CONTENTS:

• Investorwords.com
• The Motley Fool
• Wallace and Gromit
• Planet 501(c)3

INVESTORWORDS.COM

Did you know traders play April Fools on each other? Look up spoofing. Or find daisy chaining, the broker's version of April Fools. Then there's the greater fool theory. And you thought investing was for the serious!

Find more fun terms, like Macauley duration, which has nothing to do with Home Alone; DNR, which does not refer to the unrevivability of Enron or Arthur Andersen's reputations; and fallen angel, no connection to John Travolta. The Chinese wall is not in China and the rust belt does not follow the I-5 through Oregon and Washington. I guess all those finance majors have to do something for fun . . . or maybe all this jabberwocky enhances job security?

This site is great when the jargon in an SEC filing befuddles you. You can also sign up to have investor- words- of-the-day emailed to you. No quizzes, I promise.

http://www.investorwords.com/

THE MOTLEY FOOL

Brothers David and Tom Gardner, with college friend Erik Rydholm, founded this incredibly informative site with a mission "to educate, enrich and amuse individual investors around the world." Frank, sometimes irreverent and usually humorous learning opportunities lurk on almost every page.

Fool's School teaches investment basics, offers the Q&A of the day, a discussion board and a glossary of financial terms. Quotes and Data points you to company research, stock quotes and, naturally, more lessons.

If you are investing for your own future, check out three Motley Fool portfolios, each based on a different investment strategy. You can track stocks of interest to your organization (or you!) in My Portfolio. Use My Fool to customize your use and view of the site.

The company founders think making money without giving back is foolish. They like organizations with broad scope and big vision. Their "Foolanthropy" program asks readers to nominate the charities they and their readers support. The current year's charities are listed on the site and donations can be made right there.

http://www.fool.com/foolanthropy/2001/2001index.htm

Use the navigation bars just under the Motley Fool logo to get around, but be sure to explore the myriad links. One drawback, the lower navigation bar, with the link to Fool's School, does not appear on all the site's pages.

http://motleyfool.com/

In the U.K. go to http://www.fool.co.uk

There's a link to Fool Japan, http://www.fool.co.jp/?ref=LN but I couldn't read anything!

WALLACE AND GROMIT

OK. You know you are working too hard when your son buys you a Dancing Hamster and tells you to lighten up. So I sought the sublimely silly. And found it! My favorite stop-motion claymation characters are on-line.

Wallace, a rather bumbly Brit, and the inimitable Gromit, his faithful canine companion (and often, large numbers of sheep) are characters from Aardman, the creators of the movie Chicken Run. You occasionally can see the rather sheepish Wallace and Gromit films on PBS.

Under Wallace's Games, my favorite is playing Mr. Potato Head with Wallace in Wallace's Fashion Follies. Visit 62 West Wallaby Street for home pages of all the Wallace and Gromit characters, complete with bios so you can pretend you are working.

The Films Online link takes you to atomFILMS, where you can view some of Aardman's other works, most of which are a bit less, um, socially acceptable than the rather inoffensive Wallace and Gromit. Watch for twelve new, one minute, Wallace's Workshop films this fall.

http://www.aardman.com/wallaceandgromit/

PLANET 501(c)3: TALES FROM THE NON-PROFIT GALAXY

Enter the facetious universe of non-profit cartoonist Miriam Engelberg. She hits the mark on non-profit culture and foibles with rather Dilbertesque precision.

http://search.compasspoint.org/publications/~planet/home.lasso

Chris Mildner

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