My toenail and the economy

It was December of 2007, and I hauled my sorry self up to Manville to play indoor soccer with Rob Finnegan and John Patterson pretty late at night. I'm not sure if it was the first game, when I -- for lack of understanding of what new Astroturf was like -- wore sneakers instead of cleats, and was thus abused mercilessly by opposing strikers and snickered at unceasingly, but on one occasion at least I stubbed the hell out of my left big toe.

And, as toes are wont to do, over time it filled up with blood and was shed once, and then a second time it just grew out, slowly, perhaps because of my advancing years. And only in the 3rd quarter of '09 was the last of the dark matter beneath the toe snipped away. Now the nail is thicker than its peer group, with which it may not reach parity for some time, if, indeed, ever...

Now, the astute amongst you will notice that the progress of this minor injury has coincided precisely with the period of this, the longest recession of the post-Depression era, if the preliminary release of GDP numbers on Thursday indeed confirms that we exited recession, however fragilely, in the 3rd quarter of this year. And the thickness of the toenail is like unto the "new normal" being touted by the dashing Mohammed El-Erian of Pimco, ex-of Harvard, as the new paradigm for the economy.

So, my readers, I trust that you will stay with me for further updates from this oh so prescient toe, a bellweather of all that is and may be.