Dealing With Junk in the Trunk

And while no one thinks the company is going to shut its doors tomorrow, you still might need to rethink your long-term plans with the company. In short, make sure you're not too heavily weighted in GM stock.

In addition, if you hold a few different auto makers, you may need to rejigger your allocation so that you don't have too much exposure to that industry.

Granted, it's very hard to believe that GM could default on its bonds, cut the dividend on its stock or even shut its doors, but anything it possible. Enron and Worldcom certainly taught us that.

So prepare for that possibility. Keep on top of your portfolio. Set up market alerts on your holdings and remember: "Buy and hold does not mean buy and forget," says Spiegelman.

So you promise to never forget about your portfolio -- and I promise to never forget about my big-hair, Camaro-driving days.

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