2007 Buddy Award

Every New Year people sing Auld Lang Syne, but few probably don't even really know the words or what they mean. Auld Lang Syne has a Scottish origin and it means the times gone past or the good old days. It's a song about friendship and I'd like to take this occasion to thank the friends that made 2007 a special one. Maybe we'll call it the Buddy Awards, like the Grammy, Emmy and the Dundies from The Office.

Travel Buddy of the Year: Brooke Hollimon, Christine King, Jackie Rosener and Kristen Smith (Snorting all throughout Europe. well, snorting is just Kristen I guess)

Concert Buddy of The Year: Daniela Fuentes (Plain White T's, x2 technically, and Fall Out Boy


Dance Buddy of the Year: Margaret Siebert (Orange and White ball, Kershner Christmas party, Midnight Rodeo, etc)
Also nominated: Sarah Carter, Timmy Chang, KJ, and Lindsey Killebrew

Poke War Budy of the Year: Marlo (not just poke war, but super poke!)
Also nominated: Christine Noteware and Sarah Carter (poke war has been so long we've all forgotten when it started) Vicki Chang and Lauren Belk (thanks for trying)

Blast from the Past Award: Paul Pan (coincidently crash in his suite in Chicago when I missed my flight and having him back in Austin for work engagement)
Also nomiated: Ryan Bickmore (OU Weekend!), Aakash (guess who I haven't seen since LeaderShape freshman year the first day of work?), Josh Kendle (haven't seen this guy since Camp Texas our freshman year until ballroom club)

Coolest Person I wish I Had Met Sooner: Emily Coalson (DJ Emil in the house, the only person that can probably school me in the music and movie field. Key word: probably)
Also nominated: Hilda Audardottir and Holly Flittner

Sport Buddy of the Year: Brett Biba (UT football season ticket... w/out OU....)
Also nominated: Steven Bergdoll (sweet Dynamo tickets), Vicki Chang and Christine Noteware (UT Volleyball, sigh...)

Sad to See You Go Award: Brett Biba and Jenna Robinson (Funny they're both moving to San Francisco)

Buddy of the Year: Nick Fung (getting me a job, that's pretty huge)
Also nominated: Brett Biba, Timmy Chang, Jack Clark and Andy Hicks (you boys know if you ever need a kidney or liver you can give me a call)

2007 Trading Review

What I'm good at right now

• Picking bounces and reversals for some swing trades
• Basic scalping

What I need to get better at or implement

• Bollinger bands
• Earnings play
• Quick bail key
• Blast key?
• Thinking about risk/reward ratio before getting into a trade and while holding a position and letting it run
• Putting out more orders using my voodoo keys or blast keys
• Sweeps
• Network more, watch other HP traders trade

I <3 Puma!

I love puma shoes! I simply adore them. Kind of like how Audrey Hepburn gets the raging reds in Breakfast at Tiffany's, Pumas have that kind of effect on me. They're just so pretty. You go into a store and you can just admire the hours of design put into them and where they draw their inspiration from. Albeit, there are some shoes that are just way out there or the colors are too wild that I don't have anything in my closet that I can wear with them, but just the simple apperciation is still enough. Most important of all is that they're comfortable. They have this low to the ground feel, as if you are walking on bare feet... not unlike w/ running shoes or other casual shoes where's the bunch of stuffy... well, stuff between your feet and the ground. Yet at the same time you don't feel the impact on your feet when you walk and the shockwave it sends up your spine like a cheap pair of shoes. Especially if they have some of kind laceless lacing system, they're my fav. Shoelaces, hah, fuck shoelaces!

Well, we drove by this place in Taichung, in the Industrial Park where, my guess is that the manufacturer overproduced and they're out of season in the U.S. so they ended up with a warehouse full of these pumas. I had to go check it out. Yes, some are out of season, like the Barrelroll and the OSU but I was so excited to find the Stock Cat! I'm not really into Puma's suede shoes, which are suppose to be their bread and butter... I dunno, I just like thing that are a little bit different. If only they had some good El Rey's or French 77's in stock that would've totally made my day.

Considering my limited luggage space, I only bought two pair that I really wanted. I got the Barrelroll which is technically still in spring/summer catalog or color but honestly I like it a lot better than the dark selections in the fall (1st pic, but lighter color, more green). I also got the Stock Cat in brown, which works w/ my waldrobe a lot better than the red and the black is just simply ugh. I wanted the OSU (the third pic)... they had them in white w/ a yellowish, orange hue which was still cool but I think three is too much. The Barrelroll is $65 in the U.S. and with tax we're talking about $70+ I got it for about $36 and the Stock Cat is $80, w/ tax it's about $86 or $87... um, how does $48 sound?

Rest in Peace, Borat

Calm down, Sascha Baron Coen is not really dead... he's just retiring the character Borat, along w/ Ali G. I'm sure some people will miss him dearly, me included. Can you say: "no more sexxy time... not so good for me?"

For now, let's look forward to the Bruno movie, the gay Austrian fashion reporter from his HBO show and his role w/ Johnny Depp in Sweeney Todd.

Long Term Trading Ideas

Being in Taiwan gives me a lot of time to think, although I have to believe some of my information is limited but I need to think about some entry and exit strategy for some of the stocks that I like right now and going into 2008.

MEMC Electronic Materials (WFR)

Solar is still hot, the demand for silicone wafers are high and supply is low. Oil probably will break $100 per barrel the next time it approaches. Technically, WFR might be on a breakout move here, we'll see... ideally I'd like it to come back down to the $83, $82 range... $80 outs


Boston Beer Co. Inc. (SAM)

Boston Beer reported a dismal third quarter... the expectation was 42 cents and they missed by 21 cents, or half of the estimate. The stock lost about a 1/3 of its price and I've been wanting to get in for a while. It fell from about $53 to $31, about $22... now I think it's ok to expect it to rebound at least half, back to about $42. It's trading now on Thursday, December 20th at about $36.3 which was way above what I originally wanted to get in. I oringally wanted ot get in at $31... I figured I'd risk a dollar to make ten dollars. I think now I'd either wait for it to break $36.5 then I'd buy or try to wait for it to get closer back to $35, $34. looking at how there was a ceiling (which now should become the floor at $34... which should've been my loud and clearn sign to buy when it broke through), I'll probably be risking two points to make 5, so I think it's still worth it.

With the hops prices going up it's going to hurt the smaller guys much more but I think SAM still has a lot of growth and their purchase of a new facility from DEO fits w/in that growth story.


Nike (NKE)

Nike is just a solid company. Revenue, margin are all growing. The only slight negative is that it's not growing much at all here in the U.S. I personally have this crazy idea that Nike tend to run up a lot more during basketball season from say... October to May or June, or the end of the NBA playoffs. It doesn't want to break that $67 level right now. I want to see if I can pick some shares up at $62, I probably can't though... My out would be at $60


Wynn Resorts Ltd (WYNN)

Wynn is opening up its casino in Macau on Dec. 24th, about a month ahead of schedule. Right now near $115 I think it's a buy. It popped on yesterday's news and now people want to lock in some profit and the pros out there are shorting it. We'll wait for the weak hands to be flushed out before going long. Let's see what it does tomorrow but yeah, I do like it right now since the over excitement about Macau has already been flushed out. If it breaks below $110 I'd get out.


VF Corp (VFC)

The company reaffirms its guidance and it's been in a downtrend lately so it's hard for me to like it but really, w/ products like North Face, VFC and NKE is probably the only consumer related stocks that I like. This is probably a range expansion play. We'll see if it break out. Maybe we'll be able to get in at $72, out would be at $68, risk four to make 13... acceptable.


Monsanto (MON)

Ag play is hot in 2008... I think. MON is probably my favorite ag play b/c of its effort in genetically modified crops, which is not something POT and MOS can offer. Get in MON close to $100, below $97 I'm out. Target $120. Risk 3 for 20. I'm down.


The Mosaic Co (MOS)

It's been trending up nicely and consolidating here, forming a nice base. I'd either get in close to $80 or $86 after it break out of its range. The outs are harder to gauge though... I'd probably will give it just a point or two.

Is It Really A Small World After All?

The itinerary I got from our travel agency says my flight leaves at 11:25am on Saturday. I get to the airport at like 10:30, I'm thinking I've got plenty of time right? Well, I get to the self-check in kiosk and it tells me that I can't check my luggage in b/c there's less than 30 minutes. I'm thinking: "uh oh!" I talk to the ticketing agent, yeah, flight is now at 11:10 and it is now 10:50. Can anyone say flash back of Chicago this summer when we missed our connecting flight from Germany? Boy, am I glad I decided to take the duffle bag instead of a regular, BIGGER suitcase b/c I was either gonna have to take my luggage with me or take the next flight to L.A. at around 5pm and miss my connecting flight to Taiwan. Quite frankly, when the guy at the counter, who I think was gay, suggested that I wanted to ask him how he got his GED. Ugh, stupid people everywhere.

Lesson: Remember to check your flight for confirmation before you leave...

When I got on the plane, I had like one shoe on, all my stuff are stuffed somewhere in my jacket to ease the security check point, my belt is dangling from my neck and the camera lens in my messenger bag is just waiting for a jail break. Now, I didn't really talk to the person next to me since she took a nap pretty much right as we took off and I was busy saying prayers and thank yous to the big guy upstairs, but on our descent she asked me:

"Do you live in L.A.?"
"Oh no, I live in Austin."

