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I Survived A Texas-Sized Winter Meltdown

Hey Traders,


Up until last October, I lived in Chicago for 40 of my 42 years on this planet. (I spent the other two in New York). 


But in the fall of 2020, my family and I made the big move to Austin, Texas, a switch that we have thoroughly enjoyed.


Case-in-point … on Feb. 9, I was relaxing outside in sunny, 64-degree weather …


I was in a Lonestar state of mind!


Then came the Big Freeze of ‘21.


As a tough-as-nails native Chicagoan, I’m not afraid of cold weather — it’s in my blood.


But, the rest of Austin?


Well, not so much.


I’ve lived in cold-weather climates my whole life and have never had my pipes freeze. In fact, I can’t recall ever losing power due to a winter storm.


I have also dealt with temperatures below zero for a week straight and have never had a problem, other than being cold when I walked to work. (Uphill, both ways and in the snow, for all my children know.)


When we decided to make the jump to Austin, we did so for a number of reasons, not least of which was the year-round nice weather.


Welp, as you may have heard, it was below freezing here for about a week recently.


Shocking, yes. But not a big deal for me … my body converts cold weather into Vitamin B12, I think.


But the rest of Texas …


Let me tell you, this type of weather doesn’t happen too often deep in the heart.


Temps dropped below freezing on Friday, Feb. 12, and didn’t climb back past that until Wednesday afternoon. Even then, the weather didn't really ‘break’ until this past Friday.


So a full week of abnormally low temperatures, thanks to a lot of polar vortex


In Chicago, that's pretty normal … in March.


In Texas … things break.


For a state built on energy, the grid is not designed for this much extended cold weather.


Refineries stopped working …


Wind turbines froze …


A LOT of people lost power, including my kids’ nanny and a family of close friends.


“Come on in, y’all,” we said, clearly proving that we’re now real Texans. “We have plenty of room!”


We do — but with 11 people and three dogs staying in the house, the conditions started to feel a little cramped.


THEN …


The pipes froze.


We lost water in half of my house … and hot water throughout the entire house.


We didn’t get hot water until Wednesday when temps rose to a balmy 34 degrees.


EVERYONE took a shower (individually) and got unsmelly … 


Then Wednesday night, the water stopped completely.


As of this writing on Friday evening, we have no water in the house …


We are using melted snow to flush the toilets …


I have not had a shower since Wednesday … and I’m using baby wipes to keep the ‘funk’ to a tolerable level.


Dark times at the Sebastian Ranch, friends. Dark times, indeed.


Now, there is some good news …


Our nanny and family friends finally got power earlier on Friday. They’re all gone with their kids and extra dogs …


And we never lost power, so we were very fortunate in that respect.


This Story Has A (Trading) Moral!


So what does this have to do with trading, you may be wondering?


Where is the big lesson, Mark?


Here it is …


Be prepared. What you don't think can happen … will.


Over the last year, we went from an all-time market high, to an 87 VIX and the biggest sell-off since 2008 …


And back to an even higher all-time high!


Twelve months ago, I would have predicted NONE of those things happening. (Let alone the Coronavirus and moving to Texas.)


But I had a GREAT year trading in 2020 and am doing well in 2021 (shower scarcity aside) …


Because I prepare and do my homework.


I am never in a position where I can’t trade — because I plan for the worst.


The way I (and my team at Option Pit) trade is that we try to make money every day,  BUT …


If the market craps out, our accounts will not.


Texas was unprepared for a week of really bad weather …


Is your portfolio prepared for a week of terrible market losses?


If not, you should reach out to us so we can show you how to be ready for the crazy times that will invariably return in some form …


Because you do not want your portfolio to end up like the central Texas power grid and water system — down and out.


Your Only Option,


Mark Sebastian

PS – I had planned to start a Sunday video series this week but, well, if you read this far, you know. So, next Sunday be on the lookout for the first in an ongoing series of options explainer videos!

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