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<\/a><\/p>\nMy friend Todd says, “When in doubt, stay out.<\/em>” In recent months I’ve largely gone to cash, except for a few tiny shorts that I stayed in too long and some Vanguard index funds I’ve kept.<\/p>\n My friend Steve is up 12% this year. He’s very disciplined. He follows a handful of stocks. He puts buy orders in 20% or so below<\/strong> the market, waits for them to be filled, then sells them when they (inevitably) bounce. He emails me great wisdom:<\/p>\n There are an infinite number of unpredictable things that can impact a market, a sector, or an individual stock.<\/p>\n These days I limit my buying to sell-offs and then sell what I’ve bought during rallies.<\/p>\n In a way, stock price movements are like water on the ocean. They endlessly rise and fall. When a stock I like falls hard, I buy it. I sell when it rises — which sometimes is on the same day, or within a few days of when I buy it.<\/p>\n I don’t press my luck. I know that rises are followed by falls, and falls are followed by rises…ad infinitum.<\/p>\n Most of the time my limit orders sit idly for weeks; some eventually expire.<\/p>\n Your task today. (that’s you, my readers.) Make a list of your ten favorite stocks. Put in limit buy orders at 15% to 20% below where they’re trading today. Let the buy orders sit. This “blood in the street” “strategy” seems to be the best way to play today’s volatility. I’ll give you my list tomorrow.<\/p>\n My worst money mistake<\/strong><\/span>. From Bottom Line Personal<\/em> newsletter:<\/p>\n A misbegotten herd of cows. <\/b>In 1985, I bought a herd of 17 Holstein dairy cows at public auction for $175,000. I knew nothing about commodity investing and had no interest in becoming a gentleman farmer. But the tax breaks were too good to resist. I put up $20,000 and financed the remainder over five years. In the meantime, I qualified for investment tax credits that gave me $40,000 in initial tax savings. Two years later, Congress eliminated that tax shelter. And it got worse. One of my Holsteins was struck by lightning and killed. Then the US government reduced its support of milk prices and the herd\u2019s value plummeted. I finally sold the cattle at nearly a total loss.<\/p>\n Lesson learned:<\/i><\/b> Many investments, ranging from buying a home to investing in real estate or municipal bonds, offer attractive tax breaks. But reducing your tax bill is just one factor in deciding to invest\u2014and typically not the most crucial one. You need to consider the current value of the investment, your time frame for holding it, the potential for appreciation or loss and what purpose the investment will serve in your portfolio and\/or your life.<\/p>\n Source:\u00a0<\/strong>Edward Mendlowitz, CPA, is a partner at the accounting firm WithumSmith+Brown, New Brunswick, New Jersey. He is author of Getting Your Affairs in Order.<\/i><\/p>\n Wi-Fi too slow at home?<\/strong><\/span> You need a new wireless router. Today the New York Times did a big review of routers and made good recommendations. The article is If Your Wi-Fi Is Terrible, Check Your Router<\/em>.The artwork is cute:<\/p>\n For the article, click here.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n The idiocy of the Check Engine light.<\/strong><\/span> The light comes on. Your car is about to blow up? No. It’s just the gas gap. You forgot to tighten it. Tighten it. A week or two later, the Check Engine light will go out.<\/p>\n From reader Lucas:<\/p>\n Had the same problem with the gas cap. Yellow engine light on the dashboard and the alert said engine malfunction. Took to service. Car spent one full day at BMW. Until they figured out the gas cap issue.<\/p>\n Too much tech.<\/p>\n Reader Red Cactus writes me:<\/p>\n Cars have a network that interconnects all, or most, of their on-board computers called a CAN – Car Area Network.\u00a0 This is what service reps. connect to when they diagnose your car.\u00a0 This interface is referred to as an On-Board Diagnostics 2 – ODB II – port.<\/p>\n \u00a0There are ODB II to Bluetooth dongles that can be purchased generally for less then $20 on Amazon.\u00a0 Search for OBD2.\u00a0 The software is usually a free App for a iPhone, iPad, Android phone, laptop, etc.<\/p>\n Here is a representative dongle.\u00a0 http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/B005NLQAHS?keywords=obd2&qid=1444256590&ref_=sr_1_1&s=automotive&sr=1-1<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0 These OBD II dongles will save you money in a hurry.<\/p>\n How to survive an earthquake WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report<\/a>)\u2014Citizens of the Roman town of Pompeii who were victims of Mt. Vesuvius\u2019s eruption in 79 A.D. could have survived if they had \u201cjust outrun the lava,\u201d the neurosurgeon Ben Carson told Fox News on Wednesday.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of the plaster casts we have of Pompeii victims show them basically just lying down and whatnot,\u201d he said. \u201cIf I had been in Pompeii and I heard Mt. Vesuvius erupting, you can bet I would have made a run for it.\u201d<\/p>\n He said another option open to residents of Pompeii would have been \u201cto fight the volcano.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cArchaeologists estimate that the population of Pompeii was about eleven thousand,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can\u2019t tell me that if eleven thousand people put their minds to it they couldn\u2019t beat one volcano.\u201d<\/p>\n Carson said he would spend the next week on the campaign trail dispensing helpful tips about how people can defeat earthquakes, tsunamis, and giant asteroids.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
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