February 8: Tess Vigeland, Quite Ruined, Marketplace Money

"Is it good," she said, "or bad?"--to help him.

"Bad ," he answered.

"We are quite ruined?"

"No.  There is hope yet, Caroline."

"If he relents," she said, amazed, "there is!  Nothing is past hope, if such a miracle has happened."

Not too many people remember this little scene in Stave Four of A Christmas Carol.  Scrooge begs the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come to show him any person who feels emotion caused by "this man's death" ("this man" being Scrooge).  The Ghost brings him to this husband and wife.  The couple are facing financial ruin because of their dealings with Scrooge.  Upon learning of  Scrooge's death, they celebrate their good fortune.  They are saved.  Scrooge's death brings them only pleasure.

Everyone into the pool

On Wednesday mornings, while I'm in the shower, I listen to a program on Public Radio called Marketplace Money.  It's hosted by a financial expert named Tess Vigeland.  Each week, I come away from the show completely depressed.  This morning, she got a phone call from a man who's underwater in his mortgage.  He's not just underwater.  He's submerged in the Marianas Trench to the tune of a couple hundred thousand dollars.  Of course, there's not much Tess can do to help this poor slob.  She talked about walking away from the house/mortgage, starting over.  She talked about declaring bankruptcy.  She talked about living with the debt.  It was all thoroughly dark and dismal.  To use the title of another of Dickens' novels, he owns Bleak House.

I must be a glutton for punishment.  I listened to the entire program.  It didn't get much better.  There was a segment on adult children becoming financially responsible for their ailing parents.  By the time that uplifting piece was over, I was ready to check into debtor's prison and hang myself.  I need to find something better to listen to in the morning.  Christmas music or an Up With People station.  Anything but Tess Vigeland talking about financial oblivion.

Saint Marty's not quite ruined yet, but he may need to find a factory job for his daughter.