It was another lackluster day as the Dow gained 28 points on average volume. Advance/declines were negative. It seems as if the summer doldrums are upon us. It's been a sideways affair for a while now. No the best of trading times to be sure. I suppose the best strategy here would be to stay on the sidelines. Expiration week coming up and loads of data to boot. Perhaps we'll get some movement then. I'm thinking of doing something next week. We'll see. Gold took another hit today as the dollar rallied. The precious metal was down $20. The XAU fell 4 1/2. ABX was off 2/3 while GG and NEM each dropped more than a buck. Volume was light. I might try the gold shares next week as we are oversold and inflation news will be coming out. The trouble is that if inflation is higher than expected it could support the dollar and negate the positive influence on gold. It's just a guess. I'll have to mull things over the weekend. Mentally I'm doing OK. Yesterdays loss is history and it is back to the drawing board. I think we'll be heading higher on Monday but after that , who knows? I'll be checking things over the weekend. The risk will be in focus more so next week since it is the expiration. But perhaps I can find something to take advantage of. It's Friday afternoon and time for a rest.