CHANNING TATUM and RACHEL MCADAMS in the possibly new “Dear John” movie, but this time definitely more dramatic. and with Rachel McAdams. A car accident puts Paige (McAdams) in a coma, and when she wakes up with severe memory loss, her husband Leo (Tatum) works to win her heart again. Coming to theatres on Feb 2, 2012 Starring: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum, Sam Neill, Scott Speedman, Kristina Pesic, Jessica Lange, Rachel Skarsten

We’ll also establish a Financial Crimes Unit of highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud… financial firms violate major anti-fraud laws because there’s no real penalty for being a repeat offender… So pass legislation that makes the penalties for fraud count.

And tonight, I’m asking my Attorney General to create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorney general to expand our investigations into the abusive lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis.

Now, how could you be against that? In his speech, and indeed as has been true for his entire career, Mr. Obama deserves an A for rhetoric. But what grade does he deserve for action? Alas, he flunks.

It has now been three and a half years since the financial crisis of September 2008. Only a few months after that crisis — three years ago now — President Obama took office. At the time, he had an overwhelming popular mandate and huge majorities in both houses of Congress. The nation was in crisis, with unemployment growing nearly half a percent per month. The Bush Administration’s policies (and the financial sector that those policies had allowed to run wild) were utterly discredited. If ever real change is possible in Washington DC, this was that time.

In that situation, and over the intervening three years, what did President Obama do? Well, we got a stimulus package, and then a year later a watered-down, absurdly complicated new law that addressed everything except the most important issues. And that’s about it. Consider the record:

President Obama’s personnel appointments were heavily weighted towards those who had sat by and done nothing as the housing bubble grew (Tim Geithner, Ben Bernanke), former officials who had made major contributions to causing it (Larry Summers), senior lobbyists for the worst of the banks (Mark Patterson, Tom Donilon), a former board member of AIG (Richard Holbrooke), and literally dozens of former executives of banks and hedge funds that had played major roles in causing the crisis. The new chair of the SEC, Mary Shapiro, was the former head of the investment banking industry’s self-regulation body, which brought not a single enforcement action related to the bubble. Her new director of enforcement, Robert Khuzami, was formerly general counsel for Deutsche Bank, which profited by helping John Paulson create securities so that he could profit by betting that they would fail.

We got the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, deliberately crippled through its tiny budget (less than $10 million for its entire operation, beginning to end), limited subpoena power, and publication date conveniently just after the 2010 midterm elections. Even so, the FCIC actually did a pretty decent job, and demonstrated that the housing bubble had involved pervasive fraud on the part of the banks.

Moreover, there followed a huge wave of private lawsuits. The banks fought them hard, and have tried extremely hard to prevent depositions and testimony from becoming public. But many plaintiffs persisted, and there has now accumulated a massive record of extraordinarily repulsive, and clearly illegal, behavior. In a book that I have just finished, and which will be published in May, grimly entitled Predator Nation, I go through what is known in considerable detail, and make the case for large-scale prosecutions and asset forfeitures.

This information is already public. So what has happened as a result?

Well, the SEC has filed some civil fraud cases — not many, and not big. Thus far, every single one has been settled with a minor fine, with neither individuals nor banks required to admit guilt. Criminal prosecutions of banks? Zero. Criminal prosecutions of senior financial executives related to the bubble? Zero. RICO cases, such as were used against Michael Milken and are routinely used against drug dealers and other organized criminals to seize their assets and forfeit their ill-gotten gains? Zero. Sarbanes-Oxley prosecutions, based on CEOs’ certification of obviously fraudulent financial statements? Zero. In Mr. Obama’s three years in office, not a single U.S. bank or senior financial executive has been convicted of any crime (or even prosecuted), or had their assets confiscated.

But now, it’s re-election time, and Occupy Wall Street has shown simmering anger among the population. So we create a task force. (There was another one before, too, but never mind.) A week later, several bankers are arrested. They’re low level patsies, who worked for a Swiss bank, and who didn’t create or sell the toxic stuff; they just traded it afterwards. And the task force? Its initial personnel: a whopping 15 people in the Justice Department, and ten — count them, ten — FBI agents. Eventually, Justice says, the task force will have an awesome 55 people. Goldman Sachs has 32,000 employees, there are several thousand financial industry lobbyists, the FBI has a total of 14,000 agents — but hey, I’m sure that those ten agents are the very best.

