Back to the downside with a vengeance, as European worries spread to the US markets once again. The Dow fell 420 points on heavy volume. The declines swamped the advances by 20 to 1. Obviously the OEX puts were the way to go yesterday. We'll see how we get through option expiration Friday and go from there. It feels like we're ready to fall apart again but we'll have to wait for tomorrow. Any attempt at trying to decide which direction the market goes from here would be even more of a guessing game than usual. GE gapped lower and lost 3/4 on heavy volume. I am still looking at the January calls there but I'm in no rush to purchase. Gold was the safe haven play once again, up about $30 on the futures to a new all time high. The US dollar moved higher in the flight to safety as well. However the XAU followed the stock indices lower by 6 points. ABX down 1/2, GG lost 1 1/4 and NEM fell 5/8. Volume picked up to the downside and that isn't bullish. My ABX September calls are still in the black as the volatility premium got put back into the options with todays action. I'd certainly like to see some upside tomorrow here to close out the week but the way things are going these days who knows? 4 weeks to go here though. Mentally I'm still feeling tired, not sleeping good this week. The market is back in manic mode. No telling how long this will last. There are no quick or easy solutions to what the markets are focusing on. The best plan of attack will be to wait for overbought and oversold conditions and go from there. Staying on the sidelines won't lose you any money but it won't make you any either. Let's see how we get through Fridays expiration and take it from there.