If you love to be in the outdoors and particularly enjoy seeing up close wild animals, you likely need a guide to help you. Whether the shooting is with a camera or a gun or fishing rod in pristine country, when someone goes into the “wilds” danger lurks. Some of the danger is from animals in their normal habitat; some of the dangers are the countryside. In the Book Andy Russell – Memories of a Mountain Man, published by Macmillan, Toronto, 1984, Mr. Russell lives at the base of the Rocky Mountains and makes his living as a guide. He takes people, typically wealthy people from New York area into the mountains to see the mountains including the animals, sometimes they shoot an animal with either a camera or a gun. In the book, Mr. Russell writes nobody knows better than a mountain guide that the rugged country in which he lives and works is never through with teaching him as long as can put one foot ahead of the other. The mountains have a way of never letting you bask for long in the feeling of having graduated to the ultimate crest of skill where nothing can touch you. They have a way of springing things on you when you least expect it; moments of profound truth where your heart is in your mouth, when you know you are looking at death and survive. Mr. Russell goes on to state some times he almost died but somehow did not. Treating nature with respect is a theme throughout the books.

Linking to dividend paying stocks, in the same manner the mountains need respect for guiders, the market needs respect from investors. Anyone who does not give respect to the market and takes it for granted will lose money quickly. Although this blog suggests it is easier to work with the market though dividend paying stocks, markets go up and they go down. Sometimes for no other reason than the tide goes in and it goes out.

There are more questions than answers, till the next time – to raising questions.