RunawayTrader

If seclusion and luxury are what you are looking for, you might look no further than Sunset Island, a 27-acre luxury island consisting of a resort and residential community.

Situated just 500 yards from historic “Old Town” Key West, it’s still just far enough offshore to avoid city noise, congestion, and what I might call, tourist riffraff (he said, condescendingly). It’s accessible only by a 24-hour daily launch service from the Westin Resort & Marina. As you might expect, since no cars are allowed, auto theft on this tiny plot is minimal. Golf carts are the transit de rigueur.

Once your launch arrives at Sunset Key, you’re dazzled by another world with colorful tropical blooms of bougainvillea, hibiscus and frangi pani. Even better, a deep breath of fresh ocean air and glimpse of Gulf of Mexico vistas will wash awash even the worst depression the stock market might deliver. Catch a load of the “backyard” at my house.

But it wasn’t always so. This piece of land was originally owned by the US Navy and was used as a fuel depot. Back then it was fittingly dubbed “Tank Island.” In 1986 the island was sold to developers. The fuel tanks were disassembled and reused as an artificial reef just off the coast. In 1996 construction of the Westin Hotel began and Sunset Key started to be developed for residential luxury homes, as well as guest cottages for the Westin.

Incidentally, for you weather-weary slugs toughing out winter anywhere north of, say, 35 degrees N latitude, you should know that there are still a few vacant lots available on the island, plus a couple of newly constructed homes. I walked past a lot today (no house) selling for $4 million so don’t stampede for the exits.

As for Internet access, it’s everywhere. My host, maverick business entrepreneur and bestselling author Bob MacDonald, has wi-fi in both his 10-room seaside shanty as well as the guest house where I’m camped out. I can also hit the beach and pick up a decent signal which I’ll use tomorrow morning to catch the market open. I’ll have more about contrarian Bob MacDonald this weekend.

But—Can Runaway Charlie Earn His Keep?

Meantime, I was hoping for a down market today so I could find some new stock buying opportunities—and I lucked out. I slipped into FSLR just as the market closed. Runaway Trader only has to earn airfare plus a small amount of pin money while I’m here. I figure maybe $850 should do it. I can pull that off with one decent trade, but I only have Friday or Monday to make it happen. We’ll see.

To help make that possible, I moved some additional bucks from the sidelines into my trading account but they haven’t arrived yet. I certainly don’t believe the market has ended its hair-raising volatility, but with the increased margins, I have a little more running room to stay out of trouble and make my money work harder. After all, you can’t runaway on chump change.

Well, not exactly. But you’ll have to runaway and join the circus to make ends meet. It’s either that or swabbing the decks of that tramp steamer I always kid about. And if that happens, I might never see home again.

—-Charlie, the Runaway Trader