Thanks. I missed eur/usd too. It went from 1.2780 to 1.2810 so quickly. And I didn't want to buy it there. Should have had a limit order just above 1.2780. Maybe we'll get another chance tomorrow.

closed @ 114.65
+38

moved stop to breakeven

short usd/jpy @ 115.03
stop above today's high

Two crew chiefs out at Robert Yates Racing

July 31, 2006
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Ticker) - The confusion continues at Robert Yates Racing.

The racing team announced Monday that crew chiefs Tommy Baldwin and Slugger Labbe have been released from their contracts.

With the departures of Baldwin and Labbe, the team has experienced a complete turnover of its top personnel.

Dale Jarrett announced in May that he was leaving the organization after 10 years to drive a Toyota for Michael Waltrip next season. Elliott Sadler opted out of his contract earlier this month and will leave after the season.

Baldwin and Labbe were brought to RYR by general manager Eddie D'Hondt, who was fired in May.

After being released from RYR, Baldwin landed with Bill Davis Racing, where he will be the competition director, overseeing the team's switch to Toyota in 2007. He had worked for Bill Davis Racing from 1999-2002.

RYR also announced that Cully Barraclough would take over Sadler's team and Butch Hylton would be in charge of Jarrett's team beginning with this week's Allstate 400. Hylton has been working at RYR since June.

There has been speculation that Barraclough's hiring could be a sign that Busch Series driver David Gilliland may be named to fill one of the two Nextel Cup seats, possibly by the end of the year.

Barraclough previously worked as a crew chief in the Busch Series for Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin. Prior to joining RYR, he served as a consultant for Gilliland's Busch team, Clay Andrews Racing.

Hours after Barraclough was named crew chief at RYR, Clay Andrews Racing severed ties with Gilliland after fielding Busch rides for him in seven races this year, including a victory in Kentucky in June.

Gilliland will make his debut for RYR this weekend in the Busch series Kroger 200.

The other spot at RYR could go to 19-year-old Stephen Leicht, who will attempt to make Sunday's race at Indianapolis his second Cup start.

Man blows up flat after being evicted Mon Jul 31, 11:45 AM ET



LISBON (Reuters) - An 80-year-old man blew up his flat on Monday to retaliate for being evicted by his landlord, bringing down part of his five-floor central Lisbon block and setting it alight.

"He had threatened neighbours that he would blow up the place if he ever got kicked out," Carlos Pinto, a fireman with the Lisbon fire brigade, told Reuters. "I guess he kept his promise."

He said neighbours had reported that the man had threatened to pour petrol on his floor and set it alight, and one reported seeing him with a bottle of petrol moments before the explosion.

The man suffered severe burns. No other casualties were reported.

Beekeeper brings 20,000 wasps into home Mon Jul 31, 4:23 PM ET


BERLIN - A German beekeeper attracted more than 20,000 wasps into his home when he brought his honeycombs indoors, but managed to escape injury, police said Sunday.

Police in the central city of Hildesheim said they were alerted to the 91-year-old man's predicament on Saturday afternoon by an observant neighbor.

The man had tried unsuccessfully to swat the insects toward the open window of his living room with a brush. Police called in a pest controller to deal with the swarm.

Waitress gets own ID when carding patron 2 hours, 57 minutes ago


WESTLAKE, Ohio - A bar waitress checking to see if a woman was legally old enough to drink was handed her own stolen driver's license, which was reported missing weeks earlier, police said.

"The odds of this waitress recovering her own license defy calculation," police Capt. Guy Turner said Monday.

Maria Bergan, 23, of Lakewood, was charged Sunday night with identity theft and receiving stolen property. She was arrested at her home in suburban Cleveland and was jailed in Westlake to await a court appearance.

The 22-year-old waitress, whose name was not released, called police last week and said she had been handed her own stolen driver's license by a woman trying to prove she was 21. The woman, who became suspicious of the delay as the waitress went to call police, fled the Moosehead Saloon, but her companion provided her name.

The waitress said she had lost her wallet July 9 at a bar in Lakewood.

The victim also had a credit card stolen. The stolen card has been used to make $1,000 in purchases, Turner said.

Man lifts car off trapped cyclist Mon Jul 31, 11:55 AM ET


PHOENIX, Arizona (Reuters) - A hefty bystander at a road accident in southern Arizona heaved a car clean off a trapped teenage cyclist, possibly saving his life, police said on Friday.

