Paul J Singh

Here are some off and on topic answers to email questions, minus the questions:

I’ve read a lot of trading books, most of them not very helpful. I would recommend any of the Thomas Bulkowski chart pattern books, Enhancing Trader Performance by Brett Steenbarger, Master Swing Trader by Alan Farley and the Market Wizard books by Jack D. Schwager.

I spend at least one hour every night going over charts and stock screens. I also spend time reviewing trades and setups, researching trading ideas and reading articles. On average I probably spend three hours a night on trading related work.

I do watch American Idol. It’s like watching a train wreck. As bad as I want to look away, I can’t. My favorites thus far are the beat boxing white boy, Blake Lewis, and Lakisha Jones. While not a great singer, I think Chris Sligh would do well as a stand up comic. I was bumbed that Paul Kim was cut. I thought he had a great voice during tryouts.

Sorry Anesh, but I can’t think of any way to equate American Idol to trading. I was gonna say “survival of the fittest“, but Taylor Hicks won last season . . .

Mixed martial arts, better known as Ultimate Fighting, rocks. I’m a huge fan. Anytime there’s a big boxing match or UFC fight, there’s a party at the Spec’s house. March 3rd, Randy Couture will win back the heavyweight belt.

My basketball team is the Minnesota Timberwolves. I disliked Kevin McHale growing up (I was a Lakers fan), and despise him now for pissing away Kevin Garnett’s career.

My football team is the 49ers. At 6 years old, back in 1982, I was in Candlestick when Dwight Clark made “the catch”. I’ve been a fan ever since.

I am a liberal. While I’d be happy if any of the major contenders win the party nomination, I will vote for John Edwards. I am excited about his universal health care plan, and love that he’s a straight shooter. The way he handled the Iraq question, saying he made a mistake, rather than Hillary’s “I was misled” response, was quite impressive. Both are right, but only Edwards takes personal responsibility.

While I’m rooting for Edwards, I’d be happy if Obama or Hillary were in the White House.

De la Hoya will shock the world and defeat Mayweather. BTW, I love that I have some diehard boxing and sports fans as readers. While I can’t make Idol and trading parallels, I can make a ton of sports and trading references.

Watchlists are not recommendations to buy a stock. They are just what they sound like, *watch* lists. I don’t consider entry unless specific parameters are met.

My favorite indicator is the stochastic. I use 5 days instead of 14 because I trade on a shorter time frame. Many traders make the mistake of using indicators that don’t match their own time frames.

My favorite television shows are Lost, Heroes, Monk, Psych, Criminal Minds, Friday Night Lights, Smallville and Bill Maher. They are all extremely well done. I also watch tons of football and basketball. I do not watch CNBC. I sometimes read Cramer on thestreet.com, but never watch his show.