Market is big ass red.

In my swing account, I sold my AAPL swing for about +4k, then I got rid of 4 other crap trades taking it down to 2.5k. I have one short left and one long, both red but may be ok. I sense some real carnage a com'n.

Daytrade, I don't know, highs to lows, fme. I was kickin it, now I am getting kicked even harder. Assholes.

Not sure why, but I kicked ass yesterday and today in the first hour of trading. So it's 7:30am my time and I am done.

Trades: 14  Shares: 2500  Ratio: 654.22
Tickets: 31  Shares/Ticket: 81 P&L: 1636
Fills: 34  Shares/Fills: 74 ME: 17.73
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Win Trades: 11 Win %: 79
# Loss Trades: 3 Loss %: 21
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Win $: 1710  Win Shares: 2200 Win Ratio: 777.47
Loss $: -75  Loss Shares: 300 Loss Ratio: -249.67
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Win $: 733  Avg Win $: 155  WRatio/LRatio: 3.11
Max Loss $: -30  Avg Loss $: -25  Win$/Loss$: 22.84
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Long P&L: 1658  Long Shares: 2300 Long Ratio: 721.06
Short P&L: -23  Short Shares: 200 Short Ratio: -114.50
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Long Trade Wins: 11 L Win % 85  # L Trades: 13
# Short Trade Wins: 0 S Win % 0  # S Trades: 1

A good session for me this am. I made a video of a few trades, (kinda long, not sure how well it will download for you if you watch it, but you will need paitence.) I paused it a few times to show my trades moving. The video goes red half way, pos. I did go back into AAPL after the vid for a few more points. AMZN, WYNN both kept going nicely after I got out.

Aug 11 2008 Video

Trades: 18  Shares: 2000  Ratio: 719.93
Tickets: 31  Shares/Ticket: 65 P&L: 1440
Fills: 34  Shares/Fills: 59 ME: 20.55
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Win Trades: 14 Win %: 78
# Loss Trades: 4 Loss %: 22
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Win $: 1496  Win Shares: 1750 Win Ratio: 854.77
Loss $: -56  Loss Shares: 250 Loss Ratio: -224.00
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Win $: 321  Avg Win $: 107  WRatio/LRatio: 3.82
Max Loss $: -44  Avg Loss $: -14  Win$/Loss$: 26.71
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Long P&L: 1440  Long Shares: 2000 Long Ratio: 719.93
Short P&L: 0  Short Shares: 0 Short Ratio: 0
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Long Trade Wins: 14 L Win % 78  # L Trades: 18
# Short Trade Wins: 0 S Win % 0  # S Trades: 0

• AAPL - 172 long breaks a downtrend, acting well finally. I think these are extraordinary times for AAPL. No-one has a product line that can even come close.
• ESRX - keep an eye on this one at 73.
• GOOG - 499, look for a gap fill to 520ish
• MICC - off the bottom, 79 is the one.
• QCOM - looks ready break 56 and a bit.

Worth listening to again...

Audio Interview with Trader Mitch Cariaga
Ya might want to listen to this one a few times...

What is the #1 success step to trading?
5:43 - Know where to get out of the trade with your stop.

What is the #1 mistake made?
7:52 - If you can't make money with 100 shares you can't make money with 1000.

When should a trade be in the money?
9:23 - A trade should make money instantly, if not get out.

Would you trade differently if you had no commissions?
10:55 - Uh-huh.

What is the name of the game?
11:50 - Don't take/hold losers, just get out.

How can you spot a great trader?
15:05 - How he reacts to losers.

A simple screen reveals there ain't that many stocks over 200 right now.

• HUM is working well so far off of 44.
• AAPL long seems ok since yesterday changed the look and feel. If it can break through 162, 163 it should be good to go.
• UTHR looks ready to go at 117
• ESRX looks good at 72

Lots of stuff at the bottom waiting for reversals.

Maybe I will talk about swing trading for a while instead of daytrading.

CLF setup yesterday for a swing, I took it but it failed quickly and I got out right away. You can see the break of resistance yesterday at the first line and then fail. So today I went long 200 at 108.47 on my alert and it worked out well so far.

I was long 300 V around 75 for a swing yesterday, it closed nicely and gapped up in my favour, (rare) so I was up a k this am, from there it just tanked. You want to give it room, yet you want to protect your gains, very hard to get just right. I finally got out saving maybe $300 in profit. It kept falling to 74.27, (not sure why my chart has that spike). I kept an eye on it and got long 300 again at 75.81, I sold 100 for a small gain and kept 200. Then I found out they report today, I figured I best keep my shares. Turned out good for me this time.

It's not all good news, I've been long and wrong in AAPL for a while now, that pos is pissing me off. I also have a bit of DECK short again but it has crazy moves up and down.

