About the stock bloggers: Anne Metz

Posted Apr 26th 2006 9:00AM by Anne Metz
Filed under: About the Stock Bloggers

We've asked each of our bloggers to introduce themselves and talk a little about why they love the market and what positions they call their own. We encourage our bloggers to own common stock and abide by a common code of conduct.

Who are you, and why are you passionate about stocks?
I live in Charlottesville, Virginia.

I have degrees from the University of Virginia. My academic specialty was economic theory and phenomenology. At least the theory side explains part of my interest in the market.

Before my writing career, I worked as a print and runway model here in the U.S. and in Milan. I’ve also run a non-profit construction company. I’ve picked tomatoes on an organic farm. And I’ve delivered mail. Lots and lots of mail.

Currently, I’m a writer for Live Investment News, a personal finance and investing website geared towards the average invididual investor. I’m also a principal of Proofrock Copy, a freelance copywriting company. In my free time, I write fiction and carry on in a rather cheeky blog called The Cool Honey.

My interest in the stock market comes out of a somewhat wonkish interest in popular culture. Essentially, I think the marketplace is where pop culture plays itself out; if you want to understand culture right now, you’ve got to know something about the companies that produce it.

What was the first stock you owned?
I think it was Ryder. My parents ran a small business that rented Ryder trucks, so my first stock purchase reflected a strong sense of familial duty.

(Truth be told, it was my parents who insisted that I buy the Ryder stock. I had wanted to buy Gap stock. In short, I’ve always been a big believer in buying stock in the companies that sell the stuff that you like.)

What is your worst investment ever?
Paying full tuition for a Master’s Degree in Philosophy that I didn’t complete. Of course, that wasn’t exactly by choice. My time in graduate school was cut short when a mob of disgruntled Europeans tried to run me over. Long story. With nothing better to do, I dropped out of school and fled the country, thereby leaving many, many bills unpaid. So, essentially, this was a bad investment on two fronts: not only do I not have my Master’s Degree, I probably can’t ever return to Holland. At least not if KPN Telekom has something to say about it.

What is your investing success story?
I’ve had an IRA since I was 15, which means that before I could drive, vote, or buy booze, I was already on my way to a cushy retirement. This, however, did not allow me to buy cigarettes, which, at 15, I would have much preferred.

What do you own now?
I just bought a condo in a hot real estate market (Charlottesville, incidentally, was named the No. 1 city in to live in, I’ll have you know.) I also own GE, Krispie Kreme, and a little bit of Coke and Google.

What are you cheap about?
Museums.

I know, I know, they’re great democratizing forces in society. However, growing up near the Smithsonian spoiled me because every time I go to another city -- New York especially -- I get very agitated about admission fees. (“15 bucks to see these dead Egyptians at The Met? Cripes, I could see these at the Natural History Museumin D.C. for FREE!”)

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