A one day reversal to the downside to begin the week as we started off briefly to the upside and then turned around and finished with a loss of 78 points.  The advance/declines were negative and the volume was pretty good to end the month of November.  The economic data out today was a bit weaker than expected.  The summation index is still moving up.  I don't think that today is the beginning of some type of extended down trend.  I do believe that things will turn around and we'll close out the week higher.  But I could be wrong.  On the S&P 500 daily chart it still looks like a sideways congestion to me.  GE was off 3/8 and the volume was heavy.  Perhaps GE is telling us to expect lower prices in the near term.  The short term technical indicators here have rolled over.  I'm looking at the January calls here but will probably wait for some more downside.  Gold was up $9 on the futures and the US dollar was a bit higher.  The XAU was up 1 1/4, while GDX rose 1/3.  Volume was light.  Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired, not exactly feeling 100%.  Weakness to start the week in the major stock indices.  The TRAN once again had a bad day and that's a negative.  Most of the major averages are in short term overbought territory.  Perhaps my take on things is wrong but I expect a bullish outcome going forward.  To me the worst case scenario would be for the S&P 500 to make it back to its uptrend line at 2065.  That is also the level of the 200 day moving average.  But my own work points to strength by the end of the week.  We've got the ECB and Yellen speaking on Thursday.  Friday brings the employment report.  So I will at least hold onto my SPY December calls until then.  They are still in the black but lost some ground today.  Perhaps we'll see some beginning of the month money flows into stocks tomorrow.  We'll watch the foreign markets tonight as usual. 

Quiet trading in a shortened session as the Dow lost 15 points on extremely light volume.  The advance/declines were positive and the summation index is moving higher.  My SPY December calls are still in the black.  GE was flat on the day and the volume was light.  Gold fell $14 on the futures and the US dollar was higher.  The XAU lost a point and GDX fell 1/4.  Volume was light.  No love for gold remains the story here.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  We've been trending sideways for over a week in the major averages.  We are also more overbought than oversold on the technical indicators.  Some decline early next week would not be a surprise.  I'm still a believer in higher prices before the December expiration.  At least 2120 on the S&P 500 in my opinion.  So we'll see.  It's late on a Friday during the holiday weekend.  A break before the open on Monday is in order.

Pre-holiday trading was expected as the Dow was up a point on light volume.  The advance/declines were positive.  The summation index is moving higher.  Not much movement and nothing to really report.  Expect the same on Friday unless there is another terrorist attack.  GE was off 1/3 and the volume was lighter than it has been.  Gold fell a few bucks on the futures as the US dollar was a bit higher.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional losses on very light volume.  With all the world turmoil it certainly isn't bullish to see gold languish.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  The game plan remains to hold on to the SPY December calls until we get to an overbought reading on multiple indicators.  This could happen next week or we could simply roll over as well.  The major stock indexes are closer to overbought than to oversold at the moment.  With the exception of the TRAN which is weaker right now.  That isn't a positive sign.  Sideways on the S&P 500 would be acceptable in the near term.  For now let's enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday and long weekend.

A one day reversal to the upside as the Dow opened lower and finished higher.  The most watched index ended the session with a gain of 19 points on good volume.  We were off over 100 points early on.  I don't know the cause of todays volatility and certainly did not expect it.  The summation index is trying to move higher but has not picked up any steam.  I really think it will be slow for the rest of the week, with a day off for Thanksgiving and a shortened Friday trading day.  GE was up a few cents and the volume remains very heavy.  Plenty of interest here.  Gold was up a buck or so on the futures as the US dollar was lower.  The XAU was up 1 3/4, while GDX gained 1/2.  Volume was average.  Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired as my usual schedule was thrown off today due to early meetings.  I'm still in the bullish camp here and sideways wouldn't be a bad thing as well.  I expect that we will move higher in the beginning of December.  The short term technicals for the major indices tired to roll over today but turned back around.  Perhaps we'll see some holiday light volume rise in the next couple of days.  That's a guess as usual.  Not much else to report.  The foreign markets were mixed last night with most of Europe lower.  We'll see what happens tonight.

