I guess for me it was that since I started playing poker I always had a backup plan. I spent almost 5 years in car sales and car sales management. The car business is and will always be very easy for me to get back into if I ever needed to and lucky for me I happen to be very good at it.

As for poker and my "success", you would be shocked at the amount of time I spend studying and looking for ways to get better. I think so many players focus way to much on just grinding and putting in lots of hands.

QFE

I think the S&P 500 is over valued by about 15%-20% right now. Buying some volatility for insurance is not a bad idea because it's dirt cheap.

I am actually trying to also buy this 5-plex right now, but HUD is just awful to deal with.

Is it in foreclosure?

So as an inexperienced investor should i be worried about having money/putting money in the markets right now ?

Pre-Foreclosure, I actually golf with the current owner, who just basically just got over extended/bad luck/bad decisions/ brain dead decisions/ refusal to make life style adjustments. But yeah since the tenants all get money from the government to help cover rent they just make life difficult.

This sounds like it will be a pretty sweet deal.

Depends which market and what your time horizon is. If you're building a portfolio, about 95% of returns are a function of your asset allocation strategy with very little a function of timing.

Imo, I'd be doing what Sammy is doing. Lightening up the weighting on U.S. equities and adding to cash. That will allow you to reallocate when valuations become more attractive.

am i dumb that i understand none of this?

BTW, my favorite asset class in the U.S. is large-cap blue chip equities. They have under performed small caps for a few years now, generate a ton cash, pay dividends, have exposure to developing markets, and generally have good balance sheets.

Check out this website for more information: http://www.gmo.com/America/

edit: I'd still be underweight U.S. equities in general.

Not at all. Most people don't. Financial education should start around Grade 3 and keep going all the way through high school.

And I don't mean just investment education. I mean budgeting, saving, evaluating proper lending alternatives, how to manage debt, how to buy a house, etc.

When Buffet was asked what it's like to invest in a bull mkt, his response:

"A rising tide floats all boats, but when the water recedes, you begin to see who is swimming naked".

Barg: I'm going to the 2012 Berkshire Hathaway AGM. Hopefully Buffet and Munger are still alive.

What do you think about canadian equities brock? Stuff like the big banks or big energy companies?

Canadian banks are in good shape and are in a great position to increase dividends this year. Their capital positions are good and they will not need to add capital in order to be compliant with Basel 3, which the Canadian government wants the banks to be in compliance with before 2019. My favourite bank is TD. They have a great retail franchise and asset management business. Less of their, relative to the competition, is derived from capital markets activity, which is more volatile. They have also done a good job integrating their U.S. assets. I believe they will be looking at acquiring banking assets in the U.S. because the valuations are very cheap.

My favorite Canadian energy company is the oil sands major Suncor Energy mainly due to their production growth profile over the next decade, and favorable outlook for oil. I'd stay away from pure natural gas companies because natural gas prices will likely remain in a range of $3.50-$5.50 for the next few years due to large increase in supply from N.A. shale gas production.

For U.S. energy I like Chevron. Top shelf upstream assets, good growth profile, and a closing valuation gap with Exxon Mobil.

Another good sector to look at is mining and oil and gas equipment makers.

Yeah herd is massively bullish right now. Warning sign.

Kemba Walker is a f'ing beast. Every time I've tuned into a UConn game this year, he is drilling shot after shot in the last 2 minutes to win the game. He cold-blooded smoked #7 Villanova today. Can't wait for the first UConn-Syracuse game (cuse fan here).

been spendin most they lives, livin in a gaaangstas pair-a-dice..

yea, but howmy gonna get the GI Joe with the Kungfu Grip for little Valentine?

True or False: raw force is a winning poker player

$5k flip with someone around 20k hand mark or taking a shot?

IIRC that was being stacked by sparky...?

yes the 5k was getting stacked by sparky twice at a shallow 25/50 table, the other big spike downward was getting stacked twice by a whale at 5/10 like the following day