Taking It To Stock Trading

For a very long time I've been wanting to learn and do stock trading. When I was in college, I was hoping to find a course for stock trading but there is really not a real one. About a year ago I was so excited that someone who is a CEO of the biggest banks in Saudi Arabia, our friend, is willing to teach the basics on stock trading... but sadly they have to move back to the States and the plans to demo/teach didn't push through. I've tried quite number of online stock trading software but looking at how complicated it looks with those colorful charts, numbers and terms just made me step back and keep hoping I will learn somehow. Reading books gave me interest but I can't really give my whole time studying its complicated terms and computations with my 2 kids at home. I'm not really the kind who learns from books, I learn from investigating on my own and hands on experience.

So I was so happy because I came to this online stock trading that is so easy. So I started investing last week, I invested about 1,000 SAR which is not big enough but will be fair as I learn. I know using the demo mode will make me lazy and not be attentive on it. My husband is excited and supportive also, so we used the money we earned from mystery shopping which we kept in our paypal account hoping losing it wouldn't make us feel so guilty. This are part of our sidelines and according to his words of wisdom, losing is one way to learn, and experience and lessons are priceless. And your interest will be into something where you have invested something into. Well I have invested my bag fund to stocks, and I'll be losing the nice bag I've been aiming at, working our butt on mystery shopping to fund for it.

Anyway, when I invested corn happen to be rising at a tremendous rate, I bought at minimum, and it went up so fast overnight, then I accidentally closed the position when it was only starting to come up. Next time, I noticed I missed a lot of opportunity for corn because it was making it way up to 500 then 505, I decided to buy. Just after I bought, next minutes it came down crashing, and hoping it will go back up to 505 and rise some more so I can earn, it went all the way down and never looked back to me. I was so devastated, then I noticed this trailing stop button, I searched how it works and the way it was explained to didn't make much sense so I tried it on some other stocks I bought. Then when my stocks were gaining it didn't close because I didn't set it right to the proper pips, but it closed when I made a lot of loses without giving opportunity to gain back those loses, and to think that those I invested into are gold, and oil. I was more devastated, my money crashed and I lost more than 30% of what I invested.

But because of it, I've never been more eager to learn how the trailing stop works. I had never been more enthusiastic in stock market news and reviews. I even had been more aware of the climate and weather conditions not only around me but all throughout because it does affect the investment specially in crops. And I've never been more social in stock trading forums.

I still didn't close my investment in corn, hoping it will make its way back even just to my initial capital, hoping and praying that the market will go to our favor.

My next posts shall be a journal of what is going on in my stock trading investment ADVENTURE. 

Coming And Going

Almost 7 years in the desert and I will never get used to this thing, it will always be my most liked and hated thing, I like meeting new acquaintance and I will always hate saying goodbye to friends. Lets just say I'm not getting any better or mature enough when it comes to coping up with the sad feeling of friends leaving or leaving friends - considering our case when we moved out from Al Khobar back in 2010. 

I don't want to be too close to acquaintances knowing one way or another we will say goodbye, I know so immature right. But even if I tried not to be too close to anyone, that depressing feeling still stings me whenever someone we know leaves, be that we are close friends or simple acquaintance, I wonder why the feeling strikes like a whip.  This month really sucks because our family have to say goodbye to a lot of acquaintances, "good friends" actually- even if I try to disregard or ignore the words.  I wish I can be more mobile and could visit everyone anytime I want, without the hassle of securing visa or paying for expensive  plane tickets. This made me realized the world is still too big, with friends who could be anywhere around the world, nothing can replace their presence, not facebook, not phone. My kids will still miss playing with their playmates/friends, even if at times they don't get along well because they have to fight over a toy, Heavenne will miss a teacher who listens and laughs at her stories and compliments the good things she does. As time flies memories could fade away but the fact that once in our lives someone had been a part of the story of our lives can never be erased. 

They said saying goodbye gives a promise that we might say hello and be reunited again someday, and so we cling to it.

Light and Fluffy Banana Cake

I love cooking and doing stuffs in the house. My husband always tells me to keep a record of my recipes specially the cakes so my daughter could have it when she grows up and I could pass it on. So here I am starting a blog exclusively about my home making adventure while we are here in Saudi Arabia and how we are trying to live providently as we adjust to the cultural differences and market availability of certain foods we used to  love.

