2 From Oregon at least. Bittersweet feelings leaving this beautiful state.
When I left Pittsburgh in 2005, I vowed to never return…how naive of me. Growing up in that city, there is a vortex that continues to pull me back. This is the third time I have moved away in indifference, only to return full of excitement and moxie.
I apologize for my infrequent posts over the weekend, packing up a 2500 square foot house is fun stuff. The best part is when my kid is emptying boxes at a rate slightly slower than we are able to fill them.
When it comes to manual labor, I’m a “put my head down and work” kind of person. When I get moving and start to get a lather going, I don’t like to be interrupted; therefore there has been a delicate balancing act with my psyche over the past 4 days.
And who could forget the impromptu “garage sale” that we held on Saturday in 55 degrees and driving rain. I was amazed by the people who braved the elements and came out for the opportunity to purchase some of our trash.
I rewarded their dedication by deeply discounting nearly every item. Playstation 2 and a few mid 00’s sports games? $10 No AV cable you say? Okay, 5 bucks. Me: (to a different customer) “You can stuff as much into this bag (I produce a plastic shopping bag from my pocket) as you can for one dollar.”
We were selling our window AC for $40 and could not find a buyer. The hip, cool people in this town are so shortsighted that it took some dude from Vancouver (WA) 36 hours to pounce on the deal. (Some people are hilarious, I have “inherited” and was wearing a pair of Ray Bans that my wife’s brother left in our van and the first thing this guy (from Vancouver) says to me is: “I just bought those sunglasses, are those the 2123’s? Or are they the 2140’s?” I’m like: “they are sunglasses”).
About the AC…I did what any sane person in this day and age would do: I took to facebook to taunt and ridicule my “friends” in this town regarding the lack of interest in the unit and how they would be sorry the next time it’s 95 degrees and they are sweltering in their 2nd story apartment with oscillating fans “stirring” the heat.
Look, it get’s fucking hot here. Granted, it’s typically cooler than pretty much anywhere else all summer (save the Pacific coast), but we do have our 95 degree days. When it’s normally 70-75, 95 feels like the gates of hell. On those days, having a working air conditioner is the “greatest of all times.” So the joke is on you and your stupid oscillating fans, Portland.
Outside of the conspiracy between baby toy/apparatus producers and battery makers, moving boxes are the biggest racket going. We have packed up our entire house and have needed to purchase 3 “large” boxes from Home Depot.
Craigslist “free stuff”, search: boxes. If you don’t mind driving to pick them up (I don’t), you can acquire all of the boxes you will ever need AND MORE. The upside: they are free, the negative: packing peanuts.
Holy hell do those things drive me absolutely crazy. They are just light enough and create just enough static electricity to stick to everything. Who the fuck even uses those goddamn things? I would rather have my valuables smashed into dust than to use packing peanuts. Oh, and they are an absolute joy to dispose of (unless they are the one’s that melt in water…those are *somewhat* excluded from this diatribe).
As for the market, it is imperative for $SPY has to hold that 130-131 area. Today was not very pretty, but based on a number of different factors I do think we see prices level out right around here.
I started a position in $IWM July 75 calls right before the close today.
Ragin has been writing about $THLD today, but you know who has been talking about this stock in these hallowed halls for over a month? If you guessed “ElizaMae”, you would be correct. I sold half of my position last week, but at the time still really liked the price action. This is one of the few stocks that has really made sense to me (from a pattern-making perspective) in the past couple of months. A break (and hold) above 7.50 would be phenomenal.
The action in $RGR and $SAVE today was slightly disconcerting, but having taken profits in both last week I’ll continue to be bullish on these stocks until they take out the most recent lows.
Lastly, based upon statistics provided by a sublime harmony of mathematical precision, now looks like a fantastic time to add to my $MO position.
We’re turning off the internet tomorrow, so I probably won’t have time to reply to comments. My dad and I are making the trip to PA via the Interstate Highway System, which is going to provide me with a LOT of time to sit, think and write. I have a number of trading psychology type posts that I have wanted to ponder for a while now, so hopefully I can delve into some of those thoughts in the coming days.
My best to you all.
-EM
2 Responses to “Moving On”
Yogi and Boo Boo
EM, Have a safe trip and keep an eye peeled for deer. They’re all evil whether they’re on I-90, I-80, or I-70. Cleaning Bambi guts from your truck’s bumper and grill while doing emergency oil cooler repairs at 1 AM in a rest area is not fun. Been there. Done that.
Verona Gentleman
Ah, yes–the joys of moving. Just finished packing up our place which is now in a 20 foot container somewhere in the Indian Ocean right now. The good thing with moving is it forces you to throw out all that useless shit that piles up. Moving is liberation–enjoy it!