Some selling to start off the holiday week as the Dow fell 31 points on OK volume.  The advance/declines were barely positive.  Starting to work off the short term overbought condition is my interpretation of todays trading.  The summation index is trying to turn back up.  It really should be a lackluster week in the market and today exemplifies that.  GE lost a few cents and the volume remains extremely heavy.  Waiting to get some calls here.  Gold was off $8 on the futures as the US dollar was a bit higher.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional losses on very light volume.  I don't expect much this week for the precious metals either.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  This should be a week to take a breather.  Not much should happen in the markets and it would be a surprise if something did.  My SPY December calls lost some of the profit today and that is to be expected near term as we pull back a bit.  I'd still like to hold this trade until the beginning of December at least.  Some of the medium term indicators are not close to the overbought level.  When most of them get there, it will then be time to end this trade.  Patience for now with this one.  We'll keep an eye on the overnight action or lack of it and see what happens tomorrow.

Higher again to close out the week as the Dow gained 91 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were positive.  The summation index is still trying to turn around.  Getting short term overbought by some indications.  It was a good week for the bulls.  Next week should be lightly traded with the Thanksgiving holiday looming.  It turns out that if I would have held on to the SPY November calls I actually could have sold them today for a small profit.  Of course it doesn't matter after they have already been sold.  I probably should have held them a bit longer but the risk increases as the expiration draws nearer.  In general the short term trades are not my strength.  The SPY December calls that I have are still in the black.  GE continues to shine as it gained over 1/3 on very heavy volume.  Money has really come into this stock over the past month.  I'm still looking for it to get oversold at some point and that would be the time to buy some calls.  Gold was off a bit on the futures today as the US dollar reversed yesterdays losses.  The XAU fell 1 3/4, while GDX dropped 1/2.  Volume was light.  No trades here for now.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  It was good to see the market come back this week despite the turmoil around the world.  I'm still a believer in higher prices going forward.  We are close to new all time highs in the S&P 500, as a repeat of this week would get us there.  Not that I think that will happen.  Another plus in my mind is the fact that the McClellan oscillator isn't in positive territory yet.  If and when that occurs will be leading us to higher prices.  The strength in GE is another plus if it is a precursor for the overall market as it often is.  Some of the weekly technical indicators for the major stock indices are getting overbought.  However they could stay that way as often happens in up trends.  But as always the market will go where it wants.  I'll be checking the charts over the weekend but the game plan is to hold onto the SPY December calls for a few weeks.  For now it's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

A day of just hanging around as the Dow 4 points on light volume.  The advance/declines were barely positive.  The summation index is still heading lower but it looks like it is trying to turn around.  Todays economic data was in line with most estimates.  We've got expiration tomorrow and then a holiday week coming up.  The major index technical indicators are mid-range.  I'm still holding the SPY December calls and they still show a profit.  GE was off about 1/4 and the volume is heavy but not what it's been.  I'd like to get the January calls here at some point.  Gold was up $12 on the futures as the US dollar was off over 1/2 a point.  The XAU rose a point and GDX gained 1/2.  Volume was pretty light though.  I really don't see an big rally for gold here, given the fundamental back drop.  Low volume means not interest in my book.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  We will close out the week tomorrow and it has been a good one for the bulls.  Considering the drop in the previous week, we've made quite a comeback so far.  I think it bodes well going forward unless there's a huge drop tomorrow.  Next week should be slow with option premium erosion the main catalyst.  After that it will still be a Fed waiting game for the meeting in December.  The short term technical indicators still have room to head higher.  For the medium term, the weekly candlestick chart for the S&P 500 should have a bullish look to it depending on tomorrow.  I still think that the S&P 500 will reach new all time highs before the end of the year.  Preferably before the December expiration.  Most of the foreign stock markets were higher last night and that is a positive as well.  We'll watch expiration Friday tomorrow and see what happens.

