Pug, You've got the right idea mate, don't take any notice of the missus. Just look at the silver chart for example, going up at 780% p.a. at the moment, not bad when you consider that most civilised countries have interest rates between .1% and 5%.
Precious metals investors are very likely on the cusp of a caning they'll never forget. In 1980 silver plunged 50% in 4 days. I've just sold some silver, cant wait to get it out of here.