And then we started talking about high school, which turns out she went to one where I knew quite a few kids at UT went to, connected with Elizabeth Brummett's name and then led to Camp Texas and Student Government. When she said she was in SG, I kind of thought I knew who she was but then again there has been a lot of Staceys in SG so I dismissed the thought in my head. Well, after I looked up Brummett's friends on facebook and I saw the last name I knew exactly who she was. I mean, for crying out loud almost every year they'd use her and Katie King as an example on how close the SG election could be and why people should vote. This girl, Stacey Kunelias, happens to be the SG Vice President when I was a freshman.

Maybe it's not THAT interesting, but I certainly like to think so.

I Want to Take My Job Behind the Middle School and Get It pregnant

Solid week of work last week (although I'm updating on Wednesday). Made well over a grand and was the #3 rookie for the week. It still kind of pisses me off that I didn't catch any part of that AIG action on Friday though. Larsen got 1500 shares of it and beat me out handily. Even after the terrible terrible week before, I'm only down about $100... which makes me feel more comfortable thinking about super yahtzeeing when I get back to work. But hey, work can wait, I'm on vacation right now, technically.

I didn't really want to fly back to Taiwan since I'd be missing work. At first I only wanted to take a week off but my dad convinced me to take an additional week since my manager was ok with it as well. Especially now that I'm on a hot streak I really regret taking that extra week, but it's been interesting so far. My fingers itch, seriously, b/c I feel like I'm missing out on the action. I found out how to access my work email and looking at the company stock report and the daily top rookie list doesn't help at all. I've got the log in for briefing.com so I'm gonna try to stay updated on the news so I can hit the ground running when I come back. Maybe dad can take me to a brokerage office and I could paper trade the Taiwanese market and if I do well I'll trade with real capital next week.

Oh boy....

I think I'm letting my success the past two weeks get to my head. Down $800 yesterday, down about another $400 today so far. Usually I start out pretty good, up about $100 or just below it and then I'll get a bad loss or forget to put my stop in and it'll spiral from there on. I'm allowing myself to think that I'm better than I am.

What to do from here now? going back to basics. Keep my losses tight. Under trade. No big spread guys or stocks that are moving pretty crazy.

Did I Really Just Yahtzeed?

I think I yahtzeed today... I think. My balance was about negative -$818 before today and at the end of the day my rough P/L calculation was just shy of $860. I didn't trade that many shares, only about 6,000 so it's hard to imagine that my commission would be off by more than $40. All thanks to ADS, hehehe.

I was doing ok today, up about $125 before this news, or rumor that ADS buyout price or whatever is being lowered. Apparently the same thing was going on w/ CCU... something to do w/ Blackstone. This stock normally barely make a move and all of a sudden it goes from $78 down to about $63.50 area. When it happened I kept telling myself that I am not going to trade a news play, it was just too risky. I then see it goes back up after this huge down move. Huge offers gets taken out one after one, like this 100,000 share gone in a flash. I couldn't resist and I longed a 100 shares at $66.26... thinking that I'd risk that 26 cents and get out at whole number if it didn't work out. Little did I know my account turns green quickly and very soon it show $20, then $50, then $100 and $500. It was as if someone came out and said "psyche bitches!! rumor ain't true!!" All this time I keep moving my stops up to a point below. I even said it out when I got in it that this thing could move back to $75. I see this thing move up to $73.50 and come back down to $73 and I hit the ECN to get out.... stupid. It barely rested, took a breath, or let out a fart and kept going... how sweet would it be if I added to it and I held to at least $75 or even to the highest of that first move of about $76.5.

Regardless... I step away from my desk for a while and just walk around the office. My hands were visibly shaking and my heart pounding. Holy cow! I was still short of yahtzeeing at that point, not if I had held on to my shares... =( I wanted to be careful and not have a blow up like I tend to do after having a good day. I even considered at one point that if I make a losing trade I'd close up shop and go home for the day. Fortunately I did get in a few good trades, the kind of setups that I look for even though I majorly chumped both trades... sigh....

It's like another validation, you know. It's like when I had my first back to back net positive weeks and increased my capital. It's like saying: "hey, you're playing w/ the big boys now. Practice is over." I'm thinking a lot today, I'll update them later as I get some discussion going w/ Lawrence and other guys on the team or other traders. It has a lot to do w/ payouts, position sizing and expectations.

Lizards

Premise:

Reversal pattern, for day trading only.

For Buys:

1. Today's (day one) open and close must be in the top 25 percent of its daily range.
2. Today's low must be a 10-trading-day low.
3. Tomorrow buy 1/8 above the day-one high.
4. Maximum risk is 1 point and if you are not stopped out, sell the position on the close.

For Shorts:

1. Today's (day one) open and close must be in the bottom 25 percent of its daily range.
2. Today's high must be a 10-trading-day high.
3. Tomorrow sell short 1/8 below the day-one low.
4. Maximum risk is 1 point and if you are not stoped out, cover the short position on the close.

Whoops

Premise:

A stock pop up on positive comments only to quickly reverse.

For Shorts

1. A stock must be trading under its 10-day and 50-day moving averages.
2. The previous day's close must be below the open.
3. Today's open must be at least 1/4 point above yesterday's close.
4. Sell short at 1/8 of a point below yesterday's close.
5. Maximum initial risk is 1 point.
6. If stopped out, re-enter at the previous entry point (today only).
7. If the stock moves strongly in your favor, move the stop 1/8 of a a point below the entry price; a stock that snaps back to being positive on the day could be staginga reversal and you don't want the profit to turn into a loss.

Slingshots

Premise:

Identifies which new highs or new lows have the best chance of follow-through, this strategy takes advantage of breakouts that are initially not "real." Basically you wait for the weak hand momentum players to be flushed out before getting in the position.

For Buys

1. Day one: stock makes a new two-month high.
2. Day two: The market takes out day-one low by at least 1/8.
3. Day two or three only: Buy if the stock trades 1/8 above the day-one high.
4. Risk two points.

For Shorts

1. Day one: The stock makes a new two-month low.
2. Day two: The market takes out day-one high by at least 1/8
3. Day two or three only: Sell short if stock trades 1/8 below the day-one low.
4. Risk two points.

Boomers

Premise:

trending stocks will pause and have a "quiet period" from time to time, followed by explosive moves.

For Buys

1. For buys, ADX must be more than 30 and the + DI more than the -DI, or RS must be 95 or greater
2. Day two's high must be less than or equal to day one's high and its low must be greater than or equal to day one's low.
3. Day three's high must be less than or equal to day two's high and its low must be greater than or equal to day two's low.
4. For unptrending stocks, on day four only, we will buy 1/8 above the day-three high. Our stop will be 1/8 below the day-three low.

For Shorts

1. ADX must be more than 30 and the -DI must be more than the + DI, or the stock must be downtrending strongly.
   Day two's high must be less than or equal to day one's high and its low must be greater than or equal to day one's low.
   Day three's high must be less than or equal to day two's high and its low must be greater than or equal to day two's low.
2. For downtrending stocks, on day four only, we will sell short 1/8 below the day-three low. We will protect ourselves by covering our short position 1/8 above the day-three high.

Gilligan's Island

Premise:

short-term gap reversals.

For Buys

1. A stock must gap open to a new two-month low. The bigger the gap the better.
2. The stock must close at or in the top 50 percent of its daily range and equal to or above the opening.
3. The next day only, buy 1/8 above today's high.
4. Risk 1 point.
5. Carry the position overnight if it closes strongly.

For Short Sales

1. A stock must gap open to a new two-month high. The bigger the gap, the better.
2. The stock must close at or in the lower 50 percent of its daily range and equal to or under the opening.
3. The next day only, sell the stock short 1/8 under today's low.
4. Risk no more than 1 point.
5. If the stock collapses, carry the position into the next morning. It will probably follow through.

180's

Premise:

a one-day trend reversal and then resume the trend, or a two-day reversal pattern in the direction of the trend. This setup is one of the easier patterns to identify. Accompanied by a 2-month high or low tend to work very well in your favor.

For Buys

1. On day one, the stock must close in the bottom 25 percent of its daily range. On day two, the stock must close in the top 25 percent of its range.
2. The stock's price must close greater than both its 10-day and its 50-day moving average on day two only. (Neither ADX nor RS are needed here since the trend is indicated by price relative to the moving averages).
3. Day three only, buy 1/8 point above the day-two high.
4. Our initial protective stop is 1 point under our entry.

For Shorts

1. On day one it must close in the top 25 percent of its range. On day two, it must close in the bottomw 25 percent of its range.
2. The stock's price must close under both its 10-day and its 50-day moving average on day two only.
3. On day three only, sell short 1/8 point under the day-two low.
4. Our initial protective buy stop is 1 point above our entry.

Expansion Pivots

Premise:

Lots of institutions and traders use it as a benchmark indicator and this significant movement creates a one-way momentum.

For Buys

Today's range is greater than the daily range of the past nine trading sessions.
Either yesterday or today the stock is trading at or below the 50-day moving average and explodes higher
Tomorrow, buy 1/8 above the explosion-day high.
Our initial protective stop is 1 point below the explosion day's close.

For Shorts

Today's range is greater than the daily range of the past nine trading sessions.
Either yesterday or today the stock is trading at or above the 50-day moving average and explodes lower.
Tomorrow, sell short 1/8 below the explosion-day low.
Our initial protective stop is 1 point above the explosion day's close.

Stepping in Front of Size

Premise:

fairly thin NYSE and ASE stocks, jump in front of someone impatient and taking out a lot of size. Large buyers have trouble accumulating these stocks and when they buy they put the price against themselves. This strategy might not work before for shorts b/c of the uptick rule but that's been eliminated now.

