Character

"Character is what you do when no one is looking"
- Jackson Browne

I don't know who Mr. Browne is but I must agree. I'm a strong proponent of doing some things "just because" sometimes. For example, when I was a child I would never walk down the hallways of the apartment building, that didn't make sense to me. Why walk when you can run? So I ran unless someone was watching, you know, because I didn't want Them to know I was crazy.

A couple others: I like to hold doors for people and I like to hand out fashion complements (although the value of which, coming from me, is subjective). I don't have to do these things and in all reality I'm not going to get anything in return; I do them just because.

This is relevant because it applies directly to success. Reading annual reports, building and playing with financial and statistical models, reading and thinking about financial information... you get the idea. I think that if you can put these into your character through desire and effort, you have a much higher probability of getting whatever it is that you want. Hell, rumour has it, if you do it well enough you'll wind up with more than you wanted.

Fraud

You know why Bernie Madoff looks like he doesn't have a care in the world? Because he doesn't. If he did he would have escaped to a suitable hiding spot in the world and found a new plethora of wives long before he was discovered.

My point: Madoff is just one of the guys who got caught. There is more of these shenanigans going on presently and many of them will get away with it free and clear.

Revamp

Alright I'm tired of being in the hole. It's time to step it up.

I found my stocks that are going to do it for me. NRG, HLF, ATVI. I could tell you how they all scream CANSLIM. I could tell you that I like just plain like these companies. You're not going to buy some third tier blogger's stock picks anyway.

I'm going to go peddle on the street, scrounge up some change, and buy and hold baby. Buy and hold.

Bite me.

Relapse

Man I feel like Eminem coming back to this blog it's been so long.

Although I only have one message: Buy Shit. I mean come on, I was buying these crappy equities in Jan 2008, do you really think I wouldn't be buying now? See, if you're consistently crazy, sometimes you overlap with the sane investors. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

Buy whatever you want, well not inverse ETFs, but you get the drift. Just do something, you can't afford to sit there and watch everyone else make a killing. Maybe your wallet can but your pride can't. I'm going to start putting these puppies on credit cards pretty soon.

I should disclose I am a losing investor and have not broken even since I started investing in 2008. Pft, historical returns.

May Updates

I had to write exams and then of course party afterward so I haven't really had time to learn anything interesting about Mr. Market.

Looks like a shit load of what I said in my last post came true. Even that drilling company I mentioned is up 90%. At least now I know what some good bullish signs to look for on a CANSLIM stock. eg. Intelligent analyst making good points, fund managers saying they own it and would buy it, price depressed but looking like it might technically break out.

I haven't changed any positions myself, lumber and steel canadian small caps, GDL and SML. Still in BAC, god bless america, eh. I'm looking for some more canadian value plays, possibly in the energy sector if the right stock comes around. Still not convinced we won't retest the lows for no good reason other than late bad news digestion.

I've also got to bust my ass for the CFA level 1 exam while starting my ivnestment research internship. Damn industry barriers.