January 14, 2006
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I remember when my sister (separated one) told me that I seemed to have her same tendency to sabotage myself. She urged me to finish writing the second book before I jumped into Internet writing. I have forsaken both for the stock market. It has consumed me, and I attribute part of the draw to the fact that I have a gambler’s mentality, after all.
I remember when I was married and he was working in Vegas for the week. I flew in that weekend and he handed me a hundred dollars to gamble with. I thought he must be crazy but I went ahead and wasted it all. I flew back home, closing my eyes in the air, seeing the smoke-filled frenzy of people losing their retirement money. I’ll never do that again, I thought.
Losing money on stock the other day (the total lost was $1,107) was no different than throwing the $100 away, just ten times worse. I knew that stock was gonna get me. I watched it climb all last year, scared to get burned. But I had info on the company’s new drug, soon to be approved by the FDA, and I wanted to get in early. Uh-huh. Rule #1: Never buy the night before the quarterly is announced. Even if you know they’ve made it. I did a lot of things wrong on that one. And that’s why I lost my money.
I’ve decided not to go to Florida this year. That way I won’t have to beat myself up about the loss. And this week I took $1000, each, off the top of three stocks that were gainers so last night I went to bed feeling good again, like I was a real winner
Comments (30)
we stopped playing with stocks- we don’t have the time or the inclination to sit and stress and watch it fluctuate- Everything is in money markets now ever since Gateway NEVER went back up. Ugh. Luckily, it’s good to report on taxes… RYC: We are extended here til July- July is the month now- I’m not holding my breath.
I’m pretty good at sabotaging myself too — I just choose different avenues than you. But it is oh so easy to do, isn’t it? I’ve gotten better, and am still working on working that out of my system. Getting my house key back Friday morning was my latest ‘step in the right direction’.
Three out of four – pretty darn good. Heck, celebrate
i am not a gambler and i always think of a zillon things to do when i lose money so i’d rather not hear that voice in my head! ryc: mostly really really busy!
Sorry to hear of the financial loss. But at least I’m glad to hear of of your evening out. I’m considering some sort of stock market or investment venture myself. However, I don’t really know where to begin and what my options are. The capitalism in me wants to start young so I can ensure retirement and financial security. By the way, cute dog. I got a eighty pound Beagle back at home. He turns ten in March.
-K
RYC OK come come see… you just made the case for fallible eye witness testimony…lol…its just the lighting was different…my hair is turning grey…but is still brown or blondish brown fepending on the season…and so not straight….it frizzes to a very large size unless conditioned….I do wear dark brown horn rimmed type glasses though and they magnify my eyes giving me an owlish look,,,,that more then one student made note of…..I have a baby face and looked twelve till I hit forty a long while ago….
Oh I was just reading.today’s entry ..the only way to stay sane with regard to the stock market is think mostly about the long haul unless its a major trend…my spouse leaves it till it gets close to the principle..in a good mutual fund but even when we did lose down to the principle when we put it back after the market stopped falling it grew back….I try not to think on it,,,because it is our retirementand it makes me nervous…he on the other hand is pretty complacent about it….
ryc – good idea. i can choose one of the smaller venues without many honchos around. bird’s promised to be there, tho i don’t think i need encouragement, just to get up and do it, can’t be any worse than my phd orals…. where i dreamed the night before that i sat at the head of a table, profs surrounding, and that when i first opened my mouth, my end of the table rose, leaving an opening to a dumpster underneath,, into which i unceramoniously fell, after which the table top close again with me on the underside. nope, can’t be t hat bad. thanks for thinking of t hat. i appreciate it.
I so do NOT have the gambler’s mentality. I used to go to Vegas every year for computer shows. I would stand there in amazement as friends and coworkers lost everything and then would say “But last time I came out ahead!” I would milk my $20, as much as I’d allow myself to lose for the evening’s entertainment. I remember my boss (now friend) walking up once and asking why I wasn’t gambling. I said I’d lost my $20 and was done. He handed me another $20. Of course, I also remember being there hanging out with some guys at the tables (which I would never play!). This one guy and I were flirting pretty heavy after a dinner out and endless drinks and my boss and he were playing at the same table. I was trying to be cool and go back and forth between them, cheering them both on, even while the gambling foreplay fever was building was between us. He finally threw a $100 bill on the table and lost it in one hand. Then we had fun, in a different kind of gambol.
RYC ..nobody can see much of anything in a thumbnail..and as a profile pic it was A thumbnail ..as I hate having my picture made that usually suits me pretty good…I hope you know i was just teasing with you? By the way when you had yours up I thought you looked both sophisticated and frindly..and uncommon combination…I like the puppy too though,,,,
You’re wiser & gutsier than me. We went to the casino Thursday night for a concert & beforehand and killed time at the quarter slots. I won $2.00 on mine & hit cash out..he won $ 16.75 & I pressed him to cash out too. LOL. I’m quite the frugal nutcase, but we left there in the black
I am so not a gambler. I stress about that kind of stuff…really, really bad. Hubby is a little more adventurous and I let him handle our investments (which are almost nonexistant right now. Getting back on our feet!)
You are braver …and smarter than me!!!!
Takes a lot of courage and knowledge to play the stock market!
