Since our previous time together I have sold my positions.  All sold at a loss…

On 5/4/12, I sold HOV, BYD and VXX.  Sold the HOV and BYD because they were down and I wanted to limit my losses.  Sold the VXX because I bought it betting it was near a bottom and it was not holding its price…  That is the bad news.  The news that is even worse is that my Ford $13 Call Options for Sep and Dec 2012 are down big.  Really big! One down over 70% the other down almost 90%.  Almost worthless…

So I am effectively in 100% cash again and the market keeps going lower…

What a terrible time to start a blog on the market!  Not really.  This isn’t about the stocks, it is about the world.  This is the way the world works…  This is the market we have to trade.  That is reality.  If I was trying to sell you on my stock picking prowess, I would not mention these losses.  I would call your attention to my next great stock pick.  Not me.  I am not here to pick stocks for you.  I am here to make my mistakes, out in the open, for you to see.  I am here to show you one man’s trades and how learning from those trades help me learn about the market and the world.  You can watch and learn from my mistakes and hopefully understand your world a bit better…

So now you know how bad it is (in my trading portfolio anyway).

The good news is we are caught up to where I am today and we have cash to deploy in a down market.  A down market means stocks are on sale.  The bad news is that this moonlighting thing is my second job, a sideline.  So I have to get back to work.  I will work to post shorter articles for you more often.  It is all about finding balance in out lives.  Balance between work and play…

Originally Posted on May 14, 2012  (Before System Upgrade)