Eighteen-year-old Kyle Holtrust was struck by a car as he pedaled along a Tucson highway late on Wednesday and pinned beneath it, city police said.

Tucson paintshop worker Tom Boyle grabbed the Chevrolet Camaro car and lifted it, allowing the driver to haul the injured cyclist clear.

"He lifted that side of the car completely off the ground," police spokesman Frank Amado told Reuters by telephone.

Amado said Holtrust was being treated in hospital, and was expected to make a full recovery.

Local media said Boyle is 6 feet four inches tall and weighs 300 pounds (136 kg).

"It was outstanding," Amado said. "It is quite unusual to have that strength."

I rented Galaxy Quest over the weekend. First time I seen it, very funny movie. Glad you recommended it.

[16:48 US FED: Yellen--At a Delicate Point for Policy] Boston, July 31. San Francisco Fed President Janet Yellen (voter) said that the Fed is at "a delicate point for policy." She said she does not intend to send a signal about expectations for the August 8 FOMC meeting though she indicated that Bernanke does a good job of explaining policy and that the Fed is "close to the end of the road" with rate hikes. All in all, Yellen sounds as dovish as ever and likely to vote to hold rates steady at next week's FOMC meeting.
Jennifer.Rossum@thomson.com/jh

07/30/2006 7:51 PM ET
Cards pick up Belliard to man second
Former All-Star acquired from Indians in exchange for Luna
By Matthew Leach / MLB.com



CHICAGO -- The Cardinals are down to one revolving door in their starting lineup.
With the acquisition of Ronnie Belliard from the Indians on Sunday, St. Louis replaced a job-sharing arrangement at second base with an everyday player who was an All-Star two years ago. The Cardinals sent Hector Luna, who had been part of that time-sharing setup at the keystone corner, to Cleveland.

In Belliard, the Cardinals acquire a seven-year Major League veteran who has been a significant offensive contributor at times in his career. Belliard has a line of .289/.335/.419 (batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage) through 92 games with the Indians this year. He has eight home runs, 21 doubles, 44 RBIs and 43 runs scored.

"He's a good offensive player and he's a good defensive player," said general manager Walt Jocketty. "Right now he was the best offensive player we felt we could acquire."

Both players were surprised by the deal, and in fact Luna played the eighth and ninth innings of the Cardinals' game against Chicago after the deal had apparently been agreed to.

"I'll go to St. Louis, it's a good city to play ball in," Belliard said. "I'll try to help them win the division. I know I'm going to make friends over there, but I have a lot of friends here. I feel good about them, and I know they feel good about me, so it's hard for me. I didn't think they'd trade me."

Luna was close with a number of Cardinals players, particularly superstar Albert Pujols, and was definitely caught off guard by being sent to Cleveland. He came up through the Indians organization before St. Louis took him in the Rule 5 draft before the 2004 season.

He's expected to contend for the starting job at second base with the Indians.

"It's a good opportunity," Luna said. "I'm hoping to play every day in Cleveland."

Second base has been a problem offensively for the Cardinals this year. Luna put up solid offensive numbers in limited duty, but his inconsistency at the plate and in the field left the club nonplussed. Aaron Miles received the majority of the playing time at second base while Luna played a variety of positions. Belliard, meanwhile, will become the everyday starter.

Entering Sunday's games, Cardinals second basemen ranked near the bottom of the National League in nearly every offensive category. They were last in slugging (.364) and home runs (four), tied for last on runs scored (15), second-to-last in on base-plus-slugging (.702) and tied for 14th among 16 teams in RBIs (35).

Belliard thus represents an instant upgrade offensively from what the Cardinals had been getting.

The difficulty comes in parting with Luna, who in part-time duty at multiple positions had come close to Belliard's offensive abilities in 2006. He put up a line of .291/.355/.417 prior to the trade. He was erratic in the field, however, and manager Tony La Russa always maintained that he wanted to see Luna take more consistently good at-bats.

"I don't think anybody has more confidence in [Luna's] ability than we do -- not just I, but our staff," said La Russa. "And he's rewarded us with being a really good player. But the scouts that had been watching gave Walt the report that Belliard is more ready right now to be a complete player, and he would improve our chance to win."

Jocketty acknowledged Luna's potential, but nonetheless pointed to the offensive upgrade in the short term. Luna cannot be a free agent until after 2010, while Belliard is eligible for free agency this winter.

