To The Moon

It’s still early in 2026—barely a few days in—and my portfolio has been quiet. No new stocks, no new ETFs, no sudden bursts of conviction. Just me watching the market move without me.

Then today, I submitted a buy order for SOXS.

Nothing dramatic happened after that. The order is still sitting there, waiting, like a question mark I’ve placed into the market. I set a limit price of $2.68 per share. Whether the price ever gets there is out of my control now. If it fills, it fills. If it doesn’t, so be it.

SOXS, of course, is an inverse ETF. It says a lot about my current mindset. I’m bearish on 2026—or at least, I feel bearish. That feeling has been with me for a while now. The ironic part is that I’m often wrong when I feel most certain. History hasn’t exactly been kind to my market pessimism. Still, the feeling lingers, stubborn and unresolved.

Direxion Daily Semiconductors Bear 3x Shares (SOXS)

What pushed me to place the order wasn’t a grand thesis or a dramatic market signal. It was simpler than that. SOXS fell sharply today, and seeing that drop triggered something familiar: the urge to average down. The logic may not be perfect, but the instinct was immediate. I didn’t chase the price. I didn’t rush in with a market order. I chose a limit and stepped back.

Now, I wait.

There’s something strangely revealing about a first trade—or almost-trade—of the year. It sets a tone, exposes a bias, captures a mood. My first move of 2026 isn’t bold or confident. It’s cautious, conditional, and slightly conflicted. Bearish, but not aggressive. Interested, but not fully committed.

If the order fills, SOXS becomes my first position of the year. If it doesn’t, then my first trade of 2026 will be an unfilled intention—a reminder that sometimes the market decides for me.

Either way, this is how 2026 begins for me: not with certainty, but with a limit order waiting at $2.68, quietly asking the market a question and waiting to see if it answers.