For Buys

1. A stock must have an ADX reading of above 30 and its + DI greater than its -DI, or the stock must have an RS reading of 95 or higher.
2. The average daily volume for the stock should be under 200,000 shares a day. The lower the volume, the more money you will make with this strategy.
3. The stock must be trading higher for the day. This strategy doesn't work for stocks down on the day.
4. Most importantly, the buyer must show me he is impatient or I must see there is more than one institution trading this strategy. How do I know this? Because I am waiting for two consecutive higher bid prices where there is size to buy. ("Size" means 5,000 shares or more). For example, I want to see a market that has 5,000 shares bid at 52 and 1,000 offered at 52 1/4. I then want to see the big go to 52 1/8 or 52 1/4 with 5,000 shares to buy again. This means someone is desperately looking for stock.
5. In the previous example, if the market goes to 52 1/8 bid (with 5,000 to buy) and 52 3/8 offer, I will pay the offer side. The only time I will ignore this higher bid is if I see 5,000 shares or more offered there. This means there may be a seller who can accommodate the large buyer.
6. My protective stop is 1/8 point under the price of the original 5,000 share bid (52).
7. Where I take profits is very subjective. Many times, if there is size on the offer side or if I see my new friend has been filled on his order, I will automatically take my profits.

1-2-3-4's

Premise:

Strocks trending strongly tend to rest for three days to catch their breath before resuming their move to new levels.. This setup does not occur very often and they do not always rest three days. Sometimes a day or two and others four or five.

For Buys

1. Identify a market whose 14-day ADX is greater than 30. The higher the ADX, the better. If you are not using ADX, the RS reading must be at 95 or higher.
2. The 14-day + DI reading must be greater than the 14-day -DI reading.
3. Waiting for the market to have a 1-2-3 correction. This means that the market must have three consecutive lower lows or any combination of two lower lows and an inside day.
4. On day four only, buy 1/8 above the day-three high.
5. When filled, your initial protective stop should be near the day-three low.
6. As the position moves in your favor, you should trail your stops. In this setup, I tend to allow for a little more breathing room on my stops because of the upside potential of the moves.

For Shorts

1. ADX must be greater than 30. The higher the ADX, the better.
2. The -DI must be greater than the + DI.
3. Wait for a 1-2-3 rally. Three higher highs or any combination or two higher highs and an inside day.
4. On day four only, sell short 1/8 below the day-three low.
5. Your initial protective stop should be near the day-three high.
6. As the position moves in your favor, trail your stops.

Expansion Breakouts

Premise:

Daily range is the largest of the previous nine trading sessions, the good ones tended to have very small pullbacks so the stops should be kept tight.

For Buys:

1. Today (day one) must be a two-month calendar high. (This strategy does not use ADX, nor RS. I simply want a new high accompanied by a range expansion)
2. Today's rnage (high minus low) must be equal to or larger than the largest daily range of the previous nine trading days.
3. Tomorrow only, buy 1/8 point above today's high
4. Initial maximum risk (stop) is 1 point under yesterday's close.

For Shorts:

1. Today (day one) must be a two-month calendar low.
2. Today's range must be equal to or larger than the largest daily range of the previous nine trading days.
3. Tomorrow only, sell short 1/8 point under today's low.
4. Our initial protective stop is 1 point above yesterday's close.

How this could work intraday:

Yahtzee in Sight

Trading has been good recently. I'm feeling much confident about the set ups that I look for. I have been bad about churning lately though. The last time I had a bad day it was the same thing, I just kept throwing money at NYX and some other stock that I traded multiple times. Yesterday I could've made another personal daily high for about $350 and I lost bunch of money on RIG and GSF. I ended the day down about $100... son of a bitch. I should have some kind of personal policy like two strike and I'm out and never touch that stock for the rest of the day.... boy, that was just stupid.

If I did end up $350 on Monday that would've put me about 3 or 400 dollars away from yahtzeeing, which really is quite exciting. I'm up for November right now, which is one of my goals. Let's trade smart and maybe on some of the trades I'll take 400 shares. If all goes very well, I just might yahtzee by the end of this month.

I've been reading this book called Hit and Run by Jeff Cooper, which is more of a technical book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a quick read since there's bunch of charts in there. I wonder if this was really worth $100 like it's going for on Amazon. I'm going to write them down and think more about them later b/c I'm not exactly sure how it'll translate to the timeline we're trading but I get a hunch that it'll work pretty well since some of the chart pattern does seem kind of familiar.

NO BLOW UPS!!

Had a good day today. Set a new personal daily high of about $290, $300 depending on how my commissions come out. It's hard to gauge with so many shares that I traded... about 16,000 shares. I was up about $178 yesterday, really, not too shabby for two days of work. Maybe I'll get on that list for top rookies of the week. In order to do that I need to prevent a blow up tomorrow. Every time I have a good winning streak I seem to follow up with a bad losing day and it gets difficult shake that stink. That's what happened last Wednesday, fortunately I was able to get two small up days on Thursday and Friday to end the week in positive territory to be able to trade 400 shares this week.

I feel more comfortable about taking 200 shares to get in a position trade now. The set ups I look for work most of the time. I think I can time it a lot better and get more profit out of the trades. Looking back at some of my trades, it's nice that I have some good winners but I think I've been letting some of my losers get out of hand.

Had a little chat with Chris last week and he showed me this rank report that shows the most active stocks by volume and it'll show how high or low it is relatively to today's range. It's a pretty handy tool to look for reversals, bounces or if the price breaks through the previous level you could follow the trend. I want to take some time and talk to David and Anthony. It'd probably be easier since they took part in my interview.

My Fingers Are Not Listening to My Brain

I'm still trading a lot. In fact, I traded even more than I did on Monday. 12200 shares. Yeesh! That's 3 or 4 times more than what I usually trade. I said at one more in mid morning: "my fingers are not listening to my brain. I can't stop pulling triggers."

I need to practice some discipline and on the really good set ups I'll take 200 shares.

Got into CHL yesterday in my personal account. After an hour of trading I was convinced of the stock and China and the bull market, for now. I sold my DEO for a loss... such pain. Not only it ticks back up but the stock needs to go through settlement for three days so I can't use it for trading. D'oh! I'm still don't fully believed in this rally. If the sellers come back in I might get out...

Gaining Momentum

So I had a good week last week, up about $125 and Monday was another good day, up about $150. I've been trading a lot more shares than usual and I think it's because I've been having good days and I felt a little bit more confidently, maybe overly so, and sometimes just start pulling triggers without really thinking about it. I've definitely chased a few stocks. I got some really good winner that are .50+ and I've also had a few bad losers. I think I'm going to try to fine tune my trading styles and the set ups that I'm looking for and once I do I'll take 200 on the trades instead of 100.

And I want to start talking to different traders and bounce some ideas around. I'm going to talk to Chris, he's the top rookie in the company right now and then maybe David and Anthony since they interviewed me and also Nish.

Breaking the Mental Gap

I seem to have this mental cap on myself. Hopefully I broke it today. I started off the day w/ one for $74 and later on I got one that was $175. I did have a few losses on some of the position trades. There was a part from the Market Wizards book that I remember the trader being interviewed said that people get what they want out of this job. I guess that's my problem up to now. I didn't expect to win big and that's why I'm grinding myself out at like 60 some dollars.

I'm shooting for a profitable Novemeber. Forget trying to trade 400... that stuff will fall in place. I can't let this good day get to my head. I still need to trade w/ discipline, look for my good set up and not chase things. Stop thinking about the money and just make the good trades.

Market Wizards: Final Word

Common demoninators

All those interviewed had a driving desire to become successful traders---in many cases, overcoming significant obstacles to reach their goal.

All reflected confidence that they could continue to win over the long run. Almost invariably, they considered their own trading as the best and safest investment for their money.

Each trader had found a methodology that worked for him and remained true to that approach. is is significant that discipline was the word most frequently mentioned.

the top traders take their trading very seriously; most devote a substantial amount of their waking hours to market analysis and trading strategy.

Rigid risk control is one of the key elements in the trading strategy of virtually all those interviewed.

In a variety of ways, many of the traders stressed the importance of having the patience to wait for the right trading opportunity to present itself.

The importance of acting independent of the crowd was a frequently emphasized point.

All the top traders understand that losing is part of the game.

They all love what they are doing.

Market Wizards: Mark Weinstein

Always do your homework.

Don't be arrogant. When you get arrogant, you forsake risk control. The best traders are the most humble.

Understand your limitations. Everyone has limitations---even the best traders

Be your own person. Think against the herd, as they must lose in time.

Don't trade until an opportunity presents itself. Knowing when to stay out of the markets is as important as knowing when to be in them.

Your strategy has to be flexible enough to change when the environment changes. The mistake most people make is they keep the same strategy all the time. They say, "damn, the market didn't behave the way I thought it would." Why should it? Life and the markets just don't work that way.

Don't get too complacent once yyou have made profits. The toughest thing in the world is holding on to profits. That is because once you have attained a goal, you then set a second goal that is usually the same as the first one: to make more money. Consequently, for many people, attainment of that second goal is not as rewarding. They may begin to question what they really want from trading and trigger a self-destruct process in which they wind up losing.

You have to learn how to lose; it is more important thant learning how to win. If you think you are always going to be a winner, when you lose, you will develop feelings of hostility and end up blaming the market instead of trying to learn why you lost.

More Random Musing

Watching UA, NYX and MO has given me more confidence, but I still think I'm going to get rid of UA and maybe NYX as well before they report earnings.

MO, I was watching that 72.20 price ceiling. It is so obvious that the stock has touched that ceiling twice already and didn't want to break. I don't care if you believe in technical analysis and reading charts but this one is just so apparent you know there's some deeper psychological level there. Now that it broke and the 72.20 level has actually became the floor, I'm holding on to the stock. Plus there's the spin off in January next year of PMI... exciting stuff.