So yes, it’s absurd, and rather disgusting. But it must also be said that President Obama is not alone in prostrating himself before the financial sector. Congress is no better, and neither are Obama’s likely opponents in the presidential race. Newt Gingrich screamed about government interference while he was being paid $1.6 million by Freddie Mac’s chief lobbyist for “conservative outreach.” In Mitt Romney, we have someone who thinks it’s perfectly OK to have a tax rate of 14 percent on over $20 million per year in unearned income, and who wants to increase taxes on the poor while reducing them further for the wealthy. Unfortunately, the power of financial sector money has by now produced a pervasive, bipartisan systemic disease in American politics, of which the president’s recent speech is merely one example among many.

This week I visited Somalia’s capital. Mogadishu is a city where people until recently were surviving, not really living. As its Mayor said to me, a 20-year-old Somali has never known anything other than violence and war. The road I took from the airport to the city is flanked by derelict and bullet-ridden houses that used to be homes, and torn roads that used to lead somewhere but have been savaged by fighting.

One million people have died in those 20 years, out of an average population of nine million. More people are dependent on food aid – literally kept from starvation – than the entire population of Edinburgh, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds and Liverpool put together. If you are born in Somalia today you can hope to live to the age of 48, roughly the same average life expectancy of people in Britain in 1880. Large areas of the country are controlled by extremists and militants. Most people live without access to justice and human rights, and Somalia has become a haven for the some of the worst criminality and terrorism in the world. Piracy has flourished and innocent British holidaymakers have been seized in neighbouring countries and surrounding waters, including Kenya and the Seychelles.

During my visit I met the President, members of Somalia civil society and the Mayor of Mogadishu. I wanted to hear their views and their view of the world. I was struck by their resilience and their desire to move on and to experience peace and some semblance of normality.

Our presence was greeted with enthusiasm, as was the visit of Andrew Mitchell, International Development Secretary, to other parts to Somalia last week. I took with me Britain’s newly-appointed Ambassador to Somalia and I pledged that we will re-open an Embassy in Mogadishu as soon as local circumstances permit. We are making active preparations for this.

I left Somalia more convinced than ever that we have a responsibility to do our utmost to stem the decline of Somalia. Its people deserve a better future, and our own security requires their country to become more stable.

In three weeks’ time Britain will host a Conference on Somalia in London. It will bring together 50 countries and organisations to try to agree a new international and Somalian strategy to turn around the failed state that is Somalia today.

There are two reasons why the time is right for this effort.

The first is that the African Union troops in Somalia have made some important progress, wrestling nearly all of Mogadishu from the control of insurgents, and making other security gains.

Second, the mandate of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government expire in August. This gives an opening to launch a new and broader political process embracing all Somalis, with a greater emphasis on supporting regional governance as well as stronger and more representative government from the centre.

This sense of a moment of opportunity was shared by the Somali leaders and citizens that I met, who welcomed Britain’s engagement.

The London Conference will aim to agree practical steps to support a new political process, as well as assistance to Somalia’s regions, funding for the African Union Mission, more effective arrangements to tackle piracy and terrorism, and increased humanitarian coordination. It will be different from previous conferences because it will put the needs of Somalis front and centre, not just our own security, and it will attempt to address the root causes of the conflict rather than just the symptoms.

Somalia’s problems are extraordinarily complex and dangerous and clearly cannot be resolved by one conference. Somalis have struggled with these challenges for years, aided by many valiant aid workers, diplomats, charities and individuals. Royal Navy vessels are carrying out the fight against piracy, along with ships from 15 other nations. A huge amount of international aid has poured into the country, but only a coordinated approach of the kind we are proposing will it make it really effective for the long term.

Somalia is part of a wider problem. The international community needs to get more effective at conflict prevention and supporting weak states. This is a major emphasis in British foreign policy today. Not only are we trying to ensure that we bring our own national resources to bear in foreign policy more effectively than in the past through our National Security Council, but we are urging better coordination by the international community as a whole. Somalia may well be the hardest case of all, but there can be fewer countries in the world where an investment in peace and security is more desperately needed, or where international effort can more worthily be devoted.

By devoting diplomatic time and effort into Somalia today, we are investing in our own security and prosperity in years to come. Britain is committed to playing its part not only with the London Conference, but for the years to come.

William Hague is on Twitter at @WilliamJHague

The problem is that the prizes — how should we put this — suck. They suck as bad as the Super Bowl games used to in the 1980s. A Duck Tour ride? Four tickets to the Phantom of the Opera? As the old joke goes, what’s second prize? Eight tickets? These gifts are the kind that appeal only to the fanny-pack brigade and characters looking for that one last shot at love in whatever holiday rom-com Gary Marshall belches up this year.

