namn Richard Carlson, skrev sitt svar i form av ett brev till sin fru på deras 18e bröllopsdag. 3 år senare avlider han hastigt vid 45 års ålder. Nedan är ett kort utdrag ur boken.

”Who would you call?
If I had an hour to live, I’ll tell you who I wouldn’t call. It wouldn’t be my stockbroker, my financial planner, my banker, or my CPA. Don’t get me wrong. They’re all great people, but the last thing on my mind would be how much money I had made during my lifetime or, for that matter, how much I had left. Things that once seemed important, like the rate of return on my investment portfolio or my current tax bracket, would seem entirely irrelevant. We spend so much of our lives collecting achievements and then indentifying ourselves with them. Yet, with an hour to live, those achievements don’t seem very relevant. I wouldn’t be looking at my trophies.
Likewise, I wouldn’t be checking in at the office to see what last-minute projects I might be able to check off my list! After all, my in box is always full. I wouldn’t be checking my voice mail, my pager, my e-mail, or my Palm Pilot. All the so-called emergencies would have to wait. I always wondered if the world would come to an end if I didn’t get to all these things. Imagining myself looking around, about ready to leave this place, I finally have my answer. The world looks as crazy as ever, but it’s clearly going to go on without me. I guess I was mistaken about the relative importance of my little corner. I think I may have taken myself a bit too seriously. “

"An hour to live, an hour to love" by Richard Carlson and Kristine Carlson

Bokus.com

Amazon.com

English Version

The Bank of Sweden has lowered the interest rate by 1.75%. The biggest cut ever. The worst financial crisis since the 1930s.

I Harare the police is shooting at people protesting outside the banks. The banks have put a limit on how much can be withdrawn. The limit is 500 000 dollars. So what, I thought, until I heard that 500 000 Zimbabwean dollars is about 25 US cents, or 20 pence. The government cannot afford the chemicals needed to produce clean water. 12 500 people now have cholera and already almost 600 people have died. 1.75%.

In Zimbabwe the inflation the last month was 220 million percent or 7% per second. But Zimbabwe is too far away, both geographically and in culture for us to really need to care. 1.75%

In my exciting life I have this week got a book parcel from Bokus, Tim is back and I have gone on my daily walks (rendering me a better appetite and aches and pains in my legs, knees and feet).

So, to keep my thoughts off next week’s CT-scan and what results may come of that, I have been reading a lot. One of the latest books is yet another this-is-what-you-should-focus-your-life-on book.

The book is based on a quotation from the writer Stephen Levine – “If you had one hour to live and could make just one phone call, who would it be to, what would you say… and why are you waiting?”

The author of the book, the American writer Richard Carlson, wrote his reply in form of a letter to his wife on their 18th anniversary. 3 years later he dies suddenly at the age of 45. Above you can read a short excerpt from the book.