First Week Of FY 2008

A good start to the new year. Although the market fell slightly, my portfolio was up a few k. Nice. Today looks like it is even better but it is still morning, too early to tell. My resolution for the new fin yr is to remind myself of some important rules I should take note.

******** Trading Is Simply A Nos Game ******** Nobody Rings A Bell At The Top ******** It's Ok To Take Profit Too Soon ******** You Never Lose Taking A Profit ******** Zig When The Lemmings Zag ******** When In Doubt Get Out/Hedge ********

*M*
The share market have had a stellar 2007, following 3 bullish yrs. This yr may see new highs but you should be cautious at all times and take proper measures to be not overly exposed.


On a separate note, AUD has hit 86c, the highest we have been in a long time. Great for a holiday:D

Yippee!! End of FY 2007

I can't wait for the start of the new financial yr. FY 2007 was awesome!! I started a new investing strategy back in Sept 2006 and my portfolio has grown tenfold. I attribute the success to getting in at the right moment when the market was just starting to creep up from May's correction and my current mental mindset.

The market had a minor pullback and is now in consolidation mode. July, if nothing major happens to the world indices, Oz should see a nice rebound to new highs after the recent June tax loss selling.

Next week, I will be taking stock of all my current positions and prolly start a new short term shorting strategy and at the same time hedging the longs. I may start a trading journal.

I am so looking forward to July.


*If you can't see the bright side of life, polish the dull side*

First Kiss

So, it's your first kiss and several questions might come to mind:

Is it the right time?

Is anyone watching?

Does your partner even want to?

Is your breath fresh?

And... Should you use some tongue?

Then you lean in and just go for it.....!!!

At Two Minds

We have a block of land for about 2 yrs now which we plan to build a nice home and stay put. That was around the time we shifted to our current property that I'd designed according feng shui principles and got a project builder to build for us. It wasn't an easy job to find a good house plan which was appropriate for improvisation to fit in with feng shui. That quest was finally completed and we are now living comfortably in this cosy home.

Our intention was to sell this house and move to the new abode once the current home was completed. 2 yrs on and I haven't even started scouting for a nice plan for this new property. Atm, I can't decide if we should build again so we can get rid of the remaining non tax deductible debt(financing for the land) and get more properties which will provide tax relief for C and me via depreciation and investment loans. Or just stay and continue paying the non deductible loan interest and fund investments with current equity.

C is fine either way. He is happily cruising along, earning, while I handle the investing.

To help me decide if we should build a new ppor , we will be visiting display homes in the coming weeks to see if I can find suitable home designs that I can use for our SW facing land.

Or perhaps I should convince C to move to this instead. It will save the headache of redrafting a house plan and I can do a standard design which will accommodate several directional facings. :P









On second thoughts, nah... with water all around, that ain't too good!! :P



*Enthusiasm holds on to our dreams. Persistence makes of the them.*

Token of love

Last week, C handed me the eggs and milk I instructed him to grab on the way home from work. As I took the bag from him and he said," I have a little something for you. My reaction was, oh no, not fattening junk food? He said, it's ok..this is special...for you with love.... Curious, I fished out a blue packet of Baci chocs. I have seen their tv ads long time ago but never paid much attention. Yummy....but what about my diet? I protested. Don't worry, just feel the love when you eat them, C told me.

To get my fix, I ration 1 a day or maybe 2 :P I took one today and was taking several tiny bites enjoying the luscious taste of dark chocolate and hazelnut when a translucent slip of paper fell onto my desk. I held it closer and saw the love quote, "Grow old with me, the best is yet to come". Bummer... I have unwittingly thrown away all the previous love notes :( I bet C doesn't even know about the writings inside the silvery wrapper or else he would have mentioned it.

This morning I secretly put one with his lunch. The love is reciprocated..... gonna ask him how he felt when he chomped on his Baci. :D



*Two Wolves*

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.

