How to Day Trade – It’s not gambling, unless you’re stupid

Kernut the Blond Posted on by

“There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance — that principle is contempt prior to investigation.” (quote attributed to Herbert Spencer)

Whenever I mention Day Trading to someone who hasn’t tried Day Trading, let alone studied it, they immediately call it “gambling”. Sheesh.

There’s no hope for stubbornness and stupidity. Luckily, that is only part of my story, and I got help…

My Day Trading Story – so far

When I decided a year ago to learn how to day trade, I committed to studying courses two-hours a day and paper trading* for six months. Many day trading instructors recommend a minimum of 6-12 months of paper trading – and repetitive success – before moving to real money. Note: I should’ve gone with the 12 months.

*Paper trading is where the brokers give you fake “Monopoly” money in an account so you can practice.

In the beginning, I took several free courses through TD Ameritrade (TDA), I bought access to watch a famous day trader (who I won’t name in this post) trade real time every morning, and watched the free training videos by ZipTrader Charlie (more on him in a moment). I learned to use TDA’s thinkorswim platform for professional traders. I paper-traded every day (before and sometimes after my day job) for six months and then moved to real money. But, wait! There’s more…

Tales From The RV Park: Kid steals golf cart – It does not end well

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It started off as a good day, I was feeling productive at work. I stopped to take a lunch break and a shower.

In the middle of my shower, suddenly I hear *BAMM* at the same time my rig jolts violently.

I uttered an expletive (or two), wrapped myself in a towel and opened the front door just in time to see a little kid trying to speed away (rather poorly) in a golf cart.

I look at the back of my rig and see the corner bumper is smashed in. But, wait! There’s more…

In the Time of The Coronapocalypse

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Life in the time of the worldwide COVID-19 Pandemic, also known as the Coronapocalypse.

(I made up the word “Coronapocalypse” because it is a fitting description of the situation. Feel free to use it.)

Finished Netflix. Now what?

Congratulations! You have finished Netflix!

At the time of this writing, I have been sheltering in place for over six weeks. I am a bit of a germaphobe so I started March 1, a couple weeks before the state shut down. I’m only a so-so prepper, so I got a mask and as much food and water as I could store in my small space, which isn’t much. I had the gloves (an RV tank necessity). I did not horde TP, cleaning products and hand-sanitizer. I already had plenty of cleaning supplies, not that you’d know by looking at my place.

I enjoyed the first three weeks of utter solitude, peace and quite. The world is blissfully still. Traffic went from insanely full of Spring Breakers and people who were now “working from home” but vacationing here, to virtually no traffic at all. I did not miss people –  at first. But, wait! There’s more…

Tanked in Perdido Key and a Covered Bridge in Elberta

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I’m currently at the gulf coast, near the Florida-Alabama border. Yes, near the infamous Florabama. I’ve been there a couple times, but tend to stay away when there are large events and crowds. It’s mostly a massive bar that serves food, and has nightly entertainment. And church on Sundays.

Wait, what? Church in a bar?

Welcome to the south!

This is not the only church in a bar in this area. There are two that I know of.

You must have questions. I know you have questions. I did.

Yes, they server alcohol during the service and many people go grab a drink before taking their seat.

No, the seats are not your traditional church pews, but rather uncomfortable seating with a bar in the same area.

In the case of the Florabama, it’s those uncomfortable plastic folding chairs. The service is large by local standards and held in an open-air tent that covers a large patio area off the bar. I have been to this service twice.

The other, which is a Unity Church that has moved between several bars/restaurants in my scant time here, the seating is whatever the bar/restaurant offers, be it uncomfortable wooden bar stools or worn-out booths. I attended this one on several occasions, but found the atmosphere most distracting. I don’t drink and don’t mind if I’m around it, but it was just weird to be in “church” with the constant noise of bar sounds competing with the sermon.

Funny story about the second one… But, wait! There’s more…

New York part 2: Central Park and The Met

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While taking a bite out of the Big Apple, several bucket list items were checked off: Times Square, eating NY-style pizza in NY, The Top of The Rock, Central Park, and The Met. (If you missed it, the first post on my trip to New York is here.)

Sculpture in Times Square.

Sculpture in Times Square. This is a depiction of the famous 1932 photo “Lunch atop a Skyscraper”, which chronicled a moment in time of the steelworkers eating lunch high above the ground.

 

It was a decent walk from Times Square to Central Park. Central Park was not at all what I expected. I’m not sure what I expected (likely based on scenes from TV shows), but it was huge, very pretty, and full of fellow tourists, and excellent street performers, occasionally interspersed with sellers of maps and overpriced filtered bottled water.

I wound my way through Central Park to The Met. The Met was incredible! It, too, was huge. I’m still not sure I made it to every room.

All in all, I walked several miles through NYC from the hotel in Times Square, to Central Park, to and through The Met, and then back.

In an effort to keep this post short, we will now have two short slide shows… But, wait! There’s more…

Taking a bite out of The Big Apple

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My first time as a tourist in The Big Apple was amazing: Times Square, NY-style pizza, Top of The Rock, Central Park, and The Met! It was another business trip on which I followed Jeff but, but unlike Minnesota, it was warm and we had a blast! (In case anyone is wondering or even paying attention to my dear neglected blog, I’m still behind on my posts, so this one was just over two years ago, a little over a year before Jeff passed. Currently, I’m still enjoying the FL/AL gulf coast for the winter.)