Quite a ride to the upside today as the Dow gained 247 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were 3 to 1 positive.  Todays action could get the summation index to stop going down.  The Fed minutes were viewed as positive.  I'm back to thinking that we will set new all time highs before the end of the year.  My SPY December calls are solidly in the black.  Of course if I would have held onto the SPY November calls instead of selling them yesterday, I could have cut the loss there even more.  But I did not want to risk the whole trade getting wiped out.  My entry timing was off there as well.  Looking back, buying index calls on the weakness early Monday morning would have worked out rather well.  We aren't short term overbought yet and have just broken through the near term downtrend line in the S&P 500.  GE was up over 1/8 but the volume pulled back.  The volume is still very heavy just not the extreme levels we have seen in the past few days.  Gold didn't do much in the futures market today and neither did the US dollar.  The XAU rose 1 7/8, while GDX was up 3/8.  Volume was light.  Most likely just following the overall market higher for the precious metals today.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  We are strongly coming off of the recent oversold reading for the major stock indices.  I'm viewing that as a positive.  I'll probably hold onto the SPY December call trade for a while.  Plenty of time to go here.  However that doesn't mean that the market will be going straight up as it did off of the late September lows.  2 days left before we hit a holiday week.  Perhaps things will continue to run up into Fridays close but I am not completely certain of that.  The VIX did reach the 20 level and has now turned back down.  That should be a positive for the bulls.  The technical indicators on the major indexes have turned back to the upside and still have room to run.  So things are looking good for the call side at the moment.  We'll keep an eye on the overseas markets tonight as usual.

Almost a one day reversal to the downside but not quite.  The Dow added 6 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were negative.  The S&P 500 was lower.  The summation index continues lower.  We were up over 100 points today during the session.  I did dump the SPY November calls this morning for a loss of 70%.  The timing on that trade was off from the start.  I'm still holding the SPY December call trade.  Perhaps we'll form a bottom in the stock indices this week.  However with the summation index still moving lower, anything is possible.  I do remain bullish for the next few weeks though, unless we take out the recent lows.  GE was off 4 cents and the volume was the heaviest yet.  And I mean extremely, out of this world volume.  I have no idea what is happening here with GE because I've never seen any volume like this.  I still want the January calls.  Volume means interest and the price has stayed up.  Gold broke the key level of $1180 today as the futures were off $15.  The US dollar was higher.  The XAU lost 2 1/2 and GDX shed 2/3.  Volume was good.  It looks like we're going lower now for gold.  The next stop is probably $1000.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Another losing trade in the books with the closing of the SPY November call position.  I should have managed it better but at least I waited for the bounce to get out.  Still, it was a loser and doesn't matter now.  Tomorrow we should get some movement on the release of the Fed minutes.  I also expect that the major players will be taking care of business before the Thanksgiving week.  The technical indicators are still in the oversold zone.  We'll see if things hold up here or whether this was a pause in the downtrend and an opportunity to get short.  We'll know the answers soon enough.  The foreign stock markets rallied overnight to follow yesterdays US action.  We'll watch how it goes tonight.  

A bounce was due and perhaps overdue but we got it.  The Dow soared 237 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were almost 3 to 1 positive.  Despite the attacks in Paris, the market moved higher.  Technically, it almost had to.  You cannot deny the indicators but the timing is always tricky.  The summation index is still moving lower though and todays breadth was nothing special.  Where do we go from here is the next question.  My SPY November calls are still solidly in the red and I should probably sell them on any strength tomorrow for whatever I can get.  The SPY December calls that I purchased are showing a gain.  GE continues to refuse to go lower as it was up a bit again today on the extremely heavy volume that it has been showing lately.  I'd still like to get the January calls if I ever get the chance.  Gold was up overnight but came back down during the day.  The futures finished flat on the session as the US dollar was higher.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional gains on very light volume.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  It is expiration week and perhaps the positive bias will show up for the next 4 days as well.  There is a bullish engulfing pattern on the daily S&P 500 candlestick chart which could turn out to be a positive.  But with so little time left on the November options, I am probably better off to take the loss there and hold on to the December SPY calls.  The short term technical indicators have turned higher for now.  Of course that could all change tomorrow.  I was looking to get some OEX November calls this morning if we got a drop but not much materialized there despite a decent drop in the index futures overnight.  We'll have to see if the market can follow through to the upside tomorrow.  We do have some economic data due out this week and the Fed minutes out on Wednesday.  So we'll see what happens as I think most of the trading for the month will be done this week due to the Thanksgiving holiday next week.  We'll see if the overseas markets can move up overnight to follow the US and see how the open goes tomorrow.