As for new setups, keep an eye on HUM, it is building a base here and once it breaks 44 and stays it may just go.

Guess I better post something on the this damn blog eh.

Here some reading material for the can. Print out this boring crap and read it over and over again. tks crack and the zen people.

• http://www.dehtrader.com/zen-and-the-art-poker-trading.htm

Anyone catch some GOOG after hours?

I longed 50 shares at 478.50 and road it up to 503.58 and back down to exit at 492.05 and 490.36, leaving a few on the table in an attempt to hold for a bigger move higher which did not happen.

You know half the crap I read to learn more about trading, I read a while back. Now, I have experience and such a better understanding of things, I tend to re-visit some of the stuff I read and see it in a whole new way. One such item is Phantom's Gift which I am going to read now.

I still like SQNM, I won't be a round to trade in the am so I am setting a buy stop at 17.55 and see if I can make moola while away from the pc. With the mrkt red, coal, steel not so hot, ags next, perhaps drugs will be the next sector to rock and roll. CELG, MYGN, ONXX, UTHR, AAPX, AMAG, SQNM of course.

FXP, talk about a hard name to swing trade, I have tried so many times but unless you can ride the ride, you pretty much miss the ride. I have it in a secondary account at 80, with a nice stop, it is very possible for FXP to visit 122 again.

Wow a lot of names I follow got hammered today, the music stops and they all get wacked in one day.

Glad I took my stop in SLB, what a pos, I was in for a swing trade today at 110ish, rode it to 112 in the first few minutes thinking I had a nice ride, then down to 109 and got the f out. It ended the day at 103ish. I can't even count how many times I get stuck in junk ass stocks like this when I keep too loose of a stop.

CME is a weak dog which did not fall today, perhaps it is done for now, watch for a bounce or more damage, 350 short.

ICE melting, daily support broken today.

DECK has hardly fallen, this low volume pump is due one day, keep an eye on 130 then 120.

ENER, all is see is a big ass spike to 80 and going back to 40 in a hurry.

ISRG, daily support broken today.

JRCC, woops, missed that ride.

MA is not immune to being cut in half, daily support broken, 10 pt gap to fill in the am.

MICC, if you were a long, what would you be doing?

PCLN finally broke, not even sure why I look at, I don't think it is shortable.

PCX, if coal continues south this name can fall hard, break 127 and load the boat.

RIMM, the little darling pimped up sky high stock, 113 is the number.

That's all I got, have a great holiday!

I had a good day today and was done by 7:30am. I kept looking at the markets, so tempted to fire up my charts and platform, it was one of those days I would have done really well I think. But, I suck, so I must make a few bucks and simply stop trading as soon as possible in order to not give it back. Sounds easy, but it's not.

I'm off to WA for a few days, friends, family, merican beer, and the 4th.

• SLB setting up nice here on the daily for a swing or a trade, 110.80.
• SQNM ready for some more today, 17 if you can get it.

You know even though this market is down if you are swing short the wrong stocks you get killed. The market has hardly fallen imo.

They mentioned AMZN on Fast Money tonight and thinking about it makes sense, people may be staying at home more due to high fuel prices and other reasons and shop online more. That and AMZN really is more than a book/retail co. now and big into internet infrastructure.

Looking at AMZN it is one of the few flyers that have not flown past the dot com highs of 1999, maybe it is time. It has a nice trend up since March 2008, it is above the 20, 50 and 200, and it appears to be close to testing 85 resistance again real soon for the third time. I say break 85 looks good for a trade with a loose stop just below that.

Watchlist:

• Also APA is setting up 142 long.
• BNI is breaking down from the highs, I'm in already but lots of room to go I think. Break 102 looks good for continuation.
• FITB may leg down again 12.50 is key.
• FMCN 28, then 26, 24, 20 then 10 - I may be wrong, which happens alot.
• Please tell me how to short GRMN?
• HES would be cooler on the Nasdaq HESS, they do that gas and oil thing that is hot right now, 130 and we have a breakout pardner.
• HUM, I had high hopes for that dog, nope, it's just a dog still.
• PBR 70.50 could setup for a run.
• JRCC is a double in a few months, PCX a triple, holy coal bubble man.
• STI has some downside momentum with volume, break 40 and it may visit 38 and 32.
• ZION is the same, but support is here and now at 32 to 30 area which may mean squat when no one is paying back their freaking loans.

