• We shifted our internal operations to paperless in 2019.  By setting up systems like secure cloud storage for document management and electronic signature, we’ve saved countless reams of paper. 
• Our personalized Wealthview vault allows us to share documents back and forth with you.  (Helpful tip:  it also serves as secure storage for your private documents like copies of passports, birth certificates, trusts, or deeds). 
• Starting in 2024, our tax team will also go completely paperless.  That means we’ll rely on our Tax Portal for communication, document management, and e-signature. 
• On a smaller scale, we also have green initiatives within our office.  Between recycling, rechargeable batteries, and holding more remote meetings, we do our best to save energy and reduce waste. 

• Check out your local Buy Nothing Group to help give or receive unwanted items.
• Need to recycle hard-to-recycle trash?  Check out companies like Terracycle that help recycle things like beauty product containers or coffee capsules. 
• Sign up for paperless billing on your investment, insurance, or utility accounts. 
• Love leftovers?  Try bringing your own container when eating out.  You can skip the Styrofoam (and have a more organized refrigerator too).
• Finally get around to replacing those incandescent lightbulbs.  According to the Department of Energy, LED lights use at least 75% less energy and last 25 times longer. 

Finding a sustainable but satisfying recipe isn’t always easy.  If you’re looking to lighten up this week’s meal plan but need something more exciting than plain old rice and beans, try these Jeweled Grains with Broccoli, Peas, and Red Onion.

Jeweled Grains with Broccoli, Peas, and Red Onion


Ingredients

• ½ cup farro, rinsed
• ½ cup short-grain brown rice, rinsed
• ¼ cup black rice, rinsed
• ½ cup frozen peas
• 1 small red onion, peeled, halved and very thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 5 tablespoons rice vinegar
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 3 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
• 1 large or 2 small heads broccoli
• ⅓ cup unsalted pistachios
• ¼ cup unsalted sunflower seeds
• ½ cup dried cherries or cranberries

Directions

1. In a medium pot, add the farro, brown rice, black rice and 1½ cups water. Stir to combine the grains, then bring to a boil over medium-high. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook until the grains are tender yet chewy, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat. Scatter the peas on top, cover and let sit, 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, toss the red onion and agave with 2 tablespoons vinegar; season with salt and pepper to taste. Let macerate, 20 minutes.  Drain the onions before using.
3. In a large bowl, stir together the remaining vinegar, tamari, grapeseed oil, sesame oil and ginger.  Holding the broccoli stalk firmly in one hand and working over the large bowl, use a sharp knife to shave the floret end into a rough dust, chopping until you reach mostly stalk.  (Reserve the stalks for another use.) Add the pistachios, sunflower seeds and tart cherries to the bowl and toss to coat.
4. Fluff the grains and peas with a fork and transfer to the bowl; toss to coat.  Garnish with the pickled onion.

Adapted from cooking.nytimes.com

The Week on Wall Street

The combination of an improving inflation outlook resulted in a week of uneven, albeit positive, performance, in which cyclical and financial stocks rallied while technology, real estate, and utilities lagged. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.20%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 0.79%. The Nasdaq Composite index increased 0.29% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, added 2.08%.^1,2,3

Inflation Retreat

Stocks treaded water ahead of last week’s inflation data and the start of a new earnings season. Stocks rallied on a favorable March consumer inflation report, only to falter after the release of last month’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes, which hinted at a potential recession later this year.

After reports of a more pronounced slowdown in producer prices on Thursday, stocks surged higher, with technology and communication services companies leading the charge. A weak retail sales number on Friday shaved the gains to close out the week.
 

Trending Lower

Last week provided fresh insight into inflation, and the news was encouraging.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose a very modest 0.1% in March, while the year-over-year increase in consumer prices was 5.0%, down from February’s 12-month rise of 6.0%. Declines aided the March report in groceries, gasoline, medical care, and utilities.⁴

The read on supplier prices was even more positive. The Producer Price Index (PPI), which many economists see as a signal of future consumer prices, declined 0.5%–the most significant monthly decline since 2020. The 12-month increase as of March was 2.7%, an easing from February’s year-over-year climb of 4.9%.⁵