Oversold and staying there as the Dow lost 203 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were negative but not as much as a down 200 market would suggest.  The economic data today came in a little light.  The summation index continues lower.  We should have seen a bounce today with the oversold technical indicators and the recent McClellan oscillator reading.  But we didn't.  This is the point where I have to say to myself that I just don't know what is going on.  I would say perhaps that we could crash on Monday but we are nowhere near the technical zone for that to happen.  So I'll just say the market is going where it wants despite the technical readings.  My SPY November calls are big losers but there isn't a lot of money involved.  I still believe that we are at the point where a decent upside move is imminent.  Monday or Tuesday will be the time to book the loss on that trade.  I am still a believer in higher prices and so today I did purchase some SPY December calls.  That trade is showing a small loss.  GE continues to baffle the mind and was up a dime on extremely heavy volume.  Traders want GE at any cost or so it seems.  Perhaps I should have just paid attention here.  Gold finished the session flat as the US dollar was higher.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional gains on very light volume.  No interest here and that is the same old story as of late.  Mentally I'm feeling a bit confused as the market indicators have reached levels that would suggest some upside but we just keep going lower.  That's really never a good sign.  There's a chance that maybe I should just sell out of the calls that I have and head for the sidelines.  It will be something to ponder.  My interpretation of the indicators seems to be off right now.  But I have to say that the readings are very bullish in the short term and they get even more bullish as we drop.  I do not think that things will fall apart here but who knows?  The action this week was very negative in a technical sense.  We'll have to see if it continues next week.  Option expiration week is upon us but after today it doesn't appear that there will be a bullish bias in place.  But we'll have to wait and see how it plays out.  I still have to believe that there will be some pretty good upside in the beginning of the week.  I could be wrong.  A lot to think about over this weekend.  For now it's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

It was quite a day to the downside as the Dow dropped 254 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were just north of 4 to 1 negative.  The summation index is heading lower.  I had a feeling yesterday that I had made a mistake with this SPY November call trade and today verified that.  Not sure what to make of the move but we did practically close on the low and that's bearish.  No doubt short term oversold here and the McClellan oscillator is at a level where bounces have come.  But a bounce may be all we get and it may not come until next week.  The SPY trade is solidly in the red and has become a cut the loss situation.  GE was off 1/2 on the heaviest volume we've seen yet.  The volume for this issue in the past month or so has been off the charts.  I still would like to get the January calls here.  Perhaps I'll get the chance in the days ahead.  Gold was up just a few bucks on the futures as the US dollar was lower today.  Still no real interest in the precious metals.  The XAU and GDX had fractional losses on light volume.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  The data tomorrow should provide the backdrop to whatever happens early.  It looks like things are simply going to continue lower.  Expiration week is coming and it usually has a positive bias.  Things are oversold here but that doesn't mean that they can't stay that way.  Perhaps we are back to the deflation fear again with the drop in commodities.  I'm not sure so I try and stick to the technicals.  With the summation index going lower with some purpose now, it might be time to be careful.  That doesn't help me when I'm already holding index calls.  I guess tomorrows price action will say a lot in whether I hold onto this trade over the weekend.  However it is clear that my timing was wrong and this will probably be a losing effort.  I would not be surprised to see the foreign markets roll over tonight.  We'll check out the data in the morning and see where the market goes.

To the downside today as the Dow fell 56 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were negative.  The summation index is heading lower.  It was a back and forth session that had more volume than I would have thought.  My SPY November calls are now in the red.  Perhaps I am wrong in my thinking on this trade.  The short term technical indicators have turned down and they are not yet oversold.  I may have entered this trade too early or my diagnosis of the market here is just wrong.  Time will tell on this but I think Friday will be the key.  GE continues to rise and continues to impress.  It was up 1/2 on the same extremely heavy volume.  It is tough to get the calls here when there is never a pullback.  It appears to be another missed trade.  Gold was off a few bucks on the futures today, while the US dollar was weaker as well.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional gains on very light volume.  Short term oversold for the gold shares.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Only seven days left in the November option cycle.  For some reason I am not feeling as positive about this SPY call trade as I was just yesterday.  But today was a semi-holiday and perhaps tomorrow will bring a bit more clarity as to what is going on here.  However with the summation index heading lower, the trend is for lower prices.  I get the feeling that I simply made a mistake.  We'll see how it plays out in the coming days.  The data on Friday remain the main short term driving factor in my opinion.  As always we'll keep an eye on the foreign markets and other overnight developments.

