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Gents-
Just wanted to update you guys on my position. Clearly, BP was up a lot of the last week or so. It took some balls, but I bit the bullet and stayed in for the ride. Since its low of $26.75, it shot up as high as $33.90 in relatively short order. I sold today at $33.67 for a little profit.
Although this turned out OK for me, I will say this taught me a valuable lesson: Don't panic. Further, I am done buying individual stocks of companies in crisis mode. Although I made around 10% in a month, there was a ton of emotional stress and huge risk to lose 10% or more.
My buddy was a day trader in NY and he always tells me it was an awful job. I never believed him, but the pressure to make money every single day is what must have worn him down. I am so much more comfortable being a long term investor in a diversified ETF where one piece of news doesn't knock the fund around so violently. Sure, this strategy yields ordinary results, but for now, I don't feel comfortable investing the time and emotion in managing individual stocks.
Another friend of mine bought BP around the same price as me, but he bought 1,200 shares. When it was down to $27, he panicked and sold his entire position. I couldn't blame him since he had $35,000+ in it, but of course now he's sick about it.
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