The stock market isn’t gambling if you do it right (being disciplined and doing research). Hey, are you willing to post all the companies you hold in your portfolio? I’ll look over them and give you my opinion of them. BTW – the colors on our two Xanga sites are really similar, but I didn’t notice it until you said something (I’m a typical guy)
Gambling is suppose to be an entertainment and if you don’t get any pleasure from it then one should never do it..living in Nevada I have seen fortunes wasted and fortunes made, I for one will drop the occasional $20 knowing it will probably stay at the Casino…I still don’t mess with my stocks, I let that up to my broker..probably shouldn’t but I am in for the long haul..I don’t pull from those accounts at all..makes it easier to digest the ups and downs..marilyn
You’ve become a daytrader
Better return if you open up a meth lab
RYC: The oil is for salads I toss almost nightly…it is used and refilled about every 3-4 days..and I always cook on the other side of the stove, but if I do use the oven or that side…I move it over out of the way….Yep, yeast, potatoes,butter, honey…oh my god Good, seriously good…marilyn
Thanks for the kind words on WF’s blog. I really appreciate your open and honest opinion. Being I am a bold son of wench; Typos? Where? I webmaster five of my own websites and I e-pub all my own stuff, where exactly is elsewhere? Are you the type of person who will point a finger and not bother to approach and be part of the solution?
Grammatical? I write over a million words a year and am understood perfectly, word wide. I wonder if you bothered to read the disclaimer in front of all of my ebooks or the about dread page on dreadpirate.info. I am willing to bet no…
Being part of the solution is harder than being part of the problem. It will cause you to think more, work harder and expend more energy. But the reward will be far greater than anything you can imagine.
*wink*
Sail on… sail on!!!
Maybe you shouldnt think about the bad stuff, but try to remember and concentrate on the good…and get back to that book of yours…it seemed to bring joy, healing…not heartache.
I currently use a proofer who worked “on the hill” and currently handles all of our DoD release material for DTIC. I never proof my blog, not worth the effort. If I use an entry for one of my ebooks, it is then proofed.
Had hoped you might be able to let me know about some website typos…
Sail on… sail on!!!
sounds to me like you ARE a real winner!
(gotta consider total gains vs losses!)
ryc: because of the recent diagnosis
This is marvelous… an area that scares me silly, and here you are striding through it, taking everything in, losing some, winning some, enjoying the gambler’s instinct that’s obviously been latent for some time! Here’s to you making a half decent yearly income out of your “obsession”
xo
$10 in a pool does not constitute gambling
ryc: just playing w/ ideas… not fully fleshed out
Occasionally, Prudy, I do like to post Xanga blogs with topics that kind of matter, not just pictures of women’s feet from http://www.toewigglers.com. As for me seeing a shrink, it has been a while- QUITE a while- and you are right, it is a difficult fit, especially when the patient is threatening to leave therapy and the shrink faces the horrible prospect of the death of a sacred cash cow. The time commitment of leaving my law office in Newark, New Jersey in the middle of the day, to go to a hospital or clinic in New York that specializes in human sexuality counseling, sounds like a really really awesomely meritorious basis for a request for a “down day” in the middle of a jury trial of a civil case, before one of the Judges of the Superior Court before whom I must appear on a regular basis. Those people might very well be undergoing such counseling themselves, but they don’t like me, my office, or the clients whom I must represent. In fact, the last time I went to a dental appointment I was 15 minutes late, and I had the cleaning, but the retards at the receptionist desk told me that I was too late and the dentists weren’t doing any more xrays or checkups that evening. So I went without. I go without. I have a time consuming commute and a time consuming job, and a file at home with me today, for a case which I might have to start trying tomorrow. And I am not insured for a shrink, and my younger brother managed to get my mother to pay him and his wife money for their shrinks instead of helping pay for my two sons’ tuition at their private school. Finding the right fit, eh. That’s one way of putting it.
Nuff said. Randy
RYC: Not related to headaches…I just have a penchant for shoes that are not necessarily the best for walking around NYC…slick bottoms, narrow (albeit low) heels, etc…and I am also profoundly clumsy…but the dr. determined that my clumsiness actually has nothing to do with my headaches.
Oh, you own Intel? They are a fairly good company with a practical monopoly, but the whole stock option thing really scares me away. Most tech companies abuse stock options, but I think that is because they are just interested in creating a temporarily high stock price rather than running a good business. I heard that Dell might start using AMD chips which would be a huge loss for Intel because right now Dell only sells computers with Intel chips in them.
No, I’m not a broker. I do work in the investment industry but I’m just an administrative worker who loves the stock market. Some day I hope to manage money for other people, but I need to build up a good track record over a long period of time.
losing money makes me physically ill…no stock market for me.
Love the new profile pic.
First, I would like to say that the puppy is getting to me. Oh such a sweetie (currently using the puppy talking voice). I get stupid cooing over dogs, not babies. It is such a good feeling going to bed with some semblance of control. And you probably learned enough to work the market better. Those lessons people can’t learn until they actually do a thing themselves are pricy, but worth it (usually) in my experience. I wish ten thousand times that I could just take a lesson from someone else, but nooooo, I have to do it the hard way in order to really learn it. I am continually impressed as hell that you have taken on the stock market. That is one complicated beastie that continues to frighten me. You can bet that if and when I am forced to deal with it, I will be back here nagging you with questions!
Prudy,
Thanks for your kind comments again. You have such a wonderful community of friends over here who all want to participate on your blog. I am envious! But for those who don’t know me, I try hard at avoiding all of the hype and craziness of investing. Just a quiet, methodical approach that seems to work for me. I don’t think that investing is all about gambling at all. It is about doing one’s homework and then having a disciplined approach to buying and selling equities. Anyhow, that is what I do.
Thanks again for the plug.
Bob