Yes, there are appealing things in each package, but the whole thing feels like it was put together by the “Corporate Committee to Show You Things You Probably Already Know About.” The selections don’t capture the unique entrepreneurial places and experiences that make Boston and New York City great — or boost the small businesses that are the core of these cities’ character.

We’ve decided to rectify the situation by letting our imagination run wild and proposing our ideal revamp of the bets. And while we didn’t throw in anything as glamorous as a photo op with the mayor (what’s second prize? Two photos?), we think the winners of our theoretical Super Bowl bet — and local entrepreneurs — would have a whole lot more fun if Bloomberg and Menino took these suggestions to heart.

If the Giants win:

• Congratulations, Giants lovers! We’re putting our winners up in a suite at the Clarendon Square Inn, an 1860s home turned six-story bed and breakfast. Located in the South End, but not “Southie,” the Clarendon offers you a plush bed, a soaking tub for two, a marble fireplace, a tranquil back deck, and rooftop hot tub with city views.
• A tour of Harpoon Brewery where the company motto is “Love Beer. Love Life.” You’ll get to love both while sampling the beermaker’s great UFO Raspberry Hefeweizen and specialty 100 Barrel Series.
• You can walk the Freedom Trail on your own. To get a totally unique perspective on The Hub, we’re setting you up with a Venetian gondola ride on the Charles River, via Boston Gondola Tours. Take in a sunset on one of the authentic private gondolas and we’ll throw in roses, strawberries and an accordion accompaniment.
• After you make it back to land, drinks and appetizers will be feted at the Island Creek Oyster Bar. Owners Jeremy Sewall and Skip Bennett ensure fresh seafood, caught by local fisherman, lands right on your table.
• Dueling dinners are served at Sibling Rivalry, where chef brothers David and Bob Kinkead offer different takes on a common ingredient like the “Fowl” entrees: David’s Crispy Pressed Half Duck and Bob’s Spit-Roasted Half Chicken. Fraternal friction never tasted so good.
• Anyone can take in the world’s great works of art, but few asthetes take time out to ponder the crappy stuff. That’s why you’ll be perusing the walls at MOBA, the Museum of Bad Art. Aficionados can soak in terrible wonders like “Sunday on the Pot With George,” “Sad Baby,” and Da-Vinci-wouldn’t-approve “Mana Lisa.” Afterward, walk down the block to discuss what you’ve seen — or try and forget — over wine and crispy fried lobster legs at Isabella.
• Nothing says you’re a Patriot, the original kind, quite like a Tricorne hat. You can outfit the entire family at Salmagundi, a one-of-a-kind store that stocks some 7,000 lids. If your tastes run a little less Tea Party-ish, husband and wife owners Andria Rapagnola and Jessen Fitzpatrick will find something in their incredible collection to ensure you’re behatted in style.
• Boston and the Irish go together like fish and chips, but the less said about the “authentic” downtown spots the better. We’ll pick up your bar tab as you get your pint on at Plough & Stars, a 42-year-old Cambridge institution with live music, Irish breakfast, a fine selection of whiskey from the Cooley Distillery, and Craic-heads of all walks of life. This is the place to go where you want everyone to know your name.
• For reasons we can’t fathom, Bostonians are loyal to Dunkin’ Donuts. To satiate your pastry craving, we’ll fill your belly with delicacies from Joanne Chang’s Flour and even throw in a sticky buns class to impress the New York foodies back home.
• No better way to wrap up a sporting weekend than with a little exercise. And by little, we mean the beloved New England sport of candlepin bowling. For the uninitiated, the pins are cylindrical (like a candle, get it?) and the balls have a top weight of 2 lb. 7 oz. So bowl a few games on us at the erstwhile Sacco’s Bowl Haven, which opened in 1939 and still has the blue-collar vibe of its bowling heyday. However, today’s pinheads demand better grub, so Flatbread Company took over, overhauled the menu with its gourmet pizza, but smartly left the lanes alone. Pizza and candlepin? What better way to celebrate the fact that the Giants beat the Patriots yet again, and the even more astonishing fact that Eli has more Super Bowl rings than Peyton?

