Porcupine and Jaguar were unlikely friends. Jaguar sped through life where Porcupine stopped to smell the roses. Jaguar and Porcupine both wanted to make some extra money apart from their jobs in territorial establishment. Porcupine wanted to save money for his porcupettes' futures, and Jaguar wanted to afford two pairs of new speedy sneakers.

Portfolio Diversification: the practice of holding a large number of different stocks so that increases in some stocks can offset declines in others (popular strategy)

Porcupine wanted to invest for the long-term, because he wanted to ensure that the porcupettes could go to college and possibly law or med school. Porcupine, cautious by nature, decided to invest in mutual funds because he had heard that their returns were nearly guaranteed to be successful and their portfolio diversification helped to prevent risk and ensure success.

Stockbroker: person who buys or sells securities for investors

Day-trade Stocks: buying and or selling stock within the same day or the day immediately after the purchase of stock

Jaguar did not like to wait for things to happen. He wanted to have money immediately, so he decided to invest in day-trade stocks. Though considered a risky investment for an amateur, Jaguar felt his research on day-trading and Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) made him as smart as a stockbroker. Jaguar hoped to double his money quickly so he would get the shoes he wanted before they were out of stock.

Jaguar soon realized his mistake when he had lost money the next day, so much so that it appeared he OWED the stock market. Jaguar ran to Porcupine, crying out in remorse over the lost of the opportunity to save his money, the scarcity of the sneakers he wanted, and of the unforeseen complexity of day-trading.