"[Luna was] a guy we had control of, and he's a guy that we hoped would step in and play second base this year," Jocketty said. "But he didn't develop into that, so we felt we had to try to upgrade.

"If you're going to improve your club, you have to trade something. You generally have to give up guys that you control longer than the guys you acquire."

Belliard had battled a sore hamstring recently, causing him to miss six games. But he played the last two games, and the Cardinals are confident they are acquiring a healthy player. Belliard is expected to be available for the club's next game, Tuesday night against Philadelphia.

"The thing that has always been impressive about him is that I've seen him rise to the occasion in winning situations," La Russa said. "He doesn't hide from them. He charges them. That's the thing I remember the most about him."

Second base had been one of several areas where the Cardinals were interested in an upgrade. They had interest in Carlos Lee and Bobby Abreu, both of whom have been moved in the past few days, but never got close on either outfielder. They remain in the hunt for one or more relief pitchers, an outfield bat and possibly a starting pitcher.

Matthew Leach is a reporter for MLB.com. Reporter Anthony Castrovince contributed to this report. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

If the Cardinals win the central division this year it will be without any help from the Cubs. The Cubs swept the Cardinals after todays 6-3 loss. The Cards are 3-10 against the Cubs this year.

The Cardinals still have a 3 1/2 game lead over the Reds.

Team W L PCT GB
St. Louis 58 46 .558 -
Cincinnati 55 50 .524 3.5
Milwaukee 50 55 .476 8.5
Houston 49 56 .467 9.5
Chi Cubs 43 61 .413 15.0
Pittsburgh 40 66 .377 19.0

Thanks jdz. I see you been doing a little butt kicking too. Nice trading. I'm on the sideline right now. I'm looking at a break of Thursday's high of 1.2773 as a possible entry. It could go sideways or down a while. There is negative divergence on the RSI and MACD 60 min. charts.

I closed eur/usd @ 1.2753.
+83 & +37

It has been going sideways since noon I and wanted to lock in a profit. It probably won't change much between now and Sunday anyway.

Everyone have a good weekend.

1989 - Vince Coleman is caught stealing by Nelson Santovenia in the Cardinals' 2-0 win over Montreal, ending his Major League record streak of fifty consecutive stolen bases.

That made Cardinal manager Whitey Herzog very happy. Vince Coleman became hesitant about stealing bases because he didn't want the streak to end. So he wouldn't try to steal a base as often. Herzog was happy to get the more aggressive Coleman back after the streak was over.

Eur/usd pulled back a little after reaching yesterday's high. Still holding my shares. Think it will go higher before the day's over.

One afternoon a lawyer was riding in his limousine when he saw two men along the roadside eating grass. Disturbed, he ordered his driver to stop and he got out to investigate.

He asked one man, 'Why are you eating grass?'

'We don't have any money for food,' the poor man replied. 'We have to eat grass.'

'Well, then, you can come with me to my house and I'll feed you' the lawyer said.

'But sir, I have a wife and two children with me. They are over there, under that tree.'

'Bring them along' the lawyer replied. Turning to the other poor man he stated, 'You come with us also.'

The second man, in a pitiful voice then said, 'But sir, I also have a wife and SIX children with me!'

'Bring them all, as well,' the lawyer answered. They all entered the car, which was no easy task, even for a car as large as the limousine was.

Once underway, one of the poor fellows turned to the lawyer and said,'Sir, you are too kind. Thank you for taking all of us with you.'

The lawyer replied, 'Glad to do it. You'll really love my place. The grass is almost a foot high.'

Good article. This is a good point:

When one is wantonly attacked by an aggressor, one has every right -- legal and moral -- to carry the fight until the aggressor is disarmed and so disabled that it cannot threaten one's security again.

Colorado man says he commited 48 murders By JON SARCHE, Associated Press Writer
Fri Jul 28, 4:50 AM ET


COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - A man serving a life sentence in Colorado for murdering a teenage girl has claimed responsibility for as many as 48 slayings across the country dating back more than three decades, authorities said Thursday.

Robert Charles Browne, 53, told authorities the slayings occurred from 1970 until his arrest in 1995. He was in court Thursday to plead guilty to one of those killings — the death of another girl in Colorado in 1987.

Authorities so far have been able to corroborate his detailed claims in six slayings — three in Louisiana, two in Texas and one in Arkansas, El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa said.