We stayed in a hotel on Times Square – and it was there that I finally understood why they call it “the city that never sleeps”. No matter the time of day or night I looked out the high-rise window, the bright lights illuminated throngs of people mingling around the Square: people walking to and from some unknown location, street performers, people sitting on concrete planter walls or leaning against building walls, city maintenance workers and street cleaners. One thing I expected to see but did not was hookers and drug dealers. (Clearly, I watch too much TV.)

Times Square selfie

Times Square selfie

Many Bucket List items were crossed off on this trip, not the least of which was to have NY-style pizza in New York. I took the proverbial (and literal) bite out of the Big Apple… But, wait! There’s more…

It snowed in Minnesota, dontcha know.

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While I have posted since this trip to the frozen tundra, I am more than a bit behind in posting some trips in chronological order. In all honesty, it was about two years ago I went to St Paul and I have about two years of sightseeing posts to catch up on. So, without further ado…


It was a crisp, cold day in St. Paul, Minnesota, the kind where the air is so clear that you can see for miles. And there was nothing to do – all. day. long. It was f’n cold out, too cold to go outside for long. And that was almost the only notable part of the trip.

I had tagged along on a business trip of Jeff’s, some big annual chicken convention. Er, I should say “poultry” convention if I want to be fancy about it. But I don’t. It was a chicken convention. I had hoped some of his coworker’s wives would come, but none of them were as dumb interested in attending the chicken convention as I was. Apparently, they had been to one before. One is enough.

We were only there for three days, and I can amuse myself just about anywhere. Day one consisted of eight hours of sitting in the hotel room. No, really. I. didn’t. leave. the. room. once. in eight hours. Just working on my computer, I spent the day in blissful peace and uninterrupted quiet, except for the TV and the occasional knock on the door from room service.

You may be wondering why I didn’t go to the big mall. The Mall of the Americas, kind of on my bucket list, was too far away by cab ride to make it worth the trip. I didn’t feel like going by cab and by myself just to see a mall. In the snow.

However, the highlight of the trip was a brisk – and chilly – walk around the neighborhood. Those of you who’ve followed this blog, know how much I love ornate churches. Oddly, I’m not religious. I admire the churches for the amazing works of art which they are. Art inside of art inside of art. That, and they all have a wonderful, peaceful energy about them.

Today, I present the Cathedral of St. Paul: 43,500 square feet of gilded opulence. And some bunny foot prints. Everyone say it with me: SLIDESHOW! But, wait! There’s more…

Amazon Has Hookers and Drugs For Sale. I am not making this up.

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I couldn’t make this up if I tried. Amazon has hookers and drugs for sale!

No lie. AMAZON the online bookstore/everything store – has hookers and drugs listed for sale. And this post is not safe for work because of nudity and pictures of drug use – Thanks for that, Amazon. Now people will have to wait until they get home to read this.

With Father’s Day approaching, I have been searching for a gift for my dad. He isn’t easy to buy for because he buys himself most anything he wants that’s anywhere near the price-range I can afford. However, as you will undoubtedly wonder as you read the rest of this article, I was not planning to get him a hooker or drugs. He is happily married and doesn’t even like prescription drugs, let alone illegal drugs.

So on Amazon.com, I searched for “military equipment and accessories”. He is an avid gun collector, occasional hunter, and lover of all things tactical. (I am grateful he taught me to shoot when I was a young girl.) After an already lengthy search, I was suddenly hopeful that this category would end my long and previously fruitless search.

Let me first explain how I sorted the results: I first sorted by “lowest to highest price”. A bunch crap for one penny came up – clearly those common “click bait ads” made to lure you in to clicking on a product that is actually much more.

So then I sorted by “highest to lowest price” figuring I’d quickly scroll to a suitable price range. And this is what I got… But, wait! There’s more…

In the Land of the Vampires

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Three things you may or may not know about NOLA (that’s “New Orleans, Louisiana,” for those of you who don’t get out much) and vampires:

New Orleans is purportedly the home to 50 real vampires, according to a study by Louisiana State University doctoral candidate John Edgar Browning.

The vampires have their own association, New Orleans Vampire Association (NOVA).

There’s a New Orleans Vampire Tour. Naturally.

Not for lack of trying, I didn’t see any vampires while I was there – at least that I know of. My friend and I toured Lafayette Cemetery (which was likely FULL of vampires), the French Quarter (any vampires were hiding from the daylight or well disguised), and the Basilica (where there were no vampires, probably).

The French Quarter…

When in Rome NOLA, do as the locals do (and probably every tourist within 100 miles). This was my first time in NOLA so our first stop was the famous Cafe Du Monde for benigets and coffee, of course. Fortified with sugar and caffeine, we were ready to do NOLA take on vampires, and ride in a pimp-driven carriage.

Joan of Arc, Maid of New Orleans

Joan of Arc, Maid of New Orleans. The shiny gold statue greets you on Decatur Street as you enter the French Quarter.

But, wait! There’s more…

My best friend died today.

Kernut the Blond Posted on by

(I started writing this post a few months ago. It has been the hardest post I’ve ever written. Certainly not my best work, but definitely the hardest message to articulate.)

Time stopped for me today.

Jeff, my best friend, my love, my partner in crime passed away. That one person who cared about the minutiae of my day isn’t here anymore.

And time has stopped for me.

You all know him, to one degree or another. He was a “background extra” in many of the photos on this blog. He was shy and said he didn’t want to appear in photos. But he secretly enjoyed it and later came to face the camera head-on putting aside any lingering self-consciousness. He was also the occasional subject of posts: some about our travels, some about his support, and some briefly mentioning our highs and lows or the struggles of alcoholism.

Jeff had the bggest heart of anyone I’ve ever known.

I fell in love with that big heart over six years ago. We But, wait! There’s more…