UA, not considering last Friday... it really was almost like magic that it went up couple of points on Monday when the market in general was down. My thinking is that people are starting to buy it on valuation thinking that it is cheap. Meanwhile there are still a lot of people that are bearish on the stock, thinking they're not going to hit their high growth figures. They report next Tuesday. I might get rid of it today or on Monday

NYX popped on Wed when it officially replaced Hilton. I was going to watch it on Tuesday if there's a strong seller but it wasn't, at the same time the buying strength is dwindling. I might get rid of this soon as well if I see some negative signs.

Random Personal Portfolio Musing

I'm thoroughly confused at this moment. There is no clear signal on whether I should be bullish or bearish right now and it's obvious a lot of people feel this way from the way the market has been behaving today. At least we have some sign of stability now after the sell off on Friday. It appear a lot of people are still testing the water before jumping in.

If you want an example of hitting it out of the park, just listen to AAPL's conference call and their numbers. It is just so sick. I don't know if I'd chase it here near the low 180's... actually I probably would as I could see this thing go easily to 200 and potentially 250 or 300. An 80/30 risk-reward ratio. I think I do like it. A lot of people are going to be scared to buy AAPL here, which is fine and logical but those people remind me of my mother... they make me sick. No stock price is too high to buy or too low to short.

AT&T reports tomorrow morning... I'm very interested to see how the iPhone sales number affects them.

People might be bearish on RIMM after the AAPL numbers. I don't believe that's the case. Blackberry's and iPhone are two different markets and I don't think they really compete with each other THAT much. If RIMM dips to the 110 I'd consider going long.

What I was really more interested in was the PC sales figure. AAPL is selling more Mac's but how much more relatively to the overall market. I need to figure out a way to track that. All the PC makers are doing pretty good, ex: HPQ. To me, it matters less that it went up, it matters more that it went up relatively more to other Windows OS PC's, which means Mac's are stealing market share. Plus the profit margin in those are higher, too, I think.

I've been looking at this RIO for a while now. I actually traded it at 32 after a downgrade on valuation... stupid Wall Street analysts. I longed it and it went to 36, so I adjusted my stops. I was going to get out at 38 if it hits new highs and I put in a stop at 34 to lock in my profit. The stock did pull back and my stop got hit, which at first kind of pissed me off b/c it traded back to 36 but I kept telling myself that I need to follow my rules. It's trading around 32.5 now. I would probably long it again if it comes back down to 32. The mining industry is still good and I haven't seen any visual confirmations of the contrary yet.

Now the most interesting stock... UA. It is definitely a growth stock by my definition and therefore it means high volatility. I would watch this with DKS and listen to the conference calls. Ideally I think I'd wait after the earning reports come out but I put a limit order in for UA @ 55 thinking that it's low enough and it wouldn't be hit and if it did it'd be near the support and I wouldn't mind too much. Well, son of a bitch, I forgot about this order and it got filled yesterday... when I could've got at least a point maybe 2 below where I got filled. Today's rally while the market is a good sign though. It means someone out there do believe that this is oversold and people are buying, even when the futures are signaling down. I have to be very careful though. If it gets to 52, or 51 I would be looking to get out. People are bearish on this because of the warm September we've had and UA typically makes a higher margin on its coldgear apparel rather than the heatgear. I'm thinking that's a non-factor at this point. I believe this is a trend breaker (and there's lots of people that believe that)... all the young kids that play football, lacrosse, etc are wearing UA gears. It's becoming a fashion statement much like Nike basketball shoes.

Speaking of NKE, I like NKE as well. I have this untested theory that NKE rises during basketball season and then cools off after the NBA finals. Maybe? Haven't really tested this. I'm just eyeballing the charts right now.

NYX... man, that stock I think is dead. Hopefully it delivers a blow out quarter and the volatility picks up. It went up last Thursday on news that it will be added to the S&P 500 index. Because of that, people that track the index would have to buy it. It has not done much since then. It was hard to gauge it with last Friday's sell off but today it's kind of clear that this thing has no steam, no momentum. I'd wait and see to decide what direction to go on this...

300? Oh no, 400!!!

So I haven't really been updating about my trading for a while mostly because I haven't found anything meaningful to write about. I've been just plugging away and I found myself having another up week last week and I'm starting off this week pretty good, too up about $40 today. I'm feeling slightly in a zone so I'd have to make my reads and trade very carefully and ideally I'll have another up week so I can trade 400 shares!

Caught a really good trade in CTX today. The market was down and I noticed the homebuilders were up. I felt like someone was trying to pick bottoms again like Bear Searns always try to do. I see that it level off on a top and started to go down. Seeing the bids are getting hit hard, meaning people are shorting it, I took 100 shares @ 25.70 and it soon started dropping and I can see people cancelling their bids so I know it'll have quite a bit to run. When the activities died down I got out @ 25.27 although I kind of chumpped it. I tried later with LEN and TOL... TOL didn't work out but I got out with limited damage and LEN was a good winner. I was seeing all the home builders starting to make new highs and I wanted to shorted it so it didn't work out. Later on in the afternoon they started to dip and LEN was the only one that hasn't made the move yet and that's why I shorted it.

KHD... there was news on CNBC about it. The company makes cement and I personally felt that it made a nice run and it was time to reverse. I got in near the whole dollar... the first time I got in I didn't follow my rules. As soon as it broke, I knew that my outs were limited b/c the liquidity was low for a stock that trades about 160,000 shares a day and I got burned in the end. I was playing that big spread a little bit. I would throw my order out below the level 1 offer and if I get hit I'd turn around and throw out a bid to try to get hit there as well or just wait for it to come down itself. It worked couple of time but overall I still lost money on that stock.

Market Wizards: Gary Bielfeldt

You don't just play every hand and stay through every card, because if you do, you will have a much higher prbability of losing. You should play the good hands, and drop out of the poor hands, forfeiting the ante. When more of the cards are on the table and you have a very strong hand---in other words, when you feel the percentages are skewed in your favor---you raise and play that hand to the hilt. If you apply the same principles of poker strategy to trading, it increases your odds of winning significantly. I have always tried to keep the concept of patience in mind by waiting for the right trade, just like you wait for the percentage hand in poker. If a trade doesn't look right, you get out and take a small loss; it's precisely equivalent to forfeiting the ante by dropping out of a poor hand in poker. On the other hand, when the percentages seems to be strongly in your favor, you should be aggressive and really try to leverage the trade similar to the way you raise on the good hands in poker.

Market Wizards: Paul Tudor Jones

When youare trading size, you have to get out when the market lets you out, not when you want to get out... ... ... If you want to move a large position, you don't wait until the market is in new high or low ground because very little volume may trade there if it is a turning point.

Even though markets looks their very vest when they are setting new highs, that is often the best time to sell... ... ... to some extent, to be a good trader, you have to be a contrarian.

Never play macho man with the market. Second, never overtrade.

Decrease your trading volume when you are trading poorly; increase your volume when you are trading well. Never trade in situations where you don't have control.

If you have a losing position that is making you uncomfortable, the solution is very simple: Get out, because you can always get back in. There is nothing better than a fresh start.

Don't be too concerned about where you got into a position. The only relevant question is whether you are bullish or bearish on the position that day. Always think of your entry point as last night's close.

The most important rule of trading is to play great defense, not great offense. Every day I assume every position I have is wrong. I know where my stop risk points are going to be. I do that so I can define my maximum possible drawdown.

Don't be a hero. Don't have an ego. Always question yourself and your ability. Don't ever feel that you are very god. The second you do, you are dead.

From studying history that credit eventually kills all great societies. We have essentially taken out our American Express card and said we are going to have a great time. Reagan made sure that the economy would be great during his term in office by borrowing our way into prosperity. We borrowed against the future, and soon we will have to pay.

Trend following. The basic premise of the system is that markets move sharply when they move. If there is a sudden range expansion in a market that has been trading narrowly, human nature is to try to fade that price move. When you get a range expansion, the market is sending you a very loud, clear signal that the market is getting ready to move in the direction of that expansion

I always believe that prices move first and fundamentals come second.

Don't focus on making money; focus on protecting what you have.

Market Wizards: Richard Dennis

I have learned that when you have destabilizing loss, get out, go home, take a nap, do something, but put a little time between that and your next decision. Wehn you are getting beat to death, get your head out of the mixer.

95% of profits come from only 5% of the trades

The times when you least want to think about trading---the losing period---are precisely the ties when you need to focus most on trading.

Market Wizards: Ed Seykota

The elements of good trading are: 1) cutting losses, 2) cutting losses, and 3) cutting losses

I handle losing streaks by trimming down my activity. I just wait it out. Trying to trade duringa losing streak is emotionally devastating. Trying to play "catch up" is lethal.

A) Cut losses. B) Ride Winners. C) Keep bets small. D) Follow the rules without quesiton. E) Know when to break the rules.

Win or lose, everybody gets what they want out of the market. Some people seem to like to lose, so they win by losing money.

It is a happy circumstance that when nature gives us true burning desires, she also gives us the means to satisfy them. Those who want to win and lack skill can get someone with skill to help them.

Market Wizards: Larry Hite

Successful investment was really a matter of odds, and if you could compute the odds, you could find and test methods that could beat the market.

What makes this business so fabulous is that, while you may not know what will happen tomorrow, you can have a very good idea what will happen over the long run... ... ... The insurance business provides a perfect analogy. Take one sixty-year-old guy and you have absolutely no idea what the odds are that he will be alive one year later. However, if you take 100,000 sixty-year-olds, you can get an excellent estimate of how many of them will be alive one year later. We do the same thing; we let the law of large numbers work for us. In a sense, we are trading actuaries.

