Sport

Lucroy Marisnick Collision

If a defending player makes a tag on an offensive player running the base paths but in the process loses control of the ball, so long as the base runner touches the bag or plate, the base runner will be considered “safe”. Hence; if it becomes apparent that if a base runner has made a poor decision to advance yet has committed to the play, within the rules of the came he can contrive a strategy to exert such force on the defender in order to produce a dropped ball. Without question, Mr. Marinich in the Angels Astros game on Saturday July 6th took such a strategy by deviating his path inside the baseline toward the presence of the catcher who was positioned inside the field of play to receive the inbound ball. Had this not been Mr. Marinich’s strategy, the logical path would have been outside the baseline thereby increasing his probability of success by stationing himself further from the ball.

Some MLB pundits are calling for suspension of Marinich given that catcher Lucroy has sustained an injury. It was indeed a brutal collision but I suspect Marinich was more motivated by achieving a “safe” call at home as opposed to hurting Lucroy. It’s apparent to me that the rules of baseball are more to blame that Marinich. This precise play should give cause for a rule change.

Gold Mining, Economics, Free Enterprise

Mid Tier Gold Companies Since June 11th 2019

Yamana Gold, $ 1.92 USD to $2.55 USD for a 32 per cent move

Eldorado Gold (EGO), $ 4.11 USD to  $6.22 USD for a 51 per cent move

New Gold (NGD) went from $0.72 CAD to $0.94 CAD for a 30 per cent move

Detour Gold (DGG) went from $13.25 CAD to $16.58 CAD – 25 per cent

McEwen Mining (MUX) went from 1.39 CAD to $1.82 CAD for a 30 per cent change

Argonaut Gold (AR) went from 1.71 CAD to 1.84 CAD  for 7 per cent

Royal Nickel (RNX) – yes a gold company  went from $0.50 CAD to $0.64 moving 28 per cent

….and how much did the price of gold change from Jun 11, 2019 to July 3, 2019? Well, 9.6 per cent.

As you can see, a premium has been offered to companies with moderate market caps compared to the majors. Risk capital would have been well served with positions here. 

Philosophy, Lifes Lessons

Not Achieving? Consider This

First of all, you are most likely achieving more than you think you are but society’s norms, customs and feeback mechanisms oftentimes communicate negatively. Hence; the conditioning you receive is not necessarily congruent with your output.  Unfortunately, there are also a few who overestimate their contribution as well. Then there’s your government with its officials who think they know who should be bestowed awards based on criteria unbeknownst to those too busy raising children, volunteering modestly, and invigorating their workplace with passion and commitment. Last time I looked, it was a hockey player receiving the Order of Canada. I’m sure she’s a nice lady. 

Here’s the thing. There is much repression in the spirit of those who have over reached with financial responsibility thereby compromising the pursuit of unique latent talent. The kicker is that it’s not just the variable of “keeping up with the Jones’” which has many stymied but also the subliminal familial and social suggestion that you are “not really good enough” or ‘how dare you be adventurous” with career when there are mouths to feed.

Here’s the other thing. You’ll never get yesterday back. It’s gone forever. If you spent yesterday by keeping your biggest aspiration tucked away in that dark closet of your mind, it’s one less day you’ll have available in fertilizing its fruition. You will have a legacy. What will it be?  

Lifestyle, Music

How’s The Guitar Coming Along You Ask?

Well, it’s been about 2 1/2 years since getting serious about guitar. This is my old Fender Gemini III from 1987 which basically sat in storage until 2016. Looking back at the “set up” of the guitar and learning much about the “build characteristics” of acoustic guitars, it’s not surprising that I turned away from learning the instrument so quickly back in 1987. The “action” was “high” meaning that it needed a “truss rod adjustment”. Now I’ve made it easier to play and is a nice complement to my new Yamaha FG800. I’ll let the video do the talking from here on out.

Uncategorized

Options Leaps and Time Value

I write this piece having brushed up on my formal derivatives training from 20 years ago. What are options, leaps, and time value? These are fancy terms associated with an alternative form of investing. One discovers new terminology while venturing out into a potential land mine without due diligence. I went to a weekend seminar last summer to reacquaint myself with options and found the weekend valuable.  It’s a year later, and I put some capital to work. I had successfully recovered my weekend training fees by fulfilling “the required” in the market and submitting proof of my trades.

Margin accounts have authorization levels. You’ll start out by going long on calls and puts only. The closer your “strike price” is to being “in the money”, the more you’ll pay in premium. Obviously less risk entails purchasing calls or puts closer to the market price at inception. 

Then there is time value. The more time until option expiry, the lesser the risk. You start to see the moving parts involved with options. This is why no investment advisor wants you in them. They think you lack the capacity to absorb the variables in placing option trades. So, what are LEAPS? These are options which have a time value of one year plus. You’ve all seen stock charts right. The line graphs move up and down and oftentimes in a pattern. What if you projected that pattern outward while giving yourself lots of “time value” for forgiveness? You are not in options because you’ve been taught that risk is bad. I’m here to say that when you eliminate all risk, you can only expect a meagre return. There is actually an opportunity cost in not at least keeping up to “actual inflation”. Your investment advisor does not want to be proclaimed as a conduit of your options losses. Therefore, you need to direct these investments yourself. However; this would take some time in learning, researching, and acting on your own behalf on your own account. Interested?