Welcome to MO, Spring!

Drum roll, please!! I am pleased to announce that we are finally welcoming our first daffodils. I had wanted to post a picture last week, but I couldn’t get out and take one for the SNOW that was falling!!! Of course, today is a fabulous first day of Spring, breezy with highs in the high 70s. >>>>Be sure and scroll ALL THE WAY DOWN the page (below the posts) to see the video I took of a cardinal at the feeder off the deck in the back yard!<<<<< Love it! Well, I love it as long as the tornado sirens are silent!! Thomas is in Minneapolis, where it’s a bit cooler, shall we say? He’s scheduled to fly back in tomorrow, when thunderstorms are forecast…bummer.

We’re still waiting on the results of Thomas’ most recent test to determine the reason he’s anemic. Remember, he had to swallow the PillCam last Tuesday (see my previous Post)? He said it wasn’t so bad swallowing the thing, but he didn’t particularly care for having to wear the “recorder/transmitter” box around for 8 hours. He hopes that this was the last test he will have to take, but I’m still hoping he’ll have to take at least one more. I don’t think anything that a PillCam finds can be an easy thing to fix, do you? He thinks I ought to post the pictures they took of his small intestine on my blog…hmmmmm…we'll see.

How ‘bout those Tigers??? [Click to hear the fight song>>>Go Tigers Go!] We are so excited that Memphis made it to the NCAA Regionals/Sweet Sixteen! They’ll be playing in San Antonio on Thursday, and if they beat Texas A&M, again on Sunday (against the winner of Ohio State vs. Tennessee…uh-oh, who’s Nana/Momma/Edith going to be yelling for if Memphis ends up playing Tennessee????). Sure do wish we could see ‘em in person. Oh well, we have tickets to the Mid-west Regionals, here in STL, to be played on Friday, with the finals on Sunday. Should be some good games, especially since we’ll see the “Cinderella Team” Butler playing last year’s winner, Florida.

Well, I must report that I dropped down considerably on the CNBC's Million Dollar Portofolio Challenge...all the way down to the 85 percentile after the weekend, with a bounce back up to the Top 51% yesterday...ouch! I had taken a chance on Six Flags (SIX) and on Ligand Pharma (LGND), but both let me down. No matter, sold 'em and moved on! It's only money...and not even that, is it? Trading has no cost associated with it...the way you win on a weekly basis is the greatest percentage gain, so "losers" drag you down. I've still got positions in IMOS and BGP, and added CNXT today. I'm learning so much! While the Challenge isn't about investing at all, since it's trading that wins the game, the lessons I've learned on research and fundamentals, and paying attention to Earnings Dates, will help me with my own investing. Plus, I never miss a chance to earn "Bonus Bucks," and that offers me another opportunity to learn...and "earn!" Wish I could do that in real life!!! Anyway, my goal isn't necessarily about winning the game (although I wouldn't sneeze at either a weekly win...$10,000, or the top prize...$1,000,000!); my personal goal is to put Warren Buffet's advice to work:

1. Rule #1: Never lose money.
2. Rule #2: Never forget Rule #1!