He said Browne's claim of 48 murders could be credible.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060728/ap_on_re_us/colorado_killer_17

Thanks. May get a pause at yesterday's high. But still should go up for a while. Good luck to you.

I don't have one yet. The July high of 1.2860 would be a nice target.

I got in at 1.2670 (bid from last night) and 1.2716 (after GDP came out). Looking good so far.

ECONOMIC REPORT
GDP slows to 2.5% in second quarter
Core consumer inflation rises at fastest pace in more than a decade

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B2AA95620%2D9F2E%2D463C%2D9620%2D7C1E21D3A95...

I'm going to set a bid too around the 1.2670 area and see what happens. Good night and good luck to ya.

Everything is going good here. Hope all is well with you. I like New Mexico too. Nice driving through it. Scenery is so different than where I live.

There may be some support about 1.2670. We may find out pretty soon. I may place a bid tonight. I don't know where yet. But most of my buying or selling will be after the number comes out tomorrow.

Written by DailyFX Research Team

US Gross Domestic Product Annualized (2QA) (12:30 GMT; 08:30 EST)

Consensus: 3.0%
Previous: 5.6%

Outlook: US growth looks to have slowed over the second quarter, as a number of factors combined to suppress consumer spending, which is itself expected to have risen only 2.1% for the period. Oil prices likely took a generous bite out of consumer’s budgets, evidenced by last month’s decline in retail sales. Another cut into growth likely came from the Federal Reserve’s unrelenting pace of rate hikes. The response to higher lending rates has come most fervently from the housing market, with new housing starts, demand for home loans, and sales of new and existing homes showing declines thanks to mortgage rates that are growing beyond most American’s income. The job market has also been less than spectacular, with non-farm payrolls coming in below expectations throughout the quarter. Probably the most recent piece of data incorporated into expectations was yesterday’s Beige Book from the Fed. A composite of surveys from all the federal districts mirrored recent nationwide data by reporting a turn in consumer spending. There is hope, however, that economic growth could benefit from strong manufacturing numbers, as durable goods sales grew at a respectable 3.1% in June and the Fed report also reporting positive shifts in business activity.

Previous: Last quarter’s GDP number came in higher than the anticipated 4.9% on consumption that reached its highest level in over two years. PCE numbers came in at 5.1%, up from a disappointing 0.9% increase in the last quarter of 2005. Low oil prices provided a rosy environment for growth, with many sectors of the economy reaping the benefits. One of these sectors was undoubtedly manufacturing, which saw a boost in demand with March’ s durable goods orders increasing by 6%, the highest in almost a year. Consumers were optimistic, with the University of Michigan confidence survey coming in at consistently high levels. This positive outlook translated quickly into strong retail spending, which grew at a 3% pace in January, the fastest in four years. The same month also saw housing starts grow 13%, for the quickest increase in thirteen years. However, growth had begun to taper off by the end of the quarter, with oil prices beginning their rise and the housing market already showing signs of weakness as housing starts fell abruptly by 7.8% in March.

Eur/usd hasn't done anything for hours. It could drift down for a while. We got GDP numbers out in the morning something will probably happen then.

It's cooled off ddf. Nice outside. Going to get hot again soon.

Just what he needs. lol

288-pound man gets 288 jellybeans Thu Jul 27, 4:15 PM ET


PLEASANT PRAIRIE, Wis. - What do you get a 288-pound man for his birthday? How about 288 pounds of jelly beans? His family didn't plan it that way, but when Mike Lively became the 1 millionth person to tour the Jelly Belly Center on his birthday Wednesday, he won his weight's worth of the sweet treats.

The 41-year-old Indiana man, who claims he weighs only 278 pounds, said he wasn't planning on sharing his windfall.

"Fork it out to my family and kids," said Lively, a steel worker, when asked what he would do with his prize. "None of the guys at work are getting any."

The factory reached the million-visitor milestone in exactly five years, according to store manager Mary Plebanek.

The tour, which allows visitors to see how the candy is made, is one of the most popular attractions in Kenosha County. It draws about 200,000 visitors annually, almost double the 110,000 people who visit the Kenosha Public Museum on average each year.

Lively, a first-time visitor to the factory, stared at the stack of bean-filled boxes, weighing one-seventh of a ton.

