The Dow was up another 23 points today on light volume. Advance/declines were positive. I got stopped out of the SPX puts for a 35% or so loss. Not a lot of money in that trade but a loser none the less. I still feel a decline is imminent so I bought some OEX puts near the close. I changed my order and ended up paying more than I should have. Such is the frustration when things just aren't going well. Perhaps I should have just waited until Monday. Perhaps I should move to the sidelines as I have suggested considering how poorly I've been trading lately. At any rate we'll see how it goes next week. Gold continued higher, up another $6 today. The XAU managed only a quarter point gain. The volume was heavy in the gold shares again but the price action says it's time for a rest. Time will tell. Mentally I'm frustrated. I need to regroup over the weekend and go from there. The battle is always with oneself. I've been losing at that lately. There isn't any getting away from that. The market is a difficult game in itself, you don't really want to make it any tougher. I'll try and relax over the weekend but it won't be easy...