I spent some time again at the de Saisset museum at Santa Clara University this afternoon. Some 1960s works are on exhibition there. What caught my attention the most, though, was the cell phone based audio playback mechanism. Rather than hand out a playback device with a number keypad, visitors are asked to call a phone number and enter the corresponding key. A simple IVR system does this, but I wonder why I haven't seen it elsewhere.

The Asian stock markets took a nosedive again on the first trading day of the week. German export number for January however beat expectation by a wide margin despite the strong euro. I'm long on ACH, AUY, MO, MSFT, BP, HAL, EPD, FWLT, CVTX, SGP, MCD, and, unfortunately, C, WM, and FNM. I believe the three financials I own will come back, except possibly WM, which could be acquired for a cheap price just like Countrywide. I prefer WM to remain independent, as I think its savings business is strong and the Fed's rate cuts will eventually help turn it around. In the meantime, the financials' dividends are decent. I apparently got into the financials too early in the cycle. Next time around, I should give it some more thoughts before acting.