Gas war: Station sets price at 49 cents 19 minutes ago


CLOVIS, N.M. - A price war between two Clovis gasoline stations reached a fever pitch when one store dropped its fuel price to 49 cents per gallon.

The price war between Town and Country and Allsup's convenience stores snarled traffic in the eastern New Mexico town as about 200 vehicles lined up Wednesday to buy cheap gas, blocking the stores and a local fire station, Clovis Fire Marshal Allan Silvers said.

Silvers said he put an end to the battle because the traffic was a public safety hazard. He asked the stores "if there was anything they could do reasonably to remedy the situation."

Allsup's raised its fuel price from 49 cents to $2.83 a gallon and Town and Country raised its 99 cents per gallon price tag to $2.86, Silvers said.

"They raised prices on their own accord to dispel the traffic and after that was done, as you can imagine, people lost interest," Silvers said.

On Tuesday, the stores were selling below wholesale costs.

Dan McCurdy, a spokesman for Town and Country Food Stores, told The Clovis News-Journal on Tuesday that the competition has been going for several weeks. He said the Allsup's store has dropped its price per gallon to remain an average of 3 cents lower than Town and Country.

"In very simple terms, we're staying competitive with our competitors. We're not going to lose our customers because they're offering a lower price," McCurdy said.

Prison guard charged for inmate tobacco sales Thu Jul 27, 7:27 AM ET


NEW YORK (Reuters) - Everybody knows if smoking doesn't kill you it will at least lighten your wallet. In one New Jersey prison, the price starts at $800 a pound.

A guard at Fort Dix federal prison in New Jersey was charged on Wednesday with conspiracy to smuggle and sell two one-pound (450-gram) bags of tobacco to an inmate for $1,600, federal prosecutors in New Jersey said in a statement.

The guard, Timberly Gamache, 35, also was implicated in a deal to sell the inmate another two bags of tobacco plus a cell phone for $2,800, the statement said.

It turns out the inmate was cooperating with authorities.

Another inmate, Hassan Thomas, 31, already serving time for a drug offense, was charged with arranging the contraband sales.

Thomas had told the other inmate he could arrange the sales though prison guard Gamache in exchange for money transfers to Gamache's husband, the statement said. After federal agents wired the money, Thomas provided the goods.

Gamache was arrested at her home on Wednesday. She faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison plus a $250,000 fine.

Looking at the 60 min chart it looks like what you said we're in a wave 2 (correction) of a larger wave 3. I'll be looking to go long after the correction is over.

I just closed out at 1.2711.
+23

If this is wave 2 of a larger wave 3 then I need to look for a place to go long after this correction is over.

Thanks. I moved the stop down to the entry price. Watching closely.

It seems to have support at Sunday's high of 1.2710. If that holds I may not be in the trade much longer.

Looks like eur/usd could be forming a short term top, it shows a shooting star on the daily and bearish RSI divergence on the 60 min. chart. I took a short position @ 1.2734 with a stop above todays high.

Man survives run-in with falling dog in Poland Wed Jul 26, 10:15 AM ET


WARSAW (Reuters) - A man was bruised but alive on Wednesday after a Saint Bernard dog thrown out a two-story window landed on him as he was walking down the street in the southern-Polish city of Sosnowiec.

The 50-kg (110-pound) dog was pushed out of the window by its drunken owner on Monday, police said.

"The dog had a soft landing because it fell on a man," said police spokesman Grzegorz Wierzbicki. "The dog escaped with just a few scratches."

"The man was also more in a psychological state of shock than physically hurt," Wierzbicki added.

The one-year-old dog, named Oskar, was placed in an animal shelter while police investigate its owners for animal abuse.

Woman mails five-foot python Wed Jul 26, 8:11 AM ET


BERLIN (Reuters) - A German woman sparked panic at her local post office when a 1.5-meter (5-foot) albino python escaped from a packet she had mailed, police said Tuesday.

The 28-year-old woman, who had sold the snake over the Internet, stuffed it in a package labeled "attention -- glass" to be sent to its new owner.

"Staff accepted the package and put it in the back of the office -- they had no idea what it was," said police spokesman Andreas Blum. "All of a sudden, they noticed that it started moving around and then saw a big snake wriggling out of it."

One of the postal workers in the western city of Mechernich, who was familiar with snakes, wrestled with it and locked it into another container, while her colleagues ran away.

While it is not a crime to send snakes by post, the woman is being investigated for the improper treatment of animals.