I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there is no Santa Claus, Tooth Fairy, or Easter Bunny, and it's impossible to "recession-proof" your 401(k), because no sector is immune from an economic slowdown. You can, however, take some reasonable precautions to limit the damage.

For one thing, stay the course. Unless you are in dire financial straits, don't cut back or quit contributing to your retirement fund. The stock market is your friend over the long term, though over the past few months it hasn't been much of one. Make sure that you are well-diversified and don't be afraid to get out of funds that aren't performing well and seem to have little chance of recovery. Furthermore, avoid the temptation of doing anything rash like liquidating your 401(k) because of worries about the market, since the tax consequences are severe.

Figuring out why a fund is performing poorly isn't difficult given the huge amount of financial information on the web. Remember, historically some sectors in the stock market such as health care and consumer staples such as Coca-Cola do well when the economy slumps. IBM and other companies with large overseas business also are being helped by the weak dollar. There are losers, such as financial and industrial stocks. Even tech companies, including Google, are in Wall Street's dog house. No company, though, will escape the recession unscathed, and anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themselves

The stock market's wild gyrations over the past few months have frightened even hardened Wall Street investors, so it's understandable that individual investors are petrified. But the difference between pros and amateurs in the investing game is discipline. They look at their portfolios the way that a boss looks at their employees, and they get rid of poor performers. Under no circumstances will they fall in love with stocks or out of love with them. The same goes for funds.

Chalk this up as another piece of evidence that Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) and the internet have become shining beacons for justice.

According to the Associated Press, Donna Campbell of Miami was shocked to discover, when she Googled her husband Arnim Ramdass, that he was part of a group of co-workers that won a $19 million lottery jackpot months before. The group chose a lump sum payout, from which Arnim had received $600,000 before taxes.

Campbell became suspicious when Ramdass had their phone disconnected and refused to turn on the television. When the lightbulb in Campbell's head finally flickered on, she queried the internet about her husband.

When she confronted Ramdass about the money, he made a lame excuse that he'd bought the ticket for his daughter by a former wife. Shortly thereafter, he disappeared, just ahead of Campbell's lawsuit to recover her portion of the winnings.

If I was Ramdass, I'd give myself up. He can't hide from Google forever.