JJC's Mr. Softee Spot

For one week, I owned no Microsoft(MSFT Quote). That was about as long as I could stay away. I have been a Microsoft-aholic ever since the company came public. I weathered a tough transition to Windows 98. I weathered a half-dozen personal-computer slowdown scares.

But in the end, the one-two combination of relentless Justice Department pursuit and an earnings conference call from hell just plain wore me down. I bolted at 76, and our trading sheets were suddenly Microsoft-free for the first time since I established my hedge fund in 1987.

Ten points and many billions later, after the dust cleared last week, we jumped back in. I simply can't stay away. As much as I think these guys may have blown the quarter and misread the Justice Department as a bunch of guys in bad suits who worked for little money (in fact, they were a lot smarter and flashier than the 'Soft defenders), I admit it. I can't stay away. This beautiful engine of a company in the end has made me too much money. I was happy to dodge a 10-point hit in "the name" (as we call all stocks at our company), but I couldn't take watching this stock go back up without me. ...