Greetings lads. Not much to report on this fine Sunday. All routines remain in place. The key to a routine is understanding its purpose. If someone ever asked me why I spend two-to-four hours every Sunday thumbing through tons of raw stock market data and parsing it into relevant information, I have an answer more meaningful than, “because that is how I’ve always done it.” Resting on your laurels is a dangerous game. Ask me how I know.
I am not going to write out all the reasons why I do lots of research every Sunday, nor will I elaborate on the why I update the public blog with a NASDAQ trading plan most every trading day. However, it is the proverbial chopping of the wood and carrying of the water. These routines took me to a place of consistent profitability as a trader and investor, and I cannot stop doing them now that I’ve achieved that goal.
That said, I am always on the look-out for ways to simplify my approach or add a new tool (algo, model, screen, etc).
Last week was huge for me. I made back all draw down my long term accounts suffered during the Valentine’s Day COVID-19 massacre while capturing hundreds of handles in the NASDAQ 100 futures. Technically, I could not work again until August and have enough money to keep the lights on, the hooch flowing, pick up some new threads and all the gourmet groceries I can eat here at Mothership.
But many a wise gambler have encouraged me to press my edge when it goes well, therefore I shall continue to show up and trade these opening bells. Don’t expect me to hang around much later than noon though. The warmth is arriving in the murder mitten and I have food to grow. Likely to be much to the chagrin of my neighbors, I am debating tilling up the entire front yard (40′ x 70′) and installing a food garden. These bread lines at Costco have fucked with my psyche a bit, and I never want to be caught flat footed again, in terms of food. I remodeled the base cement, expanding the cellar and adding a nursery area where I have started flats of celery, beans, sweet corn and cucumbers. I have stocked up on heirloom cabbage, potato, carrot and beet seed strains known to do well in my climate zone. I dedicated another area to indoor propagation of leafy greens like bib lettuce, bok choy, kale and spinach. This area also hosts basil and cilantro plants. A variety of other herbs are already established in the back yard.
This COVID-19 has been a real eye opener, a paradigm shift for sure. I am fortunate to have so much land and square footage, much of which has spent the last eight years as an empty echo whilst I sit in my dark blue office and trade, then sashay around town eating at Detroit’s finest restaurants. Something had to change I suppose. I am embracing the hermit/quarantine life. My goal is to grow at least 50% of the food I need to maintain uber male health.
Anyways…anyways…models remain bullish heading into next week. Look for Intel earnings Thursday afternoon to tell a story for the broad markets. Until then, volatility compression and sideways drift is the forecast from your old pal Raul. A stock picker’s market.
Raul Santos, April 19th 2020
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