"Dow goes South..."

Yesterday, maybe -- but, as TB rightfully points out, the South will rise again! (heh heh)

And I will remind you: Any stock value reported between the day you buy it and the day you sell it is immaterial. The only one that counts is the selling price at the precise moment you sell. The only genuine profit or loss to be measured subtracts the actual purchase price from the actual selling price.

If you were a speculator, basing buy-and-sell decisions on stock prices, you might have some concern. But you're not a speculator. Your decision to sell is based solely on a calendar date (approximately, I'm guessing, three to five years from now). You're not even choosing which stocks to buy -- you've chosen which fund to tell your 401(k) administrators to authorize on your behalf. As long as your plan's value is greater than the amount of your contribution on the day you cash in, you're ahead.

So, relax.