Been so long since I've had the chance to blog freely.

I'll start with the financial crisis that is brewing first. Namely, how everyone seems to be losing money over stocks and other assorted financial instruments.

I can think of like 101 reasons why you should not dabble in the stock market like a speculator. But I guess there are way too many people who believe otherwise.

Maybe I can start to list them out. But before that, I noticed something during the past couple of days.

Have you noticed how people walk? Some people walk steadily at a constant speed. They are calm, composed but seem to be ready to take on anything. Some people drag their feet, as if they would rather not be walking at all. Some people walk too fast, in a rush, as if it is their body who is bringing the legs to their destination.

I think I'm the last one. But of course, the context counts. Someone walking slowly in Orchard is alot more justified than someone walking slowly on the way to work. But I guess the way someone walks, just like how someone writes or talks, can reveal alot about that person's attitude towards life. As for me, walking is a chore. Commuting or travelling from place to place is just a waste of time; if only we didn't have to travel. And there is only so many things we can do while on the way.

Oh well

My baobei's birthday is coming up. I don't want to say how old she is this year, because she's officially past the age whereby she should let people know how old she is. But then again, if you really want to know you can always check my last year's entry on her birthday to figure out.

I've planned a few activities for her, not quite as much because of our time constraints and stuff, but still enough to hope that she'll be happy. She better be, if not then we aren't going to Bangkok. She can treat the Bangkok trip as part of her birthday package.

We are going to The Line for a buffet dinner, going somewhere secret tomorow, and bought her a nice red wallet and bag. She's gonna get flowers, and she knows that, but another gift was not able to be done, so its going to be filed in my secret surprise ideas for the next occasion.

So stay tuned for the story after we've done everything. Took the day off to celebrate it with her.

Ok, reasons why not to speculate in the stock market.

1. you can't beat the fund managers
2. the best traders get paid to trade with other people's money
3. your instincts alone don't cut it; its as good as gambling
4. talking about stock markets makes you sound savvy, but doesn't really enrich you
5. the really good traders quit their day job
6. when you are getting rich, so is most of the people around you. so that doesn't make you that much richer relative to everyone else
7. stock markets are so volatile that they are the first things to go down
8. you'll never know everything there is to know about a stock; someone out there knows more
9. when all you can do is to buy and hope it goes the right way, its gambling
10. how much time do you spend reseaching a stock before buying it? I bet you spend more time researching the purchase of a handphone or laptop

I could go on, I guess. And there'll be plenty of people who would just shake their head and disagree with me. And why not? People will always defend something that they know works for them, has made them money in the past. Its just that people downplay the losses they make, but remember the gains that they made.

Like I always said, you get rich either by doing something better than everyone else, or doing something different from everyone else. Either you are really good at predicting market trends, in which you'll be invited to manage a fund shortly, or you are a contrarian trader, or you do something different.

Give me businesses anyday. I'll rather invest in something which I have alot more control over.

Anyhow, lemme stop here and continue again another time, another place.