A slight one day reversal as the market opened lower and closed higher.  The Dow gained 27 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were positive.  It was a mostly sideways kind of session.  The summation index is still heading lower.  I was able to pick up some SPY November calls on weakness in the morning.  They are showing a slight gain.  The ideal plan is to hold onto them into the middle of expiration week.  But we will have to see what the market has to say about that.  The small stocks have been relatively weaker here and that is not a positive.  GE was up over 1/3 and the volume was really extremely heavy.  This issue has remained overbought for an extended length of time.  I do not know what is happening here but you cannot argue with price and volume.  I'd still like to get the January calls here if I ever get the chance.  Gold was flat on the futures as the US dollar was a bit higher today.  The XAU fell 1 1/3, while GDX shed 1/3.  Volume was nothing special.  I have no trades in the works for the gold shares at this time.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  I'm in the next trade now and expecting upside from here.  My hope is that we get back to the recent highs and perhaps exceed them.  But the market will go where it wants.  The short term indicators have rolled over but there is a chance that they will turn back up here.  I did get a buy signal form one of my short term indicators and I'm a believer that it will work.  So we'll see.  The overseas market had a little more downside than upside overnight.  Tomorrow is a partial holiday for Veterans Day as some players will have the day off.  I would not expect a lot of movement in the stock market but there is a chance things could get skewed as well.  Fridays data should provide the reason for the market to move.  We'll keep an eye on the overnight developments and go from there.

A downside start to the week as the Dow fell 179 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were 4 to 1 negative.  The summation index is now heading lower.  I do not think that this is the beginning of anything major to the downside.  I do think it is an opportunity to purchase some SPY November calls on weakness tomorrow.  We did come off of the lows today but the short term technical indicators have rolled over.  If we are lower tomorrow, one of my timing indicators will be giving a buy signal.  The 200 day moving average comes in at 2063 for the S&P 500.  That would be a good spot to buy the November calls.  That is what I'll be trying to do tomorrow.  GE was off a little over 1/8 on extremely heavy volume.  There is still plenty of interest in owning GE here.  I think that bodes well going forward for the overall market.  I could be wrong.  Gold was up a bit on the futures as the US dollar was a bit lower today.  The XAU was up a point and GDX gained 1/3.  Volume was average.  It would be helpful for the bulls if the gold shares hold their most recent lows of August and September.  We'll see.  Mentally I'm feeling a bit tired, could have slept better.  It will be interesting to see if we get any follow through downside tomorrow.  We do have a plan and hopefully the market will cooperate.  Not much economic data this week until Friday.  Europe was weak yesterday so we will see what Asia does overnight.  So there you have it.  We'll see if the overseas markets follow the Dow lower tonight and see what happens tomorrow. 

The employment data came in stronger than expected and the market sold off early.  However we made it all the way back and then some as the Dow gained 46 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were negative.  The small stocks had good relative strength.  The market remains overbought.  I'd still like to get some SPY November calls but now I'll have to wait until Tuesday to see how things play out.  If we get some weakness early next week, I will give this trade a try.  We will not stay overbought forever but it sure seems that way at this point.  GE was up 1/4 and the volume remains extremely heavy.  With GE keeping up its gains, I have to think that will be the case for the overall market.  I could be wrong.  Gold broke through the $1100 level today and the futures lost $16.  The US dollar had a strong rally of over a point on the employment data.  The XAU lost 2 1/2, while GDX shed almost 2/3.  Volume was good.  It has been a rough week for the gold bulls.  The fundamentals remain negative for gold.  I suppose buys the puts was the proper play here but it's probably too late for that now.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  The market just doesn't sell off regardless of the data or intraday action.  I do not know why.  The volume has been pretty impressive as well.  You cannot fight that.  I really think that we will get some kind of run to new highs in the S&P 500 before the November expiration.  That is my guess right now.  Weakness on Monday and Tuesday would be the ideal set up.  However the market will go where it wants.  I also thank that GE is a precursor here and that bodes well for the bullish case going forward.  I don't know what is keeping things so bullish now but obviously liquidity is not an issue.  Money needs a home and US stocks have out the welcome mat.  This, despite the fact that it appears December will see the first rate hike in years.  This is how I see things at the moment but that could change at any time.  I'll be checking the charts over the weekend to see if I can come up with something other than that.  For now it's Friday afternoon and time for a break.

