Linda Brady Traynham

Things just happen to me, like becoming an analyst for Adam Mesh after 2 brief e-mails each when I complimented him on his writing and he asked if I’d like to talk, and I said, “I prefer to write,” meaning e-mail, and here I am…in obviously very distinguished company demonstrating that I can float on my back while they swim record-breaking laps.  I do actually know quite a bit about Technical Analysis, having had my father and his distinguished mentor (who taught classes in TA together for years) teach me full time one long, joyous summer when my husband was an advisor to the King of Jordan or something.  You learn not to ask in the military.

I see patterns.  Forget about forests and trees, look for complex ornamental gardens.   If you discover a reprehensible taste for my content and style you will find my archived work on the effects of politics and socioeconomic matters on financial decisions archived at www.whiskeyandgunpowder.com and www.thetexasring.com.   I solve algebra word problems in my head because X has nothing to do with when two trains will collide,  but the function of X and I have a non-aggression treaty.  I am an arithmetician, not a mathematician, extremely useful when I’ve got 60 seconds to figure the weight and Spot value of 90 pieces of King Cedric or Eloquence sterling and get a bid in on e-Bay.  Virtually all of my silver is held in tableware, storing some combination of Spot, artistic, and/or historic value.  I like backup and contingency plans; if the world ever goes back to “normal” all that Rose Point, etc., will be worth far more than bullion again.  Or I’ll open a catering service for bat mizvahs, quinceaneras, and Hollywood weddings with a staggering penalty for “lost” pieces.

I describe myself as “an adorable nut;” friends say I create oases of love and joy or fairy tale kingdoms.  My son said my boring, lonely MacMansion after I was widowed looked like a museum much in need of a good curator so to the family’s horror I moved into a dilapidated ranch house I refer to as “Mildew Manor” for something useful to do.  Houses and minds should never be sterile or considered “finished.” I met my darling Charles (MDC)  who taught me how joyful life can be 5 years after John died .  We’re the same kinds of crazy except he doesn’t write–but he cooks so I can!  He solves problems mentally and designed a house that made Architectural Digest.   He worked out the first 1200 square foot expansion for our home without pencil and paper and it is going together perfectly; the new kitchen we want is all planned out in his handsome head.  An architect?  Nah!  He’s an electrical engineer and was a submarine sailor, 30-year man with 6 1/2 years under the sea.   We have enough projects to keep us busy for the 20 years we hope to have together.  He scored a perfect 20 on my list of things a man should be, none of which deals with how much money or hair he has.  #1 is superior intelligence, #2 broad knowledge (formal or otherwise), and #3 being absolutely unflappable.  We ranch in Texas clambering over three enormous rescue dogs who are normally within five feet of me.  Yes, all of them.

I was a toddler in Hawaii on Pearl Harbor Day.  Like Tarzan, I taught myself to read.  At three.  I was a full National Merit Scholar whose parents and teachers were afraid I would become vain if I knew that was unusual, so nobody said even “Moderately well done.”  I thought all reasonably bright kids got 50 scholarship offers with entrance exams waived.  I majored in Philosophy (University of Hawaii), have a Master’s in Counseling (Boston University), and have done graduate work in five fields for the sheer joy of it.  I lived ten years in Europe…the children grew up and Donna Reed answered an ad to be a writer and was told “You’re an analytical project report writer.”  Okay, sounds like fun–and it really is.  In all modesty I’m very good at it because it suits my odd mind beautifully, being a far more complex game of Clue with overtones of “Who owns the zebra?” logic problems.   So I wrote and Edited for Fortune 500 companies, and then I was an elected public official, and all of a sudden I’m 70.  How absurd–except life just gets better and better.  I’ve been a five star oddity all my life but I enjoy it.   I like suggestions for topics to write on and answer all reader mail.  Usually at great length.