I just got off the phone with a family member who is very nervous about having invested in SPQ. I, of course, introduced him to SPQ and after the usual warnings of doing his own due diligence - he decided he would jump right in - back in the fall and bought cold turkey at .18 - needless to say given the way things have gone recently he is not a happy camper.

He called me up and said, "Did all they strike was mud or what?" I have been keeping him informed as to the great discussion here on this board and even encouraged him to join up and follow what is happening instead of relying on me. He just lets me do the translating - bad news if we rely on others for such things - we have to do our own due diligence. It is so much less stressful to KNOW you are in a good thing than to THINK you MIGHT be based on somebody elses say so. The difference is this - I sleep well at night - he doesn't - because he does not have a clue what he invested in. In my view such is nothing less than a form of gambling. May I strongly suggest that if there is anyone here only because someone suggested it - then you need to do yourself a favour and study for yourself and make yourself approved. You will sleep better I assure you - now realize there is no free lunch - anything could happen - but based on probabilities we are in good stead with SPQ - not because I, Johndefur, or Snug says so - it is because based on what we know that is our conclusion. But you cannot be lazy and rely on someone elses view.

I learned early that you have to be careful when you introduce family and friends to stocks - I was encouraged by others in the past and I lost - however it just goes to show even when you think you have the next best thing to sliced bread you have to be careful - often if it is too good to be true it is.

While I understand his pain - as I have been there many times before - over time you develop a resistance to the short term drops and like learning to enjoy a roller coaster after riding it ten times straight it does not appear to be as scary by the tenth time 'round. Yet I encouraged him to hang tight - the fact is there has been some very precious "mud" coming up out of those holes - now is not a time to run - it is a time to exercise patience. He is at a point of just waiting till he breaks even and then he says he'll run. He is of course free to do as he chooses but after travelling this far down the road why turn back just after the sky clears? How many times have I missed out doing the same thing - only to find if I had a hung in there I would have been retired by now - only a couple of weeks was between being a have and a have-not ----- I ended up with the have-not.

As with any investment you need to keep your wits about you - if you ride emotion you are in for a lot of excitement but no money. If you remain calm you will best placed to make the wise decisions. Patience is something we are not born with - ask any new mother about that idea - but it is something we can develop and use to our advantage.

No now is NOT a time to run.