Back to the downside today as the Dow fell 138 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were about 4 to 1 negative.  Volatility here and that usually means a change in the underlying direction.  I would guess now that a top is being put in or is already in for the stock indices.  The summation index is back to heading lower.  Seasonality dictates that the rally from November is coming to an end.  We could be in a sideways environment for a while but the uptrend stops here in my opinion.  I try to listen to the indexes.  We'll let the market tell us what to expect.  My interpretations are sometimes wrong though.  GE was off 1/3 and the volume was good.  More volume to the downside here which mirrors the overall market.  Earnings on Friday, should be a mover.  Gold lost about $5 on the futures today but then fell more in the aftermarket.  The US dollar was very strong today.  The XAU continues to get crushed, off 5 2/3.  ABX fell 1 1/4, GG off 1/2 and NEM dropped 1 3/8.  Volume was heavy and once again extremely heavy in ABX.  My order was filled for the October ABX calls.  I am expecting a decent snap back rally in the gold shares eventually.  The question is from exactly what levels?  We are still in a free fall for the gold shares.  Gold itself is trying to put the brakes on here but I believe that the precious metal will be headed lower going forward as well.  Then why make the trade?  If you take a look at the huge drops in ABX from the past, there is always a big bounce from the very oversold levels.  We are about as oversold as you can get there.  There are no guarantees in the game but I think the odds are with this particular trade to be successful.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Plenty for the stock indexes to digest here with earnings and the recent events.  I'm sticking with my thesis that the rally is done for now.  A look at the daily charts shows a rollover for some and the potential of rollovers for others.  It is a time to be cautious regrading the stock market at this time.  Gold has broken down with the rest of the commodity markets.  It probably has further to go on the downside.  I do expect a relief rally at some point.  The ultimate downside for gold in my opinion is $1200 at the long term up trend line.  We'll keep an eye on the overseas action tonight and head on to Thursday.