If the Patriots win:

• Congratulations, Pats fans! You’ve just won a stay at the Canal Park Inn, a cozy bed and breakfast in the heart of bustling downtown Manhattan. Located in Tribeca, Canal Park is surrounded by top-flight eateries, and just a stone’s throw from the sunsets-over-the-Statue-of-Liberty at the Hudson River Park. The inn is in a landmarked 1826 canal house where each room is named for a family that lived there in 1850. You’ll be bunking down in the Batby Suite, which includes a private deck, offering an oasis of calm in the sea of action.
• In New York, sweatpants don’t count as clothes you wear in public, so we’re going to outfit your entire family. Since 1938, Paul Stuart has been keeping the men of Gotham well-dressed in clothing only available in its stores. Women can get all trendy in the “Ultimate Closet” at Scoop NYC, and the little ones can do the same at Bundle. As for the teens … we wouldn’t even try. We’ll hand you a wad of cash so you can go shopping alone.
• In recent years, New York City has had an explosion in craft breweries and we’re going to take you on a tri-borough suds tasting extravaganza. You’ll make your way from brewery-to-brewery in a classic 1970s taxi piloted by the Checker Guy. First up, the Pale Ale at the Bronx Brewery, which just opened last August and is already available at some 30-plus watering holes. Next, you’ll hit the Harlem Brewing Company for a Sugar Hill Ale from Jazz Age-loving brewer Celeste Beatty. Final stop, Brooklyn’s Sixpoint Craft Ales, where owner Shane Welch recently introduced the “Spice of Life” series featuring a unique hop strain for every month of the year.
• A visit to New York wouldn’t be complete without a night at the theater, but leave the singing superheroes for the tourist hordes. You’ll be sitting front row for “Magic Bird,” the story of the great basketball rivals premiering in March at the Longacre Theater. Produced by Kirmser Ponturo Group, the same folks behind the recent hit “Lombardi,” “Magic Bird” finally gives Boston sports fans the chance to see the Great White Hope on the Great White Way.
• There is no better way to see the lights of the city than an evening stroll across the Brooklyn Bridge. The 1.1-mile walk from Brooklyn to Manhattan will build up an appetite, which we’ll take care of at the Bridge Cafe. It’s housed in a 1794 wood frame building that’s been a brothel, a speakeasy, a pirate bar, and the rough saloon where Ms. Gallus Mag, a 6-ft. Irish bouncer, would bite the ears off of rapscallions and pickle them for posterity. They aren’t on the menu, but the city’s best soft-shell crabs are.
• New Yorkers will fight to the death over who makes the best pizza, so why not sample the top contenders and decide for yourself? Your guide on this crusty crawl will be Famous Fat Dave, proprietor of the Five Borough Eating Tour.
• Everyone loves cartoons, but few make the connection between Batman and fine art. POW! At the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art, you’ll learn why cartoons are to be respected and laugh out loud while doing so. You might even run into New York native son Stan Lee. Afterward, get to doodling on napkins over beers at nearby Fanelli’s Cafe, which goes back to the days when SoHo was actually filled with artists.
• No matter how much money flows through New York, it will always be a draw for the weird and eccentric. That’s why we’re offering a gift certificate to The Evolution Store. Pick up a little something for the mantle back home like a head puzzle, a pigeon skeleton, or the ever-popular freeze dried bat.
• Grandmaster Flash, Run-DMC, Beastie Boys, Biggie Smalls, Jay-Z … New York City is the hip-hop capital of the world and what better way to experience the dope beats and fresh rhymes the city made famous than on a personally curated Hush Tour? Founded in 2000, by hip-hop guru Deborah Harris, the Hush Tours take you to the street corners, housing projects, stoops, ‘hoods and music clubs from which rap evolved. As a bonus, stories are often told by old-school stars of the game like DJ Red Alert, members of the Cold Crush Bros. and Kurtis Blow. You feelin’ it?
• Yankees games are overpriced and Mets games involve the Mets, so we’ll wrap up your sporting weekend with a trip to Coney Island to take in a Brooklyn Cyclones game. Even if you don’t love baseball, it’s hard not to be swept away looking out past the neon center field lights to the Atlantic Ocean. After the last out, head to Luna Park to ride the actual Cyclone, the 85-foot wooden roller coaster that reaches 60 mph, and then dig into the fried clams at Ruby’s, the oldest bar and grill on the Boardwalk. We highly recommend riding the Cyclone first.

The Lakers are riding high on 16 league championships, so the fans on “Stuff Laker Fans Say,” are bombastic and entitled. They defend Kobe against rape accusations, express nostalgia for the Zen Master and shove a Lamar Odom jersey to the back of their closet. The money quotes: “Derek Fisher’s so old. RETIRE!” and “We should trade Luke Walton for…” anyone.

