Here at HSW headquarters, we have the Captivate Network, a newsfeed broadcast on little televisions embedded in the elevators, since it’s beyond imagination for humans not to be distracted at every possible moment of our lives. I actually made a New Year’s resolution not to pay attention to the TVs, but that went the way of disco and this morning I read of a change in the government’s stake in Citigroup.

CNN Money reports that the Treasury converted its 8 percent holding in the form of Citigroup preferred stock into a 40 percent stake in the form of common stock. At the same time, the bank announced a $9.6 billion goodwill impairment charge.

“What the heck’s a goodwill impairment charge?” I asked another man in the elevator, figuring he was just some schlub like me. I’m a pretty friendly guy, on the order of Golden Retrievers, just making conversation.