blue belt life

Blue Belt Market Update: Investing in the Market Today

By bluebeltlife April 16, 2014 Investing

In the last weekly I discussed my general approach to trading (EVT analysis) and some trading opportunities in the current market. I define trading (speculation) as going long or short a security with the intention of exiting when the position shows a sufficient profit. Investing, on the other hand, is buying a security that is undervalued with the intention of selling it when it becomes overvalued.1 I look at trading as a modern-day form of hunting – through living a disciplined life and sharpening certain analytical weapons, I aim to meet my basic needs for survival. Just as we do not expect to amass wealth by playing the slot…

Blue Belt Market Update: Short Gold

By bluebeltlife April 1, 2014 Investing

Since the last edition of my weekly in September 2013, not a great deal has changed in the markets. This is supportive of my belief that the markets rarely warrant looking at, except as a form of occasional entertainment. Here is a look at some then and now numbers in various markets of interest: Still, I have continued to follow the markets on a weekly basis, partly out of habit and partly to look for trading opportunities. One aim of my blue belt life is to cover a portion of my living expenses using the skills I developed over my 9 years as a bond trader. One of the problems…

Video – Tokyo Snow

By bluebeltlife March 30, 2014 Music, Videos

We compiled this video from footage taken across town on Feb 10, 2014, which turned out to be the heaviest snow Tokyo has seen in the last 45 years. Areas of interest include the Imperial Palace Outer Garden, Shibuya, Omotesando, Aoyama Bochi (cemetery), Takeshita Dori, and Akasaka subway station. The “woman in red” was a random passerby, who turned into the main character of our Tokyo Snow story. We hope you enjoy! Subscribe to our channel Buy “Tokyo Snow”

Video – Making Spicy Marinara

By bluebeltlife March 23, 2014 Cooking, Videos

I made this video to share my favorite marinara sauce recipe, which I’ve been using and perfecting since college. Feel free to add your own favorite ingredients, such as mushrooms, sausage, ground beef, green peppers, or whatever. This is just the way I like it. Please subscribe to the YouTube channel, and enjoy!

Why Yoga?

By bluebeltlife February 21, 2014 Yoga

“We’re not trying to get anywhere – we’re just trying to be where we’re at.” – Bryan Kest I began on the path of yoga around age 15 when my tennis coach introduced me to Bryan Kest’s Power Yoga Series (on VHS at the time). I remember trying it for the first time and barely getting half way through it – this was some hard stretching! I did Power 2 as a supplemental workout off and on for several years before giving it up largely (along with music) when I started working full-time in finance. In the lead-up to the quarter-life crisis that culminated in my quitting that lucrative…

Perspectives from Four Months in: the Dark Side of Freedom

By bluebeltlife February 7, 2014 Health and Living

“I’m in the dark here. You understand? I’m in the dark!” – Lt Col Frank Slade – Predictably, after a period of euphoria, a dip occurs to maintain balance in the universe. So it has been for my stint outside the traditional workforce. What do I have to show for my four months: a few half-finished songs… a blog post? The music is “flowing like mud around here”, as Frank Slade from Scent of a Woman might say. Even when working a desk 60 hours a week I was producing music at that pace – and I wrote a book. I slept and saw friends just as little. What…

Giving up the Green for the Gold

By bluebeltlife January 2, 2014 Health and Living

“Keep me searching for a heart of gold, and I’m getting old.” – Neil Young – In Black Swan, one of my favorite books on human nature and the markets, Nassim Taleb says “Quit your high paying job”, so I did. Ever since I gave up religion after reading Atlas Shrugged I have been one to make serious life changes based on reading material that resonates with me. Before reading Black Swan I read How to Get Rich by Felix Dennis, and that really got me started on the path toward premature retirement. In it, Dennis challenges readers to consider carefully if they truly want vast wealth. In doing that…