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CHANNING TATUM and RACHEL MCADAMS in the possibly new “Dear John” movie, but this time definitely more dramatic. and with Rachel McAdams. A car accident puts Paige (McAdams) in a coma, and when she wakes up with severe memory loss, her husband Leo (Tatum) works to win her heart again. Coming to theatres on Feb 2, 2012 Starring: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum, Sam Neill, Scott Speedman, Kristina Pesic, Jessica Lange, Rachel Skarsten

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The must have accessory for your Garmin, TomTom, Magellan, or other portable GPS. GPS032 is entirely new and features Arkons newly designed GN032-SBH bicycle and motorcycle handlebar mount and the GPS-WPCS water resistant case for GPS. The transparent touch through lens allows you to view and control the touch screen of your GPS. A water resistant zipper on the case is easy to use and keeps the water out. A cut out on the bottom of the case provides access for charging cable. One piece of foam included.

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Modern Warfare is back. On November 8th, the best-selling first person action series of all-time returns with the epic sequel to the multiple Game of the Year award winner Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is First-person Shooter rooted in a fictional, but ultra realistic near-future conflict of mostly American forces with those of the Russian Federation around the globe. The third installment in the Modern Warfare branch of the Call of Duty franchise, Modern Warfare 3 features a heavy focus on multiplayer gameplay which includes innovative new functionality that encourages multiple gameplay combat strategies, a new 2-player co-op option, new play modes, weapons and more. The game also includes a gripping single player campaign that picks up where Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 left off, and game integration with the Call of Duty: Elite online service. Do What is Necessary in the Face of Invasion Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is a direct se

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Who cares, right? It’s yet another marketing ploy to make us buy more stuff that we don’t really need.

It’s truly overrated. Mass retail merchandisers move from one holiday to the next… Over the next few days, you’ll find men stalking Victoria’s Secret mannequins. Women will be painting their nails red and getting “vajazzled” for the occasion, hoping for a sparkly new jewellery piece.

Did you know that roughly 180 million Valentine’s Day cards will be exchanged in the U.S. alone, making V-Day the second-most popular greeting card-giving occasion? Chocolates and long-stem red roses are also typical (boring) choices.

That’s what you say now… but when February 14 actually rolls around, you may end up yearning for a little romance and attention from your partner.

How can you enjoy some romance without playing into the marketing ploy?

Simple.

There are tons of ways to show your love and affection, without blowing your budget.

Sparking some romance can be simple with some simple, savvy tips:

1. Stay home.
Seriously, don’t even bother going on Valentine’s Day. Restaurants will be packed, service will likely be horrible. Put the kids early to bed and have a lovely date night at home. Set the mood with some dinner and drinks by candlelight. Whether you make a quick pasta dinner or order in, home is always comfy and cozy when the lights are dim and the glasses are full.

2. Go out… the following night.
If you must go out, you know that babysitters can be quite expensive to hire for a night out on the town. Instead of hiring a nanny or babysitter to watch the kids, why not swap services with your family, friends or neighbours? You can alternate date nights without having to spend a ton of cash. You wouldn’t want to go out on V-day night anyway!

3. Let’s get physical
If you do want to go out on V-day because what would your neighbours think?!, skip the packed restaurants and do something different and fun — go bowling or skating. Find a rollerskating rink and remember what it was like to moonlight in seventh grade.

4. Coffee and a book
If you’re not the type to get active on a date (I don’t mean that kind of active), grab your loved one and head to the bookstore. Grab a couple of lattes and some biscotti, find a corner in the romance section and read each other some poetry. Find a steamy romance novel or Kama Sutra book and take it home with you to read together in bed.

5. Picnic by the fire
Plan a romantic picnic in the middle of your living room floor. Lay out a blanket, feed your partner some cheese and grapes and share a bottle of wine. Don’t forget to turn on the fireplace and play some soft, sensual music… as long as it’s not Michael Bolton.

6. Be cheap and be proud
Married couples don’t need to worry about looking “cheap.” Hey, having kids is expensive! Search the net for group-buying coupon companies that offer some great deals on entertainment experiences. You can find yourself saving up to half price on museums, wine tastings, restaurants and more. Your partner doesn’t need to know.

7. Make it a family affair
Well the kids are home and no one can babysit. May as well just enjoy the evening as a family! Make a pizza together, bake some cookies, watch a family movie (you know grown-ups love Tangled, too) or play some video games, board games or dancing games like Just Dance.