If you nver bet your lifestyle, from a trading standpoint, nothing bad will ever happen to you. Second, if you know what the worst possible outcomes is, it give you tremendous freedom. The trust is that, while you can't quantify reward, you can quantify risk

Never risk more than 1 percent of total equity on any trade... ... ... keeping your risk small and constant is absolutely critical.

Always follow the trends... ... ... you can lose money even on a good bet. If the odds on a bet 50/50 and the pay off is $2 versus a $1 risk, that is a good bet even if you lose. The important point is that if you do enough of those trades or bets, eventually you have to come out ahead.

Diversity: trade more markets worldwide and don't just use a single best system.

Track volatility: when the volatility of a market becomes so great that it adversely skews the expected return/risk ratio, we will stop trading that market

In trading, you can define three categories of players: the trade, the floor, and the speculator... ... ... The trade has the best product knowledge and the best ways of getting out of positions... ... ... The floor has the advantage of speed... ... ... While the speculator doesn't have the product knowledge or the speed, he does have the advantage of not having to play. The speculator can choose to only bet when the odds are in his favor. That is an important positional advantage.

When you are on a motorcycle, never argue with a car. You will lose. The same leson applies to trading: If you aregue with the market, you will lose.

1) If you don't bet, you can't win. 2) If you lose all your chips, you can't bet.

Finally Getting Some Volume

Earning season is here and you can kind of feel the activities picking up again. I traded 2200 shares today, which is more than what I have been doing lately.

I feel like I'm better at looking for trading opportunities now. I'll spot something that is running away crazy and look for an entry to go back the other direction. Like today I got into IBN twice, once after it started bouncing after reaching a new intraday low, made about $30 on it and then another time I see the big offer that have been keeping the price low either got hit or someone lifted it near the whole number and made another $30 or so on it (too bad I only took 100 shares that time).

I had two scalping trades that I took profits too early. I remember seeing the big bids in the montage and that really should've given me the confidence to hold the position. I probably could've made at least $10 more on each of those trades.

Since now I'm trading 200 shares, maybe I can get out 100 shares and then hold on to the other 100 and see if I can get a better price for it... something to think about.

I've been thinking about my keys a lot, something to help me scalp faster. I've tried it out to day and it feels pretty good. I think I can make some more modification to make it faster or more comfortable.

Market Wizards: Bruce Kovner

Don't get caught in a situaiton in which you can lose a great deal of money for reasons you don't understand

You have to be willing to make mistakes regularly; there is nothing wrong with it. Michael taught me about making your best judgment, being wrong, making your next best judgment, being wrong, making your third best judgment, and then doubling your money.

[on how you're different from the average guy] I have the ability to imagine configuraitons of the world different from today and really believe it can happen. I can imagine that soybean prices can double or that the dollar can fall to 100 yen. Second, I stay rational and discipline under pressure.

One of the jobs of a good trader is to imagine alternative scenarios. I try to form many different mental pictures of what the world should be like and wait for one of them to be confirmed. You keep trying them on one at a time. Inevitably, most of theses pictures will turn out to be wrong---that is, only a few elements of the picture may prove correct.

To make money, you have to hold a position with conviction. That is very difficult when you are following someone else.

The general rule is: The less observed, the better the trade.

Undertrade, undertrade, undertrade. Whatever you think your position ought to be, cut it at least in half. My experience with novice traders is tha tthey trade three to five times too big. They are taking 5 to 10 percent risks on a trade when they should be taking 1 to 2 percent risks.

Place your stops at a point that, if reached, will reasonably indicate that the trade is wrong, not a a point determined primarily by the maximum dollar amount you are willing to lose per contract.

Market Wizards: Michael Marcus

I learned the importance of intraday chart points, such as earlier daily highs. At key intraday chart points, I could take much larger positions than I could afford to hold, and if it didn't work immediately, I would get out quickly.

My trading was a little bit like being a surfer. I was trying to hit the crest of the wave just at the right moment. But if it didn't work, I just got out. I was getting a shot at making several hundred points and hardly risking anything... ... ... I don't think it would work as well in today's markets.

I think the secret is cutting down the number of trades you make. The best trades are the ones in which you have all three things going for you: fundamentals, technicals, and market tone. First, the fundamentals should suggest that there is an imbalance of supply and demand, which could result in a major move. Second, the chart must show that the market is moving in the direction that the fundamentals suggest. Third, when news comes out, the market should act in a way that reflects the rigth psychological tone. For exmaple, a bull market should shrug of bearish news and respond vigorously to bullish news. If you can restrict your activity to only those types of trades, you have to make money, in any market, under any circumstances

Place an order to get out of the position with an order to get out.

If a position doesn't feel right as soon as you put it on, don't be embarrassed to change your mind and get right out. If you become unsure about a position, and you don't know what to do, just get out. You can always come back in... ... ... When in doubt, get out and get a good night's sleep. I've done that lots of times and the next day everything was clear... ... ... While you're in, you can't think. When you get out, then you can think clearly again.

A good trader can't be rigid. If you can find somebody who is really open to seeing anything, then you have found the raw ingreideint of a good trader.

Gut feel is very important. I don't know of any great professional trader that doesn't have it. Being a successful trader also takes courage: the courage to try, the courage to fail, the courage to succeed, and the courage to keep on going when the going gets tough.

Trading is emotion. It is mass psychology, greed, and fear. It is all the same in every situation.

Never commit more than 5 percent of your money to a single trade idea.

What Could Have Been....

I could've had a very nice day... but let's not live in the past and drive by looking in the rear view mirror. Hopefully I can correct this in the future.

Where to begin... I got hit on EJ today at 28 whole number after the specialist swept the book. If I just market it out to ARCA or INET right away I had an easy $100 profit but I hesitated an it ticked down... and down... and down... and I eventually only made $5 on it. It pays to be alert sometimes since I was playing poker on facebook at the same time I froze and really just in shock that I got printed.

I was right about NKE and GS today, except I got shaken out. NKE made new 52 week highs and I believe it will get the strength to run for a little bit more. And I was right, except my target was just a little bit too high and I didn't take my profit. NKE traded down and then bcak to 61 again but I didn't go long this time and I could've made an easy 60 cents on it. The volume was low when I traded it the first time b/c people were waiting for the Fed meeting minutes. When the volume died out I should've realize to get out (look at the volume bar more in the future!!) and the 2nd time market was going strong, I should've went long....

GS looks like it had resistance level at 230, I look at all the offers being filled and it looked like it was going strong so I went long after thinking short at first. I sold it back after a 22 cent loss but this thing did go for about 5 more points. GS is a high dollar figure stock, maybe I should've given it a bigger stop loss limit.

I was right about ADP as well... the problem there was that I was a little bit impatience and shorted it at .99 instead of .04 and the damn thing just doesn't move that much anyway. I was only expecting to make about $10 on it and I don't need stocks that don't move.

Podcast Notes

I've been listening to Trader Interviews podcast for a while. Sometimes they have really good insights but other times they talk about stuff that's not really applicable or tehcnical techniques in Forex that have nothing to do w/ me. But here are some sage words that I got out of it.

Dan Fitzpatrick:

I started profiting when I stopped losing---don't approach it with a gambling mentality.

One way to cut losses is better entry. It's the fear of missing out on a trade and the emotion kicks in and you start chasing.

You want to buy as close as to a level that if it's breached the stock is going to go lower for a certain reason.

Make better decision by making fewer decisions---even though you're taking a small loss on the trade but you can't reason why you're in the trade except the thing is moving.

It's ok to be emotional and beating yourself up for making lousy trades, but just not let it get to you and start making rash decisions.


Bill Kraft:

Know your exit before you enter the trade

Muchen Mag Dich!

Translation: Munich Loves You! Kind of like the I Love NY slogan. Well, at least somebody loves me b/c pretty much after this trip nobody does anymore. You'll see what I mean.

Oktoberfest was not at what I expected, both in a good way and bad. I decided on a whim to go to Munich for Oktoberfest and stay until my birthday. I've been wanting to put my six month Europe visa to use again since this summer anyway. Sounds cool right? Well, not if you leave the way I did. The following abbreviated dialogue sums up what I had and will have to deal with now that I'm back.

Mom & Dad: "What about work?"
Me: [stuffing clothes in backpack] "That's a chance I'm willing to take."

Mom & Dad: "Who's going to pay for this?"

Me: "You will, or I will. I don't care if I have to spend the rest of my life paying this off."

HR Personnel: "Well, you're a new trader Jason. It is really recommended that you be at your desk and get over this learning curve as fast as possible."
Me: "I know that. But it's not like I'm on salary. I'm paid based on performance. I know my opportunity cost. I'm gonna go."
HR Personnel: "Well, I'm disappointed in your decision, but you can't just go like this."
Me: "I'm sorry but I have to. You can fire me when I get back if you want.

Cute girl: "But what about me?"
Me: "What about you?"

Cute girl: "You're so selfish. You're just going to leave like this?"

Me: "Me? Selfish? You attention whore. I can't spend all of my time on you."

So why did I go? Honestly? I just heard my calling. Maybe like how God called out to Joan of Arc. Something was talking to me. Something just tells me that I need to go. Everywhere I go I see signs. Oktoberfest. Oktoberfest. My mind is completely obsessed with it. Well, let me be the prophet or discipline to the Beer God. This is my pilgrimage.

I shoot a msg over to Bobo who's working in Munich. Bobo both interned in New York. He was on the Deutsche Bank audit and I was on BNP Paribas. We've always joked about visiting each other in Germany or France if we sign on to PwC full time and do the foreign rotation. Well, he signed and I had a occupational revelation. He is south of Munich said he'd have a place for me to crash.