The thing about my love for baking cakes is I keep on experimenting how to substitute and make the usual basic recipes a healthier version until I come up with my own recipe. Sometimes I also lose tract of the recipe and I have to keep going experimenting again. Hopefully blogging about it can help me not to lose my notes.

Banana cake is one of my dear husband's favorite cakes. I also love making it because I hate throwing the overripe bananas that we have on our table.

For years I've been trying the best recipe for banana cake. Usually, I end up with the yummy but overly dense and super moist ones which is not my favorite.

Today as I try substituting and experimenting on recipes I end up with a healthier version of super light and fluffy banana cake that calls for yogurt, and canola oil which I think is healthier than the other recipes that call for butter.

You may get the recipe here.

Chocolate Swiss Rolls

Baking has been one of the things I enjoy doing. Although most of the time, my cooking would end up in a messy disaster or its not edible at all, I'm grateful for many lessons I'm getting from those experiences. I still remember the first time I tried baking some dinner rolls, and I end up with those inedible tiny hard as stone bread, but at least we enjoy the nice aroma of baked yeast in the entire house which fooled my husband when he came home because he thought it smells yummy. On one occasion, my cake ended up with the texture of a bread

Anyway this recipe is one of the many experiments that turned out well.

Chocolate Orange Swiss Rolls

6 eggs

1/2 cup flour + 1tbsp

3 tbsp cocoa

1/2 cup sugar +2 tbsp

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

3 tbsp oil

orange zest

beat egg whites and add a tbsp of sugar once in a while about 10 minutes. use only the 1/2 cup of sugar.

beat the egg yolks add 2 tbsp sugar and let it froth, then add the 3 tbsp oil, vanila, orange zest, and salt

sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder three times

gently beat the egg yolk mixture to the egg whites and once incorporated fold in the flour and cocoa mixture.

spread in the parchment lined pan

bake at preheated oven 450 deg F for 15 minutes or until it springs back to touch.

filling

1 bar favorite chocolate bar, I used Galaxy

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp cocoa powder

melt chocolate in microwave at low for 1 minute or until slightly melted but not too hot.

pour whipping cream and beat while adding cocoa and vanilla. Add sugar if you prefer it sweeter otherwise this should taste a bit of dark chocolate.

What Better Use Of Spare Time

The other day, we had another interesting conversation with some friends. I was intrigued about what was shared about time. How time can be used in vain doing nothing, and how we could also use our time doing something productive for ourselves, or a better use could be doing something better to serve others and develop the virtue in our self.

All of us wanted to live each day and be a better person. We choose to do things we like, some would rather choose to do productive things and be crafty, some choose to give their time to others by service.   Most of my time in a day is spent with my kids in the house, once the kids go on their afternoon nap- that's my time out/ break time. What do I do with my extra time when that happens? Here are some; I wash the laundry, clean the floor, the washing area, or bake some cake- it's my stress reliever. About two months ago, I was constantly whining, well I am still whining at times. I did a self evaluation and realized I lived more than a quarter century in this world and I want to be able to contribute something really really good to the community and start something. I whine because I blame it for being here and living in a box of sand where I feel so much deprived as woman.  Association with other women here almost seem impossible, I wish I could be as creative as my husband who could always make a group and find something meaningful to do together for others who are in need, or do something for the environment here. There's just too much that could be done here but my feelings towards starting something are described in these words: "scared, deprived, underprivileged". But if I could have a time out and be as free as woman can be in other parts of the world, I really want to do some environmental and welfare work. I wanted to come out during the day and start campaigning or rally around so they will stop cutting the branches of those bushes and few trees around, or limit the use of those plastic bags in the supermarket and encourage people to bring a reusable shopping bag;  I want to rally or make awareness campaign about smoking and file petition to ban smoking inside the malls or shopping centers in Saudi because it is very unhealthy and even kids health are posed to the health danger of it every time they go to the malls. There are so much more! Thinking realistic and feasible, what better thing could I do now? I realized the best thing I could do is spend time with my kids and have a meaningful relationship with them,    teach them the things I know, and hope someday what I taught them will be the legacy I could leave not only for them but also for my posterity. So, yes we're starting a mini garden in our small patio, and we're recycling those empty water bottles - we're doing as part of our playtime.  ;-)