A little more selling today as the Dow fell 4 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were barely negative.  Just waiting on tomorrows employment data.  I don't know how that will play out but I am still considering the SPY November calls on weakness.  The ideal scenario would be a drop tomorrow with follow through on Monday.  Monday would be the purchase time.  But we all know that ideal scenarios rarely pan out.  I'll continue to watch and wait.  GE was up a dime and the volume was extremely heavy.  The stock simply remains overbought.  If we ever get some pullback, the January calls here are on my radar.  Gold was off a few bucks on the futures as the selling continues.  The US dollar was slightly higher before the jobs numbers.  The XAU dropped 2 1/4, while GDX fell 1/2.  Volume picked up to the downside.  I still think that on a long term basis the gold shares are attractive at these levels.  But you have to have a time horizon that will last a couple of years or more.  As far as a trade here, I don't have any in mind.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  So we'll see what the market reaction is tomorrow and go from there.  It should be a triple digit day for the Dow one way or the other.  There's still a couple of weeks to go in the November option cycle.  My guess is that there will be some decent movement prior to expiration because things will really slow down going into Thanksgiving week.  So there is still a chance to make some money this month.  The foreign markets were mixed overnight.  We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Just a bit of weakness today as the Dow fell 50 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were negative.  Looking for an entry point for the SPY November calls.  Perhaps if we sell off on the employment report.  But as always, the market will go where it wants.  I've been waiting for the technical indicators to reach oversold and that hasn't happened.  No need to be in a hurry here but I'd like to try something in the November option cycle.  GE was off a nickel and the volume was very heavy.  The volume on GE has expanded a lot over the past month.  Heavy volume with rising prices is bullish.  You could say the same for the overall market as well.  Gold continues to drop as the futures fell another $8.  The US dollar had a strong session.  Perhaps gold is letting us know that the employment report will be above consensus.  Or maybe that the Fed will finally move rates a touch higher.  The drop in gold could also mean nothing at all.  Such is the nature of the game.  The XAU fell 1 1/3, while GDX was off 1/3.  Volume was nothing special.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  I suppose at this point I'm ready to let the employment report pass as well before considering the next trade.  I'm still bullish on the overall market but we will not stay overbought forever.  Even if it seems that way at the moment.  Patience isn't easy but it is far better than losing money.  The foreign markets were generally higher yesterday.  I would think that tomorrows trading would be light with a wait and see attitude.  We'll see what happens.

It's a market that just won't stop or so it seems.  The Dow gained 89 points on heavy volume.  The advance/declines were positive.  The summation index is moving up.  I don't know how many times over the past few weeks that I've said overbought and staying there but that condition persists.  I'm still hoping to get some SPY November calls before expiration.  However we could continue to just move up in what is basically a straight line.  Some of the major stock indices are approaching all time highs again, while others are not.  I'm not sure what to make of that.  GE was up about 20 cents on very heavy volume.  There's a possible negative daily RSI divergence here.  We'll see how it plays out.  Gold was sold again today.  The futures fell 18 bucks as the US dollar was higher.  The XAU and GDX had slight fractional losses on very light volume.  No buying interest in the precious metals group.  No trades in mind here for me either.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Perhaps we'll see some profit taking ahead of Fridays employment report.  That may provide an opportunity to get the calls.  But we'll see.  The preferred scenario would be an oversold technical reading on a daily basis.  We can hope for that at least but we'll see how things transpire in the coming days.  There's no reason to try and make something happen.  I'll wait for a set up.  The foreign markets were mixed last night.  We'll keep an eye on them tonight.

The rally continues as the Dow rose 165 points on good volume.  The advance/declines were 4 to 1 positive.  This should turn the summation index back to the upside.  Beginning of the month money flows helped I'm sure.  The S&P 500 is cutting through the overhead resistance as if it isn't there.  Overbought and staying that way for an extended time period.  In retrospect, I should have just gotten some SPY calls weeks ago and held on.  GE came back today as well, gaining 1/2 on heavy volume.  I'm still looking to go out to the January options here.  Gold was off $8 on the futures but the US dollar didn't do much today.  The gold shares were up slightly as the market rally probably helped things out here.  Mentally I'm feeling OK.  Still no pullback to speak of in the stock indices.  It might be too late just to get long here.  I really would like to wait for a better technical set up before doing anything.  So patience will still be the game plan.  I do not want to put on a trade just for the sake of doing it.  I'd like to get something going but I'd like to make money first and foremost.  The employment report on Friday should provide the fireworks for the week.  We'll watch and see if the foreign markets follow the US higher overnight.