Well, I left Thursday afternoon and by the time I get into Munich it was morning but technically it was like 3, 4am in the morning back home. I called Bobo with my calling card but he didn't pick up at all... turned out later the bastard was at work. I tried to get to his place in Fasanengarten or Fasanengpark or whatever... fucking German, I don't know a lick of it. I ended up wondering around Munich that entire day with my stupid backpack filled with what felt like fucking boulders. I shoot him msgs on facebook and his email at the internet cafe but got no responses. This went on until about 6pm. Still no contact with Bobo. At least the sun goes down later here in Germany... I had to start looking for a hotel or hostel, just a roof over my head for the day until I get in touch with Bobo. This was Friday afternoon/night now... during what feels like the climax of Oktoberfest. There's not a single vacant room in this city. Not even a stable. If this was Bethlehem I could at least get a stable w/ the horses, man (sorry for all the religious/blibical references... they just kind of fit with the story).

What happens after that is a little hazy now... b/c I started drinking. Hey, I'm in Munich for Oktoberfest, what did you think I was going to do? Throw tomatoes at strangers? I'll leave that for the Spaniards. I took the metro down to my beloved Hofbrauhaus, ordered some food and a drink... which quickly became 2, and then 4. I literally walked or take the metro all over Munich while every hour or so I'd find a internet cafe to check if Bobo msged me back or try to call him. And drink. I exhausted the 40 euros or so I had left from the summer Europe trip and tried to get some more out of the ATM but the damn thing ate my card. WTF!!!!!!! I guess I forgot to tell the bank that I was going to Germany. Well, screw you, Bank of America! Can't a guy take an impulsive trip out of the country without credit card fraud suspicion? It must have been at least 2 or 3am before I found a nice big discrete tree in the English Garten and fell asleep under it.

I must have not rested for more than a few hours before the polizei woke me up. Talk about a wake up call. And by wake up I mean I really woke up. I don't think I've ever gone from zombei state to alert so quick. I guess they've became familiar w/ people random passed out drunk in the city b/c I thought they'd take me in for questioning or arrest me (or I've just been a goody goody kid my whole life I didn't know what to expect). I get to the internet cafe again... FINALLY!! Thank god, Bobo msged me on facebook that his phone was out of commission due to a beer accident, which his phone accident went skinny dipping in a giant mug of beer. He told me to wait for him under this gold statue in the big square in Marienplatz and he'll come find me at 10am. Find me he did! Geez... pray the Lord! I don't know how it worked w/ all the shit load of people in the city but it worked out. We took the metro down south to his place. I showered up and decided that I was in no shape to parttake in the festivities so he left while I slept the entire afternoon.

That Saturday night and the rest of Sunday and Monday is not as interesting... well, it is interesting but it's pretty much what you expected. Oktoberfest is 100x better than Mardi Gras, New Years, Halloween and the night when we beat Ohio State and won the first Rose Bowl on 6th street combined. Oh, the tents, beers, sausage... especially this white kind that I could eat for breakfast the rest of my life. Even pretzel. I don't like pretzel at all but with beer, it goes down all smooth. I hate to say it but I really don't remember a lot of it. I remember thinking to myself that German girls are either super hot (like Heidi Klum) or they're fugly, big and strong as if they're ready to do hard labor like chopping wood, hauling hay or change my oil (they'd fit in well at A&M). What sucks even more, is what was suppose to help me remember, my camera, managed to disappear from my possession. I'm pretty sure I left it at the Hofbrauhaus. They did hav some kind of lost & found but I came back the next day there was nothing... Boooooooo.

Anyway, I'm back now... so tired. I'm going to pay hell for this trip and I'm not just talking about financially with the credit card but I have to patch things back up with my folks, I'll probably find out in the morning if I still have a computer at my desk to see if I still have a job. As for the girl... whatever, I didn't like her that much anyway and it wasn't that serious. I joked with a few people that if my car broke down and my dog died or ran away this would be one hell of a country song.

Lessons from Reminisces of a Stock Operator

A lot of people in the office like this book. I liked it, too, but perhaps not with such a high perceived enthusiasm. I have a feeling that in a year or two after I'm in the business I would take away something completely different and much more from the book than I do right now.

So here are some of the notes to learn about trading or the stock market from the book:

I was twetny when I made my first ten thousand, and I lost that. But I knew how and why... ... ... I hoped to win, instead of knowing that I ought to win on form.

The game of speculation isn't all mathematics or set rules, however rigid the main laws may be. Even in my tape reading something etners that is more than mere arithmetics. There is what I call the behavior of a stock, actions that enable you to judge whether or not it is going to proceed in accordance with the precedents that your observation has noted. If a stock doesn't act right don't touch it; because, being unable to tell precisely what is wrong, you cannot tell which way it is going. No diagnosis, no prognosis. No prognosis, no profit.

I had to study what was going to happen; to anticipate stock movements. That sounds asininely commonplace, but you know what I mean. It was the change in my own attitude toward the game that was of supreme importance to me. It taught me, little by little, the essential difference between betting on fluctuations and anticipating inevitable advances and declines, between gambling and speculating.

They say you never grow poor taking profits. No, you don't. But neither do you grow rich aking a four-point profit in a bull market

Suckers differ among themselves according to the degree of experience.

The big money was not in the individual fluctuations but in the main movements--that is, not in reading the tape but in sizing up the entire market and its trend

It never was my thinking that made the big money for me. It always was my sitting. Got that? My sitting tight!... ... ... It is only after a stock operator has firmly grasped this that he can make big money.

One of the most helpful things that anybody can learn is to give up rying to catch the last eighth--or the first. These two are the most expensive eights in the world. The have cost stock traders, in teh aggregate, enough millions of dollars to build a concrete highway across the continent.

Remember that stocks are never too high for you to begin buying or too low to begin selling. But after the initial transaction, don't make a second unless the first shows you a profit. Wait and watch. That is where your tape reading comes in---to enable you to decide as to the proper time for beginning. Much depends upon beginning at exactly the right time. It took me years to realize the importance of this. It also cost me some hundreds of thousands of dollars.

To be angry at the market because it unexpectedly or even illogically goes against you is like getting made at your lungs because you have pneumonia

In this business a man has to think of both theory and practice. A speculator must not be merely a student, he must be both a student and a speculator.

The big men of the Stret are as prone to be wishful thinkers as the politicians or the plain suckers. I myself can't work that way. In a speculator such an attitude is fatal.

Of course, if a man is both wise and lucky, he will not make the same mistake twice. But he will make any one of the ten thousand brothers or cousines of the original. The Mistake family is so large that there is always one of them around when you want to see what you can do in the fool-play line.

It would not be so difficult to make money if a trader always stuck to his speculative guns---that is, waited for the line of least resistance to define itself and begin buying only when the tape said up or selling only when it said down. He should accumulate his line on the way up. Let him buy one-fifth of his full line. If that does not show him a profit he must not increase his holdings because he has obviously begun wrong; he is wrong temporarily and there is no profit in being wrong at any time. The same tape that said UP did not necessarily lie merely because it is now saying NOT YET.

You can't tell till you bet.

The speculator's chief enemies are always boring from within. It is inseparable from human nature to hope and to fear... ... ... Fear keeps you from making as much money as you ought to. The successful trader has to fight these two deep-seated instincts. He has to reverse what you might call his natural impulses. Instead of hoping he must fear; instead of fearing he must hope. He must fear that his loss may develop into a much bigger loss, and hope that his profit may become a big profit. It is absolutely wrong to gamble in stocks the way the average man does.

A man may beat a stock or a group at a certain time, but no man living can beat the stock market.

A man cannot be convinced against his own convictions, but he can be talked into a state of uncertainty and indecision, which is even worse, for that means that he cannot trade with confidence and comfort.

Always sell what shows you a loss and keep what shows you a profit. That was so obviously the wise thing to do and was so wel known to me that even now I marvel at myself for doing the reverse.

The loss of the money didn't bother me. Whenever I have lost money in the stock market I have always considered that I have learned something; that if I have lost money I have gained experience, so that the money really went for a tuition fee. A man has to have experience and he has to pay for it.

A trader, in addition to studying basic conditions, remembering market precedents and keeping in mind the psychology of the outside public as well as the limitations of his brokers, must also know himself and provide against his own weaknesses. There is not need to feel anger over being human. I have come to feel that is is as necessary to know how to read myself as to know how to read the tape. I have studied and reckoned on my own reactions to given impulses or to the inevitable temptations of an active market, quite in the same mood and spirit as I have considered crop conditions or analysed reports of earnings.

TIPS! How people want tips! They crave not only to get them but to give them. There is greed involved, and vanity.

I sometimes think that tip-takers are like drunkards. There are some who can't resist the craving and always look forward to those jags which they consider indispensalbe to their happiness.

Observation, experience, memory and mathematics---these are what the successful trader must depend on. He must not only observe accurately but remember at all times what he has observed. He cannot be on the unreasonable or on the unexpected however strong his personal convictions may be about man's unreasonableness or however certain he may feel that the unexpected happens very frequently. He must bet always on probabilities---that is, try to anticipate them. years of practice at the game, of constant study, of always remembering, enable the trader to act on the instant when the unexpected happens as well as when the expected comes to pass.

When the stock you are manipulating doesn't act as it should, quit. Don't agrue with the tape. Do not seek to lure the profit back. Quit while the quitting is good---and cheap.

In addition to trying to determine how to make money one must also try to keep from losing money. It is almost as important to know what not to do as to know what should be done.

