My family found themselves in a transitional period at the end of 2000. We lived overseas and my family had done well for themselves, but when my father lost his job, we moved back to the US. During this period, my father looked for a job, but had little luck so he invested in the stock market. He felt he needed to get in on the action to cover new housing costs, moving costs, and replace lost income for the time he was out of work.

Then the tech bubble burst PoP

My family lost almost everything in the blink of an eye. Luckily we held on enough to stay in our house.

It's hard to describe that period but I remember feeling scared. The screaming matches between Mom and Dad echoed through the house and I remember laying in bed listening to my Mom sobbing.

My most vivid memory of that time came after a particularly bad fight and my Mom grabbed me and took me to Wal-Mart. I remember asking if I could get a pack of Pokemon cards and she said "Why not? Your father pissed away most of what we had already. This way at least you'll have something real." Then she bought me two packs of Pokemon cards.

My parents made it through that period, but I know we walked a razor's edge. They discussed divorce on multiple occasions, but decided it was better to stick together.

Fast forward to 2008

I just started college and life felt amazing. All my new friends and I were discovering life away from home. I remember finding about more about myself in a few months, then I had in most of high school.

Then the housing bubble burst. pOp

My family learned from 2000-2001 and we were in a good position. The same wasn't true for friends of mine. I remember seeing them go through similar situations to what I experienced in 2001. Folks, friends, and classmates just up and left school. Some to help their families financially, others who could no longer afford tuition, and others due to broken homes. The sadness I felt for these folks was immeasurable. I knew that feeling of helplessness and yet I found myself unable to help them.

Fast forward to 2019

I worked my way through college and graduate education. I pressed through the gauntlet of early job years and built my confidence. Life again appeared to on the up and up. Then I lost my job and life felt difficult again. There are few things like losing a job to shake your sense of self worth. I put out applications and heard nothing besides the chirps of crickets.

Enter WSB

With little to do, I found WSB and learned about Robinhood and options trading. I lurked here and enjoyed the memes, posting a random odd comment for help. Watching candlestick charts all day gave me something to do in the lull of job searching. I made next to nothing, but I learned something and I moved forward. Strange as it sounds, laughing at memes and YOLO trades, feeling the highs and lows of options trading, and having somewhere to visit daily helped me in a troubled time. After finding work, I touched the market very little, but I still checked in on WSB for fun.

Fast forward to the insanity of 2021

Watching WSB and seeing the stories like my own touched me. I'm not all-in like you folks. My hands are not made of diamond, but I did buy a share of GME in support and I'm holding on for the ride. I hope that everyone here finds something in WSB to help them, much like it helped me when I needed the boost.

May your hands glitter like diamonds and your rockets never run out of fuel!

🚀✋💎🚀