Here is a story i thought some of you might enjoy, or can relate to in some way, Hope you like it
Here goes,
So i went to visit my old mate Joe the other day, not just to see how he’s going, after nearly losing him this time last year, due to a “dicky ticker” that decided to stop early one morning, not long after he entered the Pool mind you, talk about timing, poor guy nearly drowned, anyway, he now has one of those fancy Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) thingy’s that takes care of things for now, so while i was at Joe’s i got him to retell the story i plan to share with you here today, one that i’ve heard several times now, but never get sick of hearing, but first
Who’s Joe ? you ask, Well, i first met Joe over 10 yrs ago at one of our local swimming pools and have remained friends ever since, our friendship became stronger when i mentioned the stock market one day while catching up at the pool, about 3 or 4 years ago now, as up until then i didn’t know Joe had anything to do with shares and this was where i first heard this story, as told by Joe, but first a bit about Joe
Now in his 90’s he immigrated here to Australia in 1959 from Ireland to escape the harsh reality of growing up in poverty like so many others of their time and generations before him. After landing in Melbourne, he soon found work, before going onto further study and it wasn’t long before he purchased his first investment property in Yarraville, before others in Sth Yarra and finally Balwyn, smart cookie Joe!
Apart from Real Estate, he also took a keen interest in the Stockmarket in the Mid 60’s and was lucky enough to find a good Broker who gave him good advice at the time, he dabbled in a couple of stocks, before buying into the Banks, the first being the ANZ in 1969 before the big one, the CBA in the 90’s as well as other Blue chips along the way. Dirt Cheap in hindsight
One of Joe’s favourite saying’s goes, “Banks are like Family, they give back, they look after you, whereas, Miners are like Children, always with their hand out” or words to that affect.
I can honestly say the Banks have looked after Joe very well indeed as a shareholder over many years and continue to do so still, thanks mainly to dividends and CG. I remember a couple of years ago when he decided he’d buy some stock in a certain well known blue chip telecommunications Co, he not only managed to get them at the lowest price on the day, but they haven’t been back there since, go figure, now is that good luck or the luck of the Irish ? Or maybe it’s more to do with having 50 years of investing and stockmarket experience under your belt, plus the fact i know he does his homework and has a good relationship with his Broker ? I’m stuffed if i know ! Maybe a bit of each, but this story isn’t so much about Joe’s life, amazing as it is, but a relative, his Uncle back in Ireland, where they grew up and his story and how he immigrated to America in about 1930, like thousands of others back then, hoping to escape poverty, their poor backgrounds and tough upbringing. Before i left, Joe asked me if I’d read Angela’s Ashes, i said i hadn’t, but Wikipedia gives you a good idea of what it was like growing up back then if you’re interested
To quote Joe,“ Get Up, Stand Up & Keep Walking” is a powerful statement that’s been forever etched in his memory from his past growing up in Ireland and he still uses it for motivation to this day, you only have to meet him to see it, a truly amazing man!
Anyway, his Uncle heard that if he made his way to N.Y he would be looked after by his fellow countrymen, with a chance of finding work, so without hesitation, he soon left for America in search of his dream, a better life and hopefully freedom from poverty.
Even though, The Great Depression of the 1930s had just started with the stock market crash of October 1929, i guess he had nothing to lose and everything to gain at the time
His Uncle would say, “ There’s those that give up and there’s those that Don’t “ and believe me, Joe is No quitter either, after what I’ve seen him go through in the past 10 years, must be something in the water over there, anyway
Not long after arriving in N.Y. he found himself working for a Furrier, owned and run by a Jewish man & his family, who took him under their wing as it turned out, it wasn’t long before his new Boss found him a second job driving a Bus and sometimes a Truck
To quote Joe, “The Jews own America, while the Irish run it”
Well, it’s hard to believe i know, but some people actually prospered during some of the darkest times in American history, Joe’s Uncle was one of them, as he was never afraid of hard work with a do anything, try anything attitude to survive and prosper
Now being a single man, non-drinker would you believe? With several jobs, what to do with his new found wealth & prosperity?
Well, according to Joe, his Boss advised him to invest one wage in the Stock market, while living off the other, so he did, he was also advised at the time to, Just keep buying and don’t worry about the Noise, probably a lot easier said than done, just after that Crash
Why does that ring a Bell? Anyway, it turned out to be damn good advice in the End, as the economy reached bottom in the winter of 1932–33; then came four years of very rapid growth until 1937, when the Recession of 1937 brought back 1934 levels of unemployment up until the beginning of the Second World War i believe
In the Years that followed, his Uncle made several trips back to Ireland apparently, where he engaged the services of a Stock and Station & Real Estate Agent in Dublin, who he kept in regular contact, while back in NY.
By the End of the Second World War, Joe’s Uncle sold all his shares in the stock he had acquired after buying into the Growth of the Company through many years of hard work and determination to succeed, at or near the stocks peak at the time, due to his Agent back home in Dublin finding him a little piece of Ireland he’d always longed for and could now afford. So he returned to Ireland a Rich man, to live in his very own ex British Manor House on 300+ acres situated near Ardee, where he lived out his life raising Beef Cattle that were in high demand throughout England at the time, according to Joe.
True Story, if you don’t believe me ? Ask Joe
Oh, and if you’re wondering what Stock his Uncle was advised to invest in by his Jewish boss while in America, the land of opportunity, hopes and dreams, don’t they say ? Sometimes they do come true, especially if you’re Irish it would seem
It was a little Company some of you may have heard about, it was DuPont
The same company that took the risk to employ a brilliant man, who had just graduated from M.I.T. with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering as one of their Chemists, who went onto marrying the boss’s daughter in 1926 as it turned out. His name was Crawford Greenewalt
It was Greenewalt’s patient work on Nylon alongside DuPont’s main scientist Dr Wallace Carothers, 5 yrs from test tube to pilot plant,10 yrs before mass production in the late 1930’s, remember where Joe’s uncle was and who’s shares he was buying at the time ?
The Wilmington Wizards, they were known as, they then went onto a chemical called Erifron, apparently it made Cotton & Rayon FR, but no matter how hard they tried or how much they spent, they could never make Nylon flame retardant
UNTIL NOW THAT IS !!! How cool is that ? How cool are we? dare i say it, Alexicool
Like DuPont we have our very own “Wizard” except he’s in Greenville, SC these days, that’s just one of many reasons why i’m hanging on until a T/O or until i can afford to buy my own little piece of paradise right here in Oz
In Life and throughout history we all take risks, basically from the time we can walk, just like my daughter, just like Joe’s Uncle by going to New York or DuPont by employing some bright, but cocky kid who later went on to be the President of the Company
Sure we are all taking a risk on Alexium, but what if it all goes to plan, after all, what’s another year or two? It’ll be gone before you know it !
And when it does, then i want to be here to witness the "Age of Alexium", after all, life’s too short not to take a risk or two, isn’t it? Calculated or not imo
Bring on 2017
Cheers
Frank
AJX Price at posting:
57.5¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
(20min delay)