Fall TV Lineup

Fall is a great time for football and TV. Honestly, there's a lot of shitty shows out there I don't think is going to make it. Remember that Fox show about the hot blonde girl from Cali trying to make is as a serious TV journalist in Tyler, TX (the producers must have been smoking weed while watching Anchorman to come up with this idea). Well, that show got cancelled after one episode, which is probably the best decision Fox has ever made.

It's a battle between all the channels, almost like football teams. ABC is catching up to NBC as the king of tv. Fox is still trailing as always b/c they have so many idiots working there that probably transferred fro Fox News. I can't predict who the winner is going to be, but I have a pretty damn good idea who it isn't going to be: MTV. Yup! Just one dumb, shitty show after another. Didn't you hear what JT said at the VMA? Play more videos!! It's MTV, Music Televison, not STV, Shitty Televison.

Septemberfest!

Oktoberfest is soooo cool. I don't have the time right now at the internet cafe to begin to describe everything or even upload my pictures. But I'm missing out on the trading. Even though the volume is low right now I still feel like I'm missing out on the action. I don't think I'm going to stay until my birthday on the 10th. I'll probably hop on a flight on Sunday to I get back somehow before Monday.

Two Consecutive Up Weeks! Supersize Me Please!!

I haven't been reviewing my trade and keeping the journal this week. Not good. Anway, I started out slow with some small losses and now today I finish with my 2nd net positive week in a row, which also means that starting next week I can trade 200 shares if I want to.

Wednesday there was a scalp trade on a huge print down that I hit I got a 65 cent profit immediately and I marketed my order out and took it like if it was going to disappear like a puff of air. Looking back, if I had waited just a little bit I would've seen that it was going to trace back eeven further to over a whole point. By noon I was easily topping my best day with just maybe 2, 3 trades. That wasn't exactly a good news. Feeling confident, maybe even too much so and letting my success gone to my head, I tried to trade the BSC news that there was going to potential investors including Warren Buffett. Well, I got my butt kicked couple of times in that stock going different directions and luckily I still manage to have an up day. Really, if I didn't have such a good morning, I might've still traded BSC but after I get smacked once I would've stopped.


Lesson: DON'T TRADE NEWS STOCKS!


I think this share size upgrade give me some validation... I want to start talking to other traders more. Pick their brains a little. See if i get some tips or trading strategies.


What I want to learn right now: MACD, Fibonacci. I need to finish Reminisces of a Stock Operator and start reading some more relevant trading books on say technical analysis.

50 Things Women Wish You Knew

1. Saying "I love you" immediately before, during, or following sex doesn't count.

2. Real men drive stick shift. (Seriously? For real? Dammit!)

3. I will leave if you lie.

4. You are cute in raglan-sleeved T-shirts (two-toned baseball undershirts).

5. I'm convinced I'm pregnant and obsess about it for a minimum of 24 to 48 hours before my period, even when I have no rational reason to think so.

6. I love it when you hug me from behind and whisper in my ear. (What else do you like from behind?)

7. "Fine" is never an appropriate response when I ask you how I look.

8. Most of the time when I fantasize, it's about you.

9. I'm terrified of becoming my mother, even though I admire her.

10. I get turned on simply seeing that I have an e-mail from you.

11. I expect you to call me.

12. Only rock stars are allowed to wear leather pants.

13. I'm scared of losing my independence.

14. I'm more forgiving of you than I really should be.

15. Oral sex is your get-out-of-the-doghouse-free card. Manolo Blahnik shoes also do the trick.

16. You did something bad. I seem cool with it. I'm not. (See directly above.)

17. If I'm not having sex with you, I'm... a. ...having a fat day. b. ...not feeling "connected" to you. c. ...blackmailing you to get something I want.

18. Shoes determine whether you're fashionable or not.

19. I own a Debbie Gibson CD, and I'm not afraid to use it.

20. When I compare my flabby tummy to a kangaroo pouch, say nothing.

21. A man I love plans the occasional fancy-schmancy dress-up date and impromptu weekend getaways, and he buys my favorite candy in advance when we're just going to the movies.

22. You look hot in hooded clothing items.

23. You should never tell me what to do. (Not even in bed? son of a bitch!)

24. If I slept over, you owe me breakfast.

25. My breasts love much licking and sucking. (I knew it! Wow wowie wow!!)

26. If you ask me out directly, I will say yes.

27. I'm very impressed when you ask for my advice.

28. I'm unimpressed with a man who doesn't take the lead. (Are we talking about something other than ballroom dancing?)

29. When in doubt, go with the shirt that matches your eye color.

30. I want to be Madonna.

31. Women get urinary-tract infections easily, so watch (and wash) your fingers. (This is important why....? Oh...., got ya)

32. I'm in heaven when you hold my hand.

33. You're sexy when you're shaving, fixing things, wearing a white T-shirt and jeans, driving, eating a peach, holding a baby.

34. I need to hear how you feel about me. Often. Tell me now. (Can I tell you how I feel about you with shoes?)

35. Surprises, especially gifts for moi = more loving. (mmm... sex)

36. I want to be the best thing that ever happened to you--and for you to recognize this.

37. If I'm not feeling loved, I will start looking....

38. Discussion of ex-gf's and ex-bf's should be avoided at all times.

39. I like it when you tell me what you're thinking, even if you don't know yourself.

40. Celebrating our anniversary, even if it's only been a few months, earns major bonus points.


41. I love it when you're sweaty.

42. It's best to consult your gal pals for gift ideas.

43. A lady should always be greeted with kisses. (tongue or no tongue?)

44. I like porn. (Wow, I knew we had something in common)

45. I love holding your bum in the palms of my hands. (and give it a little squeeze)

46. Even nice girls like hushed dirty talk in public.

47. It's cheating as soon as you're doing something with her that you wouldn't want me to see, hear, read... (I'm not cheating on you with my Playboy mags)

48. For the record: I'd rather you break up with me than cheat.

49. I remember everything about our relationship. (mmmKay, kind of creepy)

50. You should know all this and more with-out my telling you. (C'mon, I'm not a mind reader)

50 Things Men Wish You Knew

1. Express yourself. It makes us proud, even if someone thinks you're wrong.

2. You look hot in running shoes and shorts. And that top thingy with the stripes.

3. Bare, tan shoulders are underrated.

4. If you think I’m speeding now, you should see me drive when you're not in the car. (vroom vroom)

5. If you're truly interested in us, don't play hard to get.

6. Shopping is a chore, not an activity. (true dat, brotha. a shopping list for us is a to-do list, not some kind of scavenger hunt)

7. When I screw up, go ahead and tell me--once. (even better, don't say anything at all b/c chances are I already know!)

8. No question need ever be asked through a closed bathroom door if I'm inside. I love you less with each syllable you utter.

9. I'm hot for you, not your sister or your friend or your coworker.

10. My guy friends. Not only are they not negotiable, they’re your best sign that I’m not a whack job.

11. Don't be afraid to ditch the makeup. Natural is sexier.

12. Leave the eyebrows alone. Plucked ain't pretty.

13. You can have sex with us any time you want. Seriously. (Except when Grey's Anatomy is on... NOT)

14. When the game is on, we will pay attention to you if you're nice about it. Bark, and we shut down.

15. I don't ask for directions because I’m just happy to be driving. Anywhere.

16. Masturbation is merely practice for the big game. Encourage it.

17. We crave hugs and hand-holding too. And no, it doesn't always have to lead to sex.

18. But you can have sex with us any time you want. Did we mention that?

19. There's no better sound in the world than you, having an orgasm.

20. Though the exhaust note of a Porsche Boxster is pretty damn fine, too.

21. I just may lie to make you feel good. Don’t be angry about this. You really weren't looking for the truth anyway.

22. When you get angry over some stupid little pointless thing, I question your intelligence.

23. You’re really bad at faking it. (Oh yes. YES! YES!! It's so true!)

24. If I offer my help while you're getting ready, it means you’re late. (I care more about us being punctual than how your ass looks)

25. Never ask me to pick out your outfit. (See above.) I will invariably get it wrong and make us even more late

26. Giving me two or three choices, however, can be fun. Assuming you will change outfits in front of me. Slowly.

27. Err on the side of hot; I love to show you off.

28. Unless we're meeting my parents.

29. When you call us at work "just to chat," we're not really listening; we're checking our e-mail.

30. Spring means baseball and skirts. Doesn't need to be a mini-skirt; it's been a long winter.

31. Chicks who drink beer are hot. Better yet: chicks who drink beer and watch the game. Better still: chicks who buy us a beer during the game.

32. We don't mind being told we look good. Just don't call it a "cute outfit."

33. We love ponytails. (they give our hands something to do)

34. Being good in bed means a) enthusiasm; b) a sense of humor; and sometimes c) patience.

35. The first time? We're as nervous as you are. (So is Little Jason)

36. A random unexpected grope is always welcome, even in public. Especially in public.

37. Make us laugh and we'll want to hang around.

38. Yes, I laugh really loud around the guys. And I always will, so deal.

39. Sure, men stereotypically like to solve a woman's problems. But a woman who solves her own while we watch? Instant erection.

40. You can pick the movie, but have a reason.

41. Do not expect to have a conversation via text message unless you use the words "naked" and "waiting."

42. Sometimes we wonder why any woman would want to be with us, much less someone as amazing as you. So, thanks.

43. Anytime you cook for us, we're happy. (or sex. or silence. food, sex and silence. that's what'll make us happy... not shoes.)