8. Snuggle up on the couch
Instead of heading into a packed theatre for movie night, rent some DVDs. Whether he likes it or not, he will just have to watch The Notebook on Valentine’s Day. Sorry guys! Make your own popcorn, buy some candy, dim the lights and make sure to turn your cell phones off!

The trick to a successful Valentine’s Day is not about the gifts, chocolates and flowers; it’s about having fun. Chances are you’ll enjoy spending time with your loved one whatever you do!

The legend goes when Klaus Obermeyer immigrated to Colorado from Germany in 1947, his mother insisted he pack a comforter. In this case, Mom’s advice wasn’t only right, it made Obermeyer a mogul. When he began working the slopes of Aspen as a ski-instructor, Obermeyer found himself ill-prepared for the brutal cold. To solve for it, he transformed the down comforter into a makeshift coat. As he tells it, he looked like the Michelin man, but he was finally warm. The coat caught the eye of one of Obermeyer’s students who offered to buy it for $300 at a time when, as Obermeyer points out, a Buick cost $1250. The math made sense, so he promptly returned to his hometown and convinced a friend with a manufacturing company to create 75 prototypes. The rest is history.

In the 65 years since it’s launch, Obermeyer the brand, just like the man, has earned kudos for it’s remarkable contributions to ski-wear. Among countless innovations, Obermeyer was first to develop mirrored ski sunglasses, the nylon wind-shirt, the dual layer ski boot, turtle necks with elasticized collars, and along with Friedel Pfeifer developed the first high-altitude suntan lotion. Obermeyer brought his practical and innovative touch to architecture as well. Since 1980, his award winning Colorado headquarters has received 60 percent of it’s heat through solar energy and features a solar-heated lap pool.

At 92 years-old the mogul still actively leads his company and skii’s every single day. Last week an upbeat Obermeyer, who’d come in fresh off the slopes, hopped on the phone for a Q&A with me. His charm, charisma and joy for life was so intoxicating, it was impossible to ask standard questions about clothes and career. Instead, we delved into the century-old Proust Questionnaire, a favorite of Vanity Fair. Below, the living icon answers everything from his current state of mind to his greatest weakness.

What is your idea of happiness?
I think it comes when you don’t desire anything. That way you are not disappointed if you have nothing. You sit down, you center and just be.

Where would you most like to live?
In Aspen, Colorado.

What is your favorite virtue?
It’s nature and to be out in nature and enjoy the miracle of nature and the animals and the plants.

What are your favorite qualities in a man?
In a man? That he’s honest, spirited, and in good shape. I think that makes a pretty good guy.

What are your favorite qualities in a woman?
Everything. A woman is a miracle. It’s a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful thing that is just very very special.

What do you most value in your friends?
Honesty, and people who are trying to create win-win situations in life and not win-lose. Being sporty and enjoying similar things that I enjoy is a plus too.

What is your biggest weakness?
I want to ski too much.

What do you enjoy doing most?
Skiing, swimming, tennis, mountain biking, mountain climbing, rock climbing.

What is your most marked characteristic?
Being on time, doing what I say I’m going to do, and working out everyday. Oh, and jokes – good jokes.

What is your idea of misery?
The way they describe it, Hell must be pretty miserable.

If not yourself, who would you like to be?
I wouldn’t like to be Einstein because he had a brilliant brain, but a lot of headache. I think I’m happy to be who I am.

Who are your favorite writers?
I think one of my favorite writers is Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche — he spoke the German language very, very, very well. Like nobody else.

Who are your favorite heroes and heroines in fiction?
I like more fact than fiction. So I don’t spend much time in fiction.

Who are the heroes and heroines in your life?
One of my favorites was Helly Natzienal(sic) from Austria. He won all the races when I was a kid. He spent a lot of time in St. Anton in Austria. It’s a very famous ski village.

Who are your favorite heroes and heroines in history?
Very few. I don’t have any favorite heroes.

What is your favorite food and drink?
My favorite drink is water. And my favorite food are fruits. I love all kinds of fruits. I’m myself a little fruity. I have a big orchard on the ranch and that is fabulous. So we have fresh apples, cherry’s, plums, pears. All kinds of berries. Even grapes. It’s fabulous. I pick them and bring them to the office the next day.

What is your present state of mind?
I think it’s normal. I like everything. I like our company. I like the people who work with us. I love our customers. I love the girls on the sewing machines in the far east that make our stuff. I love everything.

What natural gift would you most like to possess?
To be able to fly. Wouldn’t that be nice?

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