The market made it's move in the early am and the rest was chop till the last half hour. I made my moola in the first hour then stuck around when I should not of. I should have just shut down and moved on to my other projects. I kept it tight during the chop and only gave back about $100 trying for a move but it is a lot of work or stress to just keep grinding away when the market is not really moving. I wonder when I will mature as a trader to walk away when I am up and not worry about missing the next move, or to just not trade when the market is hardly moving and have the patience to wait for real moves. I did leave early today, bout noon my time, I set an alert for the Q lows and left for HD. While in HD, my alert triggered on my phone, no biggie, I just wanted to know. I knew my swing account was working for me.

You can go back a few posts and see all the names I was calling short, at the time they were all still on the rise with the Q, now not so much. I feel like the market is actually now only finally starting to respond to all of the serious problems with the economy and perhaps maybe some real truths will come out, rather than being tethered along by perma bulls and ignoring the real shit out there from the real people. I mean what would happen if the market actually really went down for a period of time? Is it like real estate where everyone thought home values always go up until they don't? It's not that I want the market to fall, but most of the stocks I follow are straight up way higher than any bubble we had 1999, and I just don't think that is sustainable. Just pick any flyer name and look at the weekly chart for all of time and you will see what I mean, look at RIMM for an example.

Such a reversal for me on my swing account as I was short and wrong for a while as the market pushed higher, but I held knowing we either fall or breakout on June 6th. I'm right now though and up nice. I was tricked into buying that pos AAPL (small size) which fell on me as soon as I got in, dang. Such a pos stock. I hope to hold on though and dollar cost average it over time.

Trades: 39  Shares: 4740  Ratio: 113.76
Tickets: 81  Shares/Ticket: 59 P&L: 539
Fills: 86  Shares/Fills: 55 ME: 0.72
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Win Trades: 21 Win %: 54
# Loss Trades: 18 Loss %: 46
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Win $: 991  Win Shares: 2560 Win Ratio: 387.30
Loss $: -452  Loss Shares: 2180 Loss Ratio: -207.45
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Win $: 420  Avg Win $: 47  WRatio/LRatio: 1.87
Max Loss $: -123  Avg Loss $: -25  Win$/Loss$: 2.19
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Long P&L: 307  Long Shares: 1150 Long Ratio: 267.29
Short P&L: 232  Short Shares: 3590 Short Ratio: 64.58
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Long Trade Wins: 6 L Win % 55  # L Trades: 11
# Short Trade Wins: 15 S Win % 54  # S Trades: 28

Since I don't feel like sharing much about trading I might as well try and win a contest. Over at Johnchow.com you can enter the contest too. Market Leverage is giving away a T-shirt, golf shirt, jacket, cap, a bag to hold everything, Flip video camera, $200 Amex rewards card, Pen USB drive and an Ipod nano.

To enter comment to John's blog entry and if you want five entries blog about it, just like I am doing here.

Not much blogging of late, not sure why or maybe I am sure and have not voiced it. I have been having a tough time of late and am at a point where I need to make a decision about my trading.

Funny enough I had a great day today, was very close to 2k before giving some back. I made a few mistakes and let one trade get away on me, but for the most part I did well.

Trades: 33  Shares: 4070  Ratio: 411.68
Tickets: 63  Shares/Ticket: 65 P&L: 1676
Fills: 67  Shares/Fills: 61 ME: 4.19
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Win Trades: 27 Win %: 82
# Loss Trades: 6 Loss %: 18
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Win $: 2062  Win Shares: 3400 Win Ratio: 606.34
Loss $: -386  Loss Shares: 670 Loss Ratio: -576.19
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Max Win $: 476  Avg Win $: 76  WRatio/LRatio: 1.05
Max Loss $: -257  Avg Loss $: -64  Win$/Loss$: 5.34
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Long P&L: -36  Long Shares: 500 Long Ratio: -71.00
Short P&L: 1711  Short Shares: 3570 Short Ratio: 479.28
---------------------------------------------------------------------
# Long Trade Wins: 3 L Win % 75  # L Trades: 4
# Short Trade Wins: 24 S Win % 83  # S Trades: 29

I got chopped up today, nothing worked. I hate trading when it's like that. I go long, I get stopped, I go short, I get stopped. I was down and I stopped trading before the end of the day, I think that's a first. My buddy dropped by is the real reason, he helped me move some sand around and then we went for lunch. He wanted Chinese so we went to a place nearby and it was closed so we ended up at a Sushi joint in the same complex. We had those box lunches, mmm good. After that I had to run to my local John Deere dealer and pick up a new tire for my ride on, 8 bucks for a new tire, I could not believe it. 15 to have it mounted and 20 in fuel to go there and back, ha.

My HUM swing is acting well, looks like it's building a nice base and just needs some volume to push it. If it can get past 53.50 it will have a nice $10 gap to fill.

I have not done well swing trading at all of late. Everything I owned for a day or two and sold for a small gain is way up now and everything I do own is going the wrong way.