In previous journals, I mostly reported updates and reflections on my strategies in crypto and betting. Today, I want to write about something different. Yesterday, I met Zoey for lunch. She had just returned from studying in Japan during her summer break. It had been over three years since we last met, and we ended up talking for almost two hours about everything and nothing. Zoey is one of my closest friends in the city, and our history goes back to 2019. We first met during one of the lowe...

In previous journals, I mostly reported updates and reflections on my strategies in crypto and betting. Today, I want to write about something different. Yesterday, I met Zoey for lunch. She had just returned from studying in Japan during her summer break. It had been over three years since we last met, and we ended up talking for almost two hours about everything and nothing. Zoey is one of my closest friends in the city, and our history goes back to 2019. We first met during one of the lowe...

Forward Testing and Early Lessons Over the past week, I’ve been forward testing my betting strategy, which had scored 17/21 in the historical database. In live conditions, though, it’s off to a rough start: just 2 wins out of 6, failing to match the accuracy seen during development. The good news, though, is that after an initial 4-loss streak, the last two games bounced back with wins. I might have lost heart and abandoned the strategy entirely if not for my consultations with GPT, which hel...

Forward Testing and Early Lessons Over the past week, I’ve been forward testing my betting strategy, which had scored 17/21 in the historical database. In live conditions, though, it’s off to a rough start: just 2 wins out of 6, failing to match the accuracy seen during development. The good news, though, is that after an initial 4-loss streak, the last two games bounced back with wins. I might have lost heart and abandoned the strategy entirely if not for my consultations with GPT, which hel...

The a13a strategy is currently facing new challenges. Last night, ETH was trading at 3660, meaning the large short positions that the whale added at 3535 and 3410 were already underwater. He ended up closing some of those shorts at 3660, confirming his misstep. Accordingly, I closed my own short position at 3650, taking a $2,000 loss — a decision I’m ultimately grateful for. This morning, ETH reached 3725. Had I held on, I would’ve been liquidated and lost around $5,000. In total, I earned $3...

The a13a strategy is currently facing new challenges. Last night, ETH was trading at 3660, meaning the large short positions that the whale added at 3535 and 3410 were already underwater. He ended up closing some of those shorts at 3660, confirming his misstep. Accordingly, I closed my own short position at 3650, taking a $2,000 loss — a decision I’m ultimately grateful for. This morning, ETH reached 3725. Had I held on, I would’ve been liquidated and lost around $5,000. In total, I earned $3...

The whale added to his ETH shorts at $3,535 and $3,410. His initial entry at $3,846 has performed extremely well, with ETH now dipping to $3,533, though his add-ons haven’t yet shown the same strength. Position sizes at each entry: 3M@3846, 6M@3535, and 2M @3410 Given his firm bearish stance, I offloaded 25% of my holdings over the past two nights. My USD reserve now stands at 66%, leaving me well-positioned to weather any black swan events and scoop up coins at discounted prices. If the mark...

The whale added to his ETH shorts at $3,535 and $3,410. His initial entry at $3,846 has performed extremely well, with ETH now dipping to $3,533, though his add-ons haven’t yet shown the same strength. Position sizes at each entry: 3M@3846, 6M@3535, and 2M @3410 Given his firm bearish stance, I offloaded 25% of my holdings over the past two nights. My USD reserve now stands at 66%, leaving me well-positioned to weather any black swan events and scoop up coins at discounted prices. If the mark...

Today marked a milestone in my crypto journey. As I closed an ETH short position I built earlier this week, I successfully locked in profits. The trade was executed using my copytrade strategy, and this time both the entry and the exit played out exactly as planned. To put it simply, the approach is built on tracking a particular smart whale whose strength lies in timing local tops. The insight behind this system is simple: his entries are consistently sharp, but his exits are often less prec...

Today marked a milestone in my crypto journey. As I closed an ETH short position I built earlier this week, I successfully locked in profits. The trade was executed using my copytrade strategy, and this time both the entry and the exit played out exactly as planned. To put it simply, the approach is built on tracking a particular smart whale whose strength lies in timing local tops. The insight behind this system is simple: his entries are consistently sharp, but his exits are often less prec...