44. If you can hit a golf ball 150 yards, we just might fall in love.

45. No, I don't remember what he said next. Or she. Or anybody, for that matter. I'm a guy, not a tape recorder.

46. We love you even more because you know we need to go out with the guys once in a while.

47. And we love it when you hang with us guys, too.

48. We have a keen sense of imminent danger. It sounds like, "Do you think she's pretty?" (Along with: "does this make my ass look big?" and "if there's one thing you would change about me, what would that be?")

49. Don't rely on us for keeping you up on the news.

50. Never say, "I know you better than you know yourself." Nobody does.

Daydreaming......

I just randomly asked my manager that if I hopped on the next flight to Munich for Oktoberfest will I still have a job when I come back and he said he wouldn't fire me but there's no saying what "they" would do. I assume by "they" he means HR. I think I'm going to do it. Of course I'd then miss OU Weekend but that also means I get to spend my birthday in Germany, not just drunk by drunk on Germany beer.


United
Flight 5822 operated by UNITED EXPRESS/SKYWEST / Flight 906
1:56pm
Austin, TX (AUS)
9:50am - Thu, Sep 27
Next day arrivalMunich, Germany (MUC)
12hrs 54min - 1 Stop
Change planes in Chicago, IL (ORD)
$1,080per person

If you don't see updates on this blog for a few days, assume I'm in Germany.

More Notes from Podcasts

• You have to be willing to lose in order to win. You can't be afraid to have your stop getting hit if it's a good trade.
• The most important thing is protect yourself, protect your capital.
• You make better decisions by making fewer decisions. Some people think that as a trader you're suppose to trade so if they're not trading they feel they're not working and force trades when the opportunity is not there.
• Get out an excel spreadsheet and see how the strategy works candle by candle. You don't need to test it live.

Super Size It Please! Share Size, That Is

I pulled up Infocenter when I got in this morning and I'm down about 2, 3 dollars for the week. The significance of having a net positive week is so that I can get my share size increased. Instead of trading just 100 shares I can do 200. That way I can increase my profits! Obviously if I do have a losing trade then I'd be losing more as well.

Anyway, things didn't go so well as I wanted. I got in a trade which I knew would bounce back up but I had to leave since I had an appointment with Brooke for lunch... I didn't know what to do since my manager was away and I decided to take a small $6 loss so I can leave without having this on my mind. I haven't seen Brooke since Europe and that coincidental rendes vouz at Zilker Park over the summer. We've tried a couple of times to go to happy hour or brunch but the schedule didn't work out and I'm very happy and excited we finally got to do this.

All I need was a $15 winning trade, well, after my first trade back in the office that total was at about $22 instead since I hit a terrible u-quote... fortunately the next one I hit was a good winner. It printed way up and I got hit plus there was some strong selling pressure so I just kept it on its way down. Unless I calculated incorrectly I should be up about $5 for the week, which for a newbie like me, hey, I'm quite proud of it. Next week, I just have to be very careful still and really watch my losers. None of the $20+ losers that I've had like this week. Hopefully I get another up week next week and then I can swing a bigger line.

Working Towards a Net Positive Week

Not that much stuff going on today. Hit a few scalps. I got burned on one news play and literally as I heard it over the loud speakers I hit cancel order but I was just a split second late and my order got filled. I lost I think $45 on it and yeah, technically if I held on a bit longer I would've have an opportunity to get out and make money but it was the right decision to get out. My brain feels like a sloth today. It's almost as if I couldn't process information fast enough and I forced myself to walk away from the desk after awhile to go play ping pong with Tanner.

It was interesting when David called out the a trade today. The stock was reaching its 52 week high and he went long on it and made a good profit of 20, 40 cents on it I believe. I remember Patrick saying something to me about that kind of trades before... hmm...

I'm maybe down one or two dollars for the week after today, stupid... let's be careful today and I'll have my first real net positive week and if I have one more next week I'll be able to get my share size increased.

Oh, and to my surprise when I came in the office in the morning, I see my name in the top 5 rookie list for the past 5 days! So cool!! Maybe it got to my head a little bit that's why I lost money today... booo.

Career Expo

I agreed to go with Chrissy to the Career Expo at UT today. Interesting to think that just last year I was on the other side of the table. I got in some really good set ups for scalping but my head just wasn't in the ball game and I took my, $6-$15 profit and got out when I know just looking at the charts that it had potential to make $30-$50 on all of them. I'm not upset that they ended up going for much more like $80 on the trades I could've made b/c there's no way I could've foreseen that, I'm just mad that I didn't follow my rule and discipline.

Career Expo is actually kind of fun when you're a recruiter man. I'm just there talking about my job. I hopef I didn't talk about stuff I really shouldn't be and maybe get in trouble. I remember the first guy that asked me the question: "do you like it?" I had to pause briefly to think and I replied: "Yeah, I love it. I think I sound like a dork but I love my job." And it's so true and thanks to whoever that cluess sophomore was I have that revelation.

Oh, this is kind of interesting, I mean... it's not laugh out loud funny of course, but on my ticker yesterday came up the symbol DOG (it's an ETF to short the Dow 30. you buy it if you believe it's a bear market) and then right after the symbol CAT (Caterpillar). I just found it amusing that's all. If you don't, whatever.

I was suppose to have coffee with Kristen but she cancelled so I was just sitting at Starbucks reading for a while before meeting up w/ Vicki for dinner and go to the volleyball game. My energy just crashed after sitting in my car for a while... then I remembered that I woke up at 2:30 the night before and couldn't sleep b/c I was so excited about the trading day and just tons of different scenarios are playing out in my head. I'm so sad that Ashley Engle is injured. She's so good. I hope she's back before we play Nebraska again.

Personal Best Day and The Long Awaited Fed Decision!

LOL, I actually overslept this morning. It was about 9:15 and I heard my dad's voice so I basically ran out of the door with a trail of residual mouth wash after me. I did manage to get hit on a scalping trade for $12 before everybody collectively held their breath for the Fed decision.

Now, this is my thinking: a 25 point cut is already priced in the market. The only way to get a major reaction is if 1) there are no cuts and 2) a bigger cut than 25 points.

Literally, as the voice over the speak goes: "50! 50! 50!" I longed XLF the financial sector ETF. I watched it shoot up 20 cents and got in as soon as I can. Might not have been a great idea, in retrospect, but it worked out. Chalk it up to one of those instincts trade. As soon as I see it starts to pull back I got out. Honestly, I knew I didn't really want to trade a stock that'll move beyond my ability to do damage control if it goes against me like GS, BSC or LEH so that's why I picked XLF b/c ETF's move more steadily. It might not move as much but it's more of a sure bet. Risk/reward I guess... you hear that two words right next to each other a lot when you're in this business. Technically I probably should've just adjusted my stops up and keep holding it. The ECN and all my tickers were going so nuts I couldn't even read it at all. It was just a blur.

I got in some other scalping trades. Mostly though I didn't get hit at all, which pissed me off. I looked back at the end of the day and it must have been at least 30 different times I didn't get printed. I wasn't slow at all is what pissed me off. I just have a lot of my bids or offers far away from the print b/c I felt that with such high volume it's probably gonna print away from it. I did get in a stock that was about $100 and the spread was well over 20 cents so that caught me by surprise that I was down $20 the second I got hit. Fortunately someone took my offer through ARCA and I got a $25 profit from it.

There was one trade though, I guess it wasn't the best set up. I saw that it printed up so I shorted it but really it printed down and already ticked up so I got burned for $17 there I think. As we approached the close I remember I was $2 away from making my personal best and I finally got in a scalp for a $5 and I took it with like maybe 3 minutes until the market close, hehe. Really though, I knew I shouldn't have taken it and could probably make $5 more on it but oh well.

Tomorrow I'm going in to trade during the open and then I'm going back to campus for the Career Expo but as a recruiter this time! I already set up some time to meet with old friends and then going to the volleyball game at 6:30. Coffee at the Alumni Center with Dani @ 12:30, grab a drink or bite with Kristen after the expo, dinner with Vicki and then go to the game with her and Steven as well. After the game I need to swing by AJ's place to pick up my Hofbrauhaus mug <3 and then head over to Holly's new place and hang out for a bit.

Trader Interview with Rob Booker

• Read everything you can get your hands on
• You have to go through the experience, figure it out for yourself, back test your strategie and do your homework. It takes 6-12 months and it just doesn't get through faster simply because you want to
• It's not as simple as doing what other people are doing. You have to test it out for yourself. Not necessarily trade it live but go through the historical prices or candle by candle.
• Go back and revisit why you made a trade in the first place instead of trying to figure out why it went wrong
• Have the discpline to go back in time and test out a strategy and trade in the same manner live later

Not Comparing Yourself to Others is Easier Said Than Done

Jennifer yahtzeed... good for her, but I'm very very unhappy about this. WTF, she did it in a month and a half? I'm very competitive, ok? I hate to lose, especially losing to a girl. I mean, c'mon... seriously? this girl leaves right after the close and barley gets here before the open. I know she's had a few big winning days and maybe she hasn't dug as big as a hole as some of us have.

I don't care. I need to focus on myself. If I keep comparing myself to others I will always be neg. Grass is always greener somewhere in the world. I might not be the best trader but there's no way in hell I was going to let someone else outwork me.

Sigh... It's been slow the past couple of days. Actually, the past two weeks has been pretty slow. This Thursday was Rosh Hashana and try not to read more than what I'm saying here but all the people on Wall Street that are Jewish are no working... It's the calm before the storm. Next Tuesday baby!

Hmm... Birthday's Coming Up

My 24th birthday is coming up and I'm playing with this idea of making a mockumentary 24 style. But I have a feeling that some of those hours are going to be pretty boring as I will be passed out. Also, since my bday is on a Wed. this yr... another 1/3 of that day will be working as well. We'll see. Maybe we can somehow spice this up.