He said, "My son, the battle is between two "wolves" inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

Life's Choices

Time and again, I like to reflect on the decisions and choices I've made over the years which have brought me here right to this very moment. Having an enduring loving relationship, good health and financial well being. Abundance in all aspects of our lives. What more can one ask for?

Sometimes though when I am in a fun mood, I wish I am in wonderland and have this magical book which would show me where I am now had I've taken a different path in life. I suppose I have watched too many movies.:)

As 'fate' would have it(if I still believe in fate) I chose to go out that very day at the urging of a friend many moons ago and was introduced to C by him when we met C at a shopping complex. That turned out to be the ultimate decision of my life. If I had stayed home, I would never have known C and everything would be entirely different.

Would I be as free and as happy? Would I be married to someone else? If so, would I be coerced into having kids when I ain't ready and be stuck in the doldrums? :P Or would I have a filthy rich hubby and still be content in my marriage? I think the odds to that would be 9999:1.:D Intriguing! Call it fate or destiny or coincidence ,whatever you want.

My current belief system has changed. I no longer believe our lives were mapped out the moment we were born. What comes into your life, you unconsciously attract it. I now know I can create my reality however I want it to be. Although my money consciousness is up high on the list, I wouldn't swap C for all the money in the world. I have changed a lot over the yrs but one thing still remains the same. A happy satisfying relationship ranks well in front. A hubby who doesn't restrict my pursuits and interests , offer me utmost understanding and support, handle my 'tantrums' and don't mind my quirks. :D That's my C. The green is very lush and green at this side, thanks. :)

“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”-Carl Jung

I can only remember vividly 2 impt things my granddad ever said to me. We were not close to him as kids and he passed on when I was in my teens. A pity he didn't live longer so I can pick his brain on wealth accumulation. What I have learned, are all from books and I am grateful I was an avid reader of all things financial in my 20s.

My grandfather was a secluded man whose only real concern was accumulating a fortune, never lived life, stayed miserly til the day he died and left his millions only to his male off springs(well, what'd you expect a financial illiterate do with an inheritance? Squander it, that's for sure). In my opinion, any one who leaves their millions to their kids without teaching them the finer points of wealth management is plain stupid and I have no respect for those who only consider males their children.

Ok, back to what grandpa said. 'Without money, love will fly out the window". I suspect he told me this cos he was informed I had hooked up with C.

Now being an adult myself, I do feel this is one common sense advice you give to young ppl. Parents naturally want the best for their children. They want you to pick the right partner, the one who can offer you the best and give you a good life. Well, my old fashion parents thought the first real bf you have, you'd wed him. To be honest, I truly detested them for opposing my relationship with C then . Now, I am somehow grateful cos I don't know if I would have stuck to C and ended up being his wife and having my life now the way I want it to be, if not for their strong opposition.

I was around 17 , just started seeing C and rebellious. And yeah, do you think I would listen to grandpa? I'd fully witnessed how unhappy my aunt(god mom) was, being married to a man of money and power but had to endure infidelity and mental abuse through out her married life. I told myself that I didn't want a mega rich hubby. I can imagine all the gold digging sluts shaking their head now..tsk tsk.

Although C may be the 'bad boy'(not at all the studious type, spiky tinted hair....), I saw potential in him. I liked his initiative and knew we could make something out of our future if he ended up being my life partner. One more thing..hehe....C didn't need grooming tips back those days. Being the fashionable M during my younger days, nerdy guys who didn't know how to dress properly turned me off. Call me superficial ,eh!

I realise now I'd shaped my current reality by the decisions I made over the yrs.

The other thing my grandpa said when I asked how to become rich like him. I was maybe 15 at the time. He said, making the first million is the hardest, mentioning something about making 1$ into 2$ and into $4 etc. This bit is a fuzzy. I don't think he was stressing on the importance of compounding, though. Making the rest is easier, he told me.

And don't I agree, it took us too long in my book. If I had been more goal oriented and less complacent we'd have gotten here faster. Nevertheless, Grandpa, if you are alive now, I will now say to you, "we have reached the first milestone". I don't care if you don't give a f**k since I am only the disregardable granddaughter but I'd love to see your reaction all the same.

