Several of us have been trying to figure out how to define the meaning of “anal retentive”. Now granted, we could have always looked it up in Wikipedia, but why bother when debating the issue can clear up so much (whoops).

I think I’ve just cracked it, though (whoops no. 2). Thanks to David, I learned that that an Austrian baker actually made his staff pay for the time they spent in the toilet.

The owner of the bakery in Eisenstadt, capital of Burgenland province, recorded toilet visits on a computer and took the value of the bathroom time off their annual holiday bonus. No either this guy is anal retentive or he wants his employees to be such… or both.

No doubt, Sarkozy’s alleged pending divorce will be all over the media in the days to come so why not mention it here. The guy does sometimes seem to fit the bill as far as this post’s title goes, right?

Speaking of retention, ahem… Financial Times reports that banks’ debts threaten growth. Big US commercial banks have seen $280bn of new debt come on to their balance sheets since the credit squeeze, threatening to undermine economic growth by inhibiting their ability to make new loans. Large bank capital – represented by net assets – had reportedly declined by $40bn since the beginning of August. European banks are said to be facing similar pressures with many observers expressing concern at the ability of some smaller lenders to handle the potential strain on their balance sheets. Perhaps time to re-read Pengovsky’s two cents’ worth on the subprime-lending-induced crisis?

Hank Paulson, the US Treasury Secretary, warned yesterday that the downturn in the nation’s mortgage market would burden the economy “for some time” as several big banks, the largest homebuilder and a major construction equipment maker all highlighted the growing impact of the housing decline. (Source)

Cheer up, though. If not by other means, then by checking out the Cartoon Quiz

Cheers from Tweety!
(Humm, I think I saw a Pussy Cat!)