The Discipline of Following, the Courage of Refinement This past week has been intense. The market gave volatility, and a13a—the whale I track—delivered signal, though imperfect as always.🐳 The Whale’s Bold Stancea13a has just loaded up heavily on shorts again, reaching a staggering -70,000 ETH with an average entry of 3618 and liquidation hovering around 3686. That’s a $253 million position—madness. His confidence is undeniable, but history tells me he often nails the entry, only to falter ...

The Discipline of Following, the Courage of Refinement This past week has been intense. The market gave volatility, and a13a—the whale I track—delivered signal, though imperfect as always.🐳 The Whale’s Bold Stancea13a has just loaded up heavily on shorts again, reaching a staggering -70,000 ETH with an average entry of 3618 and liquidation hovering around 3686. That’s a $253 million position—madness. His confidence is undeniable, but history tells me he often nails the entry, only to falter ...

Yesterday, I encountered a potential overcharging issue with my credit card. I had used the card to pay at a gas station, and the bill showed $39.30. However, when I got home and checked my credit card app, it showed a pending charge of $175 for the same transaction—far more than the actual amount. Feeling confused, I reached out to customer service via email. They responded promptly, requesting relevant documents to support my claim. I submitted the materials as instructed and now await furt...

Yesterday, I encountered a potential overcharging issue with my credit card. I had used the card to pay at a gas station, and the bill showed $39.30. However, when I got home and checked my credit card app, it showed a pending charge of $175 for the same transaction—far more than the actual amount. Feeling confused, I reached out to customer service via email. They responded promptly, requesting relevant documents to support my claim. I submitted the materials as instructed and now await furt...

Why I Pivoted from Favorite Team to Draw-No-Bet For a while, my Favorite Team (FT) strategy held emotional weight. I picked clubs I knew well, whose playing styles and trajectories I could read intuitively. It felt like a personalized edge — until it didn’t. After tracking results over dozens of matches, the stats began speaking louder than sentiment. My FT approach stood at 3 wins, 6 losses — a performance that not only lacked profitability but also demanded constant, last-minute decision-ma...

Why I Pivoted from Favorite Team to Draw-No-Bet For a while, my Favorite Team (FT) strategy held emotional weight. I picked clubs I knew well, whose playing styles and trajectories I could read intuitively. It felt like a personalized edge — until it didn’t. After tracking results over dozens of matches, the stats began speaking louder than sentiment. My FT approach stood at 3 wins, 6 losses — a performance that not only lacked profitability but also demanded constant, last-minute decision-ma...

Doing House Chores Like a Thai While washing dishes after lunch this afternoon, I had an epiphany: I should be doing house chores like a Thai. Here’s what I mean. In my experience, Thai people carry a “sabai sabai” mindset—a kind of easy-going, go-with-the-flow approach to life. It can sometimes breed a lack of professional accountability, but it also gives them a rare serenity and autonomy when facing whatever life throws their way. During my stay in Bangkok, I often hired local housewives t...

Doing House Chores Like a Thai While washing dishes after lunch this afternoon, I had an epiphany: I should be doing house chores like a Thai. Here’s what I mean. In my experience, Thai people carry a “sabai sabai” mindset—a kind of easy-going, go-with-the-flow approach to life. It can sometimes breed a lack of professional accountability, but it also gives them a rare serenity and autonomy when facing whatever life throws their way. During my stay in Bangkok, I often hired local housewives t...

Last month, I applied for two crypto-friendly Visa ATM cards. One has already arrived, and the other is expected next week. The application process, however, wasn’t without hiccups. Neither card supported China KYC, so I had to ask my dad to mail me my Thai driver’s license as an alternative. On top of that, one of the issuers wouldn’t ship directly to China, forcing me to route the card through a third-party warehouse in Hong Kong. To navigate these seemingly minor technical hurdles—KYC work...

Last month, I applied for two crypto-friendly Visa ATM cards. One has already arrived, and the other is expected next week. The application process, however, wasn’t without hiccups. Neither card supported China KYC, so I had to ask my dad to mail me my Thai driver’s license as an alternative. On top of that, one of the issuers wouldn’t ship directly to China, forcing me to route the card through a third-party warehouse in Hong Kong. To navigate these seemingly minor technical hurdles—KYC work...