Life decisions that people

have to make are never simple.
The importance of the initial decision

should always be examined over the long run.
Memories made and cherished are
sure to be tempered along the way.
Consider the following two choices...

Should I get a Dog ...

..or have children?

*

Your children are not your children; they are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself...

They come through you but not from you, And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts. For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls, for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.- K Gibran

Culinary delights?

A chilly wintry morn'... got up earlier than usual today as my C has to attend an early meeting. Being the 'good wife' I am :P, prepared his lunch...today's treat is my home cooked 'kolo mee' without lard that is but still delicious with the fried garlic I used with the olive oil...

I had a bowl of hot creamy pumpkin soup to warm up and thought I better post an update here before I get immersed in the tedious job of preparing our end of the yr taxes. Market is up today albeit a bit dull. Nothing that requires my attention for now.

Last nite, we brought my parents and my aunt( god ma)who is visiting, to dinner at Grand Palace restaurant, Perth. My aunt was like a second mom to me when I was a kid and also during my teen yrs. It's been a while since we last saw her. She has 2 grand kids now so I guess she is not as lonely. When I was going thru' teen conflicts with me parents, her place was where I seeked refuge and I will always be grateful to her for being there.

The dishes we ordered were quite good. King prawns fried in salted egg yolk batter, tender chili szechuan chicken, pork with rosemary n black pepper and Buddha vegetables- an assortment of vegs wrapped in dried bean curd skin. We dug in when the dishes arrived and only when we almost finished, C reminded me I should have taken some pics. Ah well, I was going to test my new cam's macro shots feature by taking pics of the dishes and see whether it needs tweaking for indoor pics since I have read that we need to do some adjustments for low light situations. Anyway, it's fine as I should be able to find some test subjects at home.

I like seafood, especially prawns and whenever we order prawns in salted egg, I usually have napkins on hand to remove much of the oil. Love the taste but hate the oil. Likewise for snow crab cooked the same way. Absolutely yummy ... So much for my diet. Hmm...loves good tasty food too much....



*Eat Well, Stay Fit, Die Anyway*

What a week!

What a bumpy ride, the past week's been. China sneezed again. Dow held its ground but eventually midweek saw it subsided due to interest rate hike concerns. Our market followed suit and ended down around 180 pts from the week's high. I have some hedging in place but should have added on more when some of my stocks were powering to their highs as I have been expecting a pullback for weeks now.
Anyway,I am not too fazed as I expect to have the opportunity to do it when the market resumes trading this week. I am actually hoping for a correction, a mid term slack bringing the stocks back to a better entry level would be nice and will definitely be a great start for financial yr 2008.

Gold retreated as expected. Will consider an entry if it rebounds ok. Thursday, went long a small position in USD/CHF. Entered at 1.2235. At time of writing, USD is trading 1.2366.

In the process of setting up a gearing facility for C for the purpose of prepaying interest for fin yr 2007 to reduce his tax liability for this yr and looking to acquire some good stocks for a longer term portfolio. Market correction plzzzz....

Also placed an order for a new digital cam . Did some thorough research and chose to get the new Sony ultra compact with 5x movie zoom mode instead of a Canon. Has its pros and cons but most sites gave ok reviews with cnet giving it one of its better ratings. Btw, I haven't even seen an actual one in the shops, just ordered it solely based on the sites' & customers' reviews. I hope the design and size won't pose a prob for us taking good snaps. It's small and cool and can easily live inside my handbag and light enough to carry around. When on hols, this tiny T100 can conveniently to be slipped in C's pocket. I am just going be a hobbyist photographer not a pro so I don't need a dslr which is too bulky. Contemplated whether I should wait to get one in Kl as price will surely be few hundred rm cheaper but decided I don't wanna wait so long for it. It currently retails here for aud $749. I shopped around and found a good deal.

Greed is good-Gordon Gekko :P