Wednesday Log - Be Prepared

Took the first trade at 0945 as I anticipated price to touch 59-60's. Filled short in upper 59's and quickly scaled 1/2 in 57's. Housing report due out at 1000 so had a bit of a cushion and profit to let remaining portion ride. Had heavy target of 52's planned as I anticipated test of overnight lows. Worked the overnight combo range as guide. Result: +9.25

Tried a couple of low risk scalps in lunch session but many distractions during the day. Call the two trades a scratch. Getting more of a scalping mentality after primary move. Been trying for too much during lunch/PM sessions and need to just go for the 1-2 point moves. Watching combo moves during slower periods and seems to be strong indication of opportunity.

Expecting continued volatile market the next couple days as we close out the week and the month. October 28 and 29, 1929 marks one of the great drops in market value in history. October has a reputation for big moves. Good traders anticipate what might happen, what could happen and what to do when something happens. The motto of the Boy Scouts serves traders well..."Be Prepared".

Trade Well!

Tuesday Log - Limited Participation

Tried one trade late in the morning but hit the wrong side. Went long when it should have been short a point from entry. I'm struggling with a bit of a psyche challenge lately. Not sure what I'm seeing, how to react or getting a feel for the market. Amazing how one week I can trade well, another week not seeing the trades as well. This consistency thing is a tough nut to crack. It's all between the ears.

So limited participation in the market today, finished my new planning worksheet and used it during today's session. I realized to tweaks to the system I need to make to the tool as well as learn to interpret the information plotted. Very promising though.

Trade Well !

Monday Log - No Rhythm

I could not get into any groove today. No trades taken although I had a couple set that were not filled. Short post today as I work on my revised planning tool which is 90% complete. Plan to put it into action within the next 1-2 days.

Be aware of EOM/EOW price games during the week.

Trade Well !

Rush - Free Will

Friday Log - Plan

Missed the primary trade and did not chase it even though price went thru yesterday close set-up. 1000 eco report loomed and did not want to get caught. After that it felt like I would be chasing and did not get a feel for the price action although I "saw" a nice combo I had in my head play out.

Spent the next couple hours working on my new planning tool and will continue off and on over weekend. Have a relaxing weekend all.

Trade Well !

Wednesday & Thursday Log - Combo Post

Failed to enter Wednesday post and trades so combining with the Thursday post. Wednesday I played the open/close set-up that worked well. Once price tested the prior day close around 89, I entered long on the slight pullback and scaled out in 91's and 93's. Result: +6.0

Scalped a couple other trades over lunch for small gains after feeling the rotation prior to the Beige book. result: +2.25

Thursday no trades made. Working on a new planning tool for me to use in preparation of each trading session. Combining EWS system, key price levels, etc. I currently use a daily worksheet as part of my routine. As with the EWS spreadsheet, my worksheet helps me map out the ES, identify key levels of interest and awareness of scheduled economic reports, major earnings announcements, etc. It is an evolving document as I tweak the layout and information while also making it more automated.

Planning minimal trades on Friday. Probably only the primary AM trade if any.

Trade Well !

Tuesday Log - Recovery Mode

First worked a long shortly after the open from the 1/2 gap. Quickly stopped out. Once stopped out near yesterday close I failed to turn my trade opinion around fast enough and work the close/open set-up which would have been short from 1090.5. Result: -4.0

Had to wait for the next set-up(s) and chip away to recover early loss. Scalp mode entered long near reversal time of 1020 and second leg bounce. result: +5.0

Got in short too early prior to lunch session after doji formed. Enter low 85's with 1/2 position and stop in 84's. Result: -2.5

Chipped away off and on in late afternoon session buying off of 83 and 84 bottom and scaling out 86's and 87's. Result: + 5.0

Closed the day with a late day long expecting shorts to release and capture profits. Entered long on 1/2 position in low 87's with 1 pt stop in 86's. Scaled out 88.75 and 99's. Result: +3.5

Still need to work on patience for edge set-ups. They are there most every trading day and occur after 1-2 re-tests of bottom/top. Also, watching the VPOC relationship with these edges which after two days is providig some clues. Combining EWS combo and FT71 VPOC areas helped me have a successful recovery mode today.

Another thing I need to re-visit is not being too anxious to trade within the first 10-15 minutes. I want to play for the gap trades but my timing is off.

Trade Well !