7/2/09
I had to go to get a CT scan on my ankle today, and was in and out in 45 minutes. Now, I’m waiting for my MD to call me to tell me what’s up. Last night, I went over to an 80 year old French lady’s house, who I refer to as my mistress, to teach her how to make coq au vin. Imagine that, an American boy teaching a French lady how to cook a French national dish. We shared more than a little wine, and I went home quite buzzed. I called my friend in New York very late, and she was watching a trade she had going on the e-minis. I looked at my screen, saw what I liked, and sold the crap out of the e-minis. I stayed up all night, except for when I passed out in front of my screen for a couple of hours and got up late. I felt absolutely no pain on the trade and have been moving my stops down all morning. I’ve needed a good trade to get me out of my funk, and this seems to be the trade.
Although I’m pretty confused with the grain markets, I might have the dollar figured out….Stay tuned for further details.
Jeff
Congrats on the Winning Trade, nice little woosh today as we are trading 890. Looks at least like 870 next, possibly 840 if we can hold under 880 after hitting 870.
misstrade
July 2, 2009 at 8:50 pm
Misstrade,
I sold 35 overnight at 916 and 15 more at 901. Covered it all at 893 and was very happy with the day trade. My timing has been horrible as of late, and this was a nice little win.
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 2, 2009 at 9:34 pm
I only sold a little 15 lot today on open @ 907 covered em all @ 897, but was painless. I agree this market has offered little in the way of “swing” trades, sticking mainly to daytrades the last few months. Staying in cash in the evenings. I think it has kept me more sane than in past flat line cycles like this. Leading me to less trades but more profits.
misstrade
July 2, 2009 at 10:41 pm
This ES trade was an afterthought, as I’ve been sticking to the grains with horrible results over the past couple of weeks. I was glad to bail out of my wheat and corn last week, as yesterday was carnage after the crop report. I don’t like being flat, but over the long holiday weekend it will give me time to breathe.
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 2, 2009 at 10:47 pm
I enjoy being flat for long weekends, time to rest and rejuice. I think you need a trip out west, clear your head, get out of the crowded spaces and into some wide open spaces. Always office space with me in Oregon while you rejuice!!
misstrade
July 2, 2009 at 11:18 pm
Hey Jeff,
You wouldn’t be interested in buying a slightly used 10-lot of Sep wheat by any chance, would you?
Cheers,
George
allocator
July 2, 2009 at 11:45 pm
George,
Whatever I do in wheat, just fade me and you’ll get rich. Whether or not luck exists, providence was on my side when O listened to my good friend and shorted the S&P. When I spoke to her, I was half in the bag after too much wine and I got very bold. Incidentally, the trade had zero pain whatsoever, maybe going a quarter against me at the worst.
Hey, when are you going to pick up your glasses?
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 3, 2009 at 12:04 am
Jeff,
I just had a great idea for a restaurant. You call it the BBQ Pit, you sell the greatest southern BBQ you can imagine, with Sweet Tea flowing by the gallon. Your reception and waiting staff would all be dressed in commodity pit coats and name tags, would arrange seating and take food orders in loud bid-offers, the orders would be hand-signaled in to the kitchen, and patrons could only eat when a loud clanging bell went off at their table. (You’d give a discount to whoever learns to order in “bid-offer” or hand signals.)
“Um, I’ll have a dozen of the pork ribs, and an order of fries, please”
“SOLD!! 12-LOT PORK-BONES AT NINE AND THREE QUARTERS, ONE-LOT FRIES AT TWO AND HALF! SELLING ONE BIG TEA – ONE AND A QUARTER OFFERED. Kid in the red shirt – trade or fade?”
“Um … OK”
“SOLD!!!”
Waddya think?
Cheers,
George
allocator
July 3, 2009 at 12:17 am
George,
I like it. I just wonder one thing….”Where do you come up with all of this excellent material?”
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 3, 2009 at 12:27 am
I’d go to that restaurant, but it should be near an exchange in Chicago or NYC, even SF or London!
misstrade
July 3, 2009 at 12:39 am
Misstrade,
You would have liked Broker’s Inn, Trader’s Inn, or Sign of the Trader in Chicago. Those bars had the old Trans Lux Jets streaming quotes on the wall all day long. You could get anything in those places, back in the day.
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 3, 2009 at 12:42 am
“I sold 35 overnight at 916 and 15 more at 901. Covered it all at 893 and was very happy with the day trade.”
Nice. I came in short from yesterday, paid 898 for half on the way down and 895 near the close to get flat.
Penn State Clips
July 3, 2009 at 12:54 am
I still prefer Gibson’s in Chi town for the trader swagger!!
misstrade
July 3, 2009 at 12:59 am
“I’m pretty confused with the grain markets.”
Jeff, here’s my “crop report.” The corn is only going to be “knee high by the Fourth of July” in central Illinois. It should be somewhere between waist-high and chest-high by now. The plants themselves look good from the road, just not tall enough yet.
We were at my wife’s family reunion over the weekend. My brother-in-law said his crop is about a month behind because it was so late getting in. He added that the weather will be more critical than usual because of the late plantings.
Also, everyone is still unhappy about the convergence issues at expirations.
Penn State Clips
July 3, 2009 at 1:08 am
“Whatever I do in wheat, just fade me and you’ll get rich.”
Looking at the Sep chart, how hard can it be? All you had to do was buy the opening on the first day of May and reverse on the close on the first day of June. Easy. (I have 20/20 hindsight–I can look at any chart and tell you what you should have done.)
Penn State Clips
July 3, 2009 at 1:17 am
Yeah Kevin,
How hard can it be?
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 3, 2009 at 1:19 am
“Yeah Kevin, How hard can it be?”
I once worked for a guy at the CBOT who made a ton of money filling paper in Treasuries, but couldn’t trade his way out of a wet paper sack if you started a hole for him. But he was great at telling locals what they should have done, saying, “It was obvious the market was going to…”
I wanted to scream “Well if it was so freaking obvious how come you didn’t have on a hundred-lot instead of, you know, zero???”
Of course, the locals couldn’t say that to him because they couldn’t afford to be frozen out when he was filling paper.
Penn State Clips
July 3, 2009 at 6:03 am
And of course the market seems much more obvious when you’re holding a big deck.
Penn State Clips
July 3, 2009 at 6:05 am
I used to get commercials who would do the same thing and I’d stand in front of them and make quick bids and offers in rapid fire, sometimes going on for 5 minutes, Finally, they’d make a mistake and I’d scoop up a few dollars and they’d get pissed. I even had a commercial’s boss try to bust a trade on 600,000 bu of May wheat that he bought 8 cents higher than the market price. The trade held.
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 3, 2009 at 6:09 am
misstrade: “I enjoy being flat for long weekends, time to rest and rejuice.”
Jeff is an old spreader, he’s used to have positions on. When I was trading back month Dow I’d go months and months without ever being flat. It wouldn’t have seemed natural to not have some inventory.
Penn State Clips
July 3, 2009 at 6:30 am
I love the 20/20 traders the finest breed in existance!
misstrade
July 3, 2009 at 5:38 pm
misstrade,
The 20/20 guys get to me also. I had a discussion over on Daily Speculations with a gentleman who told me that last year was the the best year if you were a “Good” trader and that it was easy money. I called him out on that, as i know plenty of 30-40 year experience traders that had a miserable year. I know a few that lost it all, and they were “Good” traders. It’s really easy to judge when you only trade on paper:)
I was thinking of something, If someone has only been in the business for a year or two, what do you call them?
Jeff
masteroftheuniverse
July 3, 2009 at 5:46 pm