Happy 50th - trading days that is. Last week we clicked over 50 trading days for the year. And the stock market is up +8.3% year to date. Looking back historically, when the market is >5% on day 50, the rest of the year has been higher an amazing 24 out of 25 times. And up more than 12% on average.

My son scored his first goal at his futsal training game over the weekend. And boy was he happy! He's been playing soccer for about 9 months now, and every so often I see his confidence edge up a notch. Rain, hail, or shine, I'm there, cheering him on, debriefing every training session and game in the car on the way home. I'm his biggest fan. I'm never critical, always constructive. Sometimes I feel as though I'm a professional motivational speaker - ha! It's been a long time coming, and he's been quietly persistent, focussed, patient, discipled, and constantly learning. He knew the bigger picture, and he never gave up.

I watched the BlackBerry movie over the weekend. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it - a fascinating film that explores the incredible growth and collapse of the world's first smartphone. It really got me thinking about technology, and how far we've come in such a short period of time.

Markets are at all-time highs (ATHs). The economy is in good shape. Investor portfolios are ticking along nicely. The most common question I'm getting at the moment is whether the stock market can continue its run given ATHs. As regular readers would know, I turn to the history books to guide me to into the future. Thanks to Barry Ritholtz for this one.

As most of you would know, I have two boys, aged 9 and 7. They change their minds often - they want Mexican for dinner one minute, Indian the next, one minute they want to watch Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget, the next, it's Super Mario Brothers, today they don't want to attend Anthony's birthday party, the next day they do.

This is my first piece for 2024. I spent the summer with my wife and two boys - food, beaches, nature, adventure, and I managed to get back onto my bike. One of my many highlights was finding this little gem of a place - Bridgewater Bay. I've been going down to the Mornington Peninsula for decades now, and only found out about this place recently. It's a must visit! Remember to bring your reef shoes with you to get the most out of the place. How good is this...