Lock it in or let it ride? It's a question that investors might ponder at this point in an unexpectedly rewarding year, as the calendar pivots appropriately from the season of feigned fright to one of gratitude for life's bounty. For most people, this is less about getting fully out of or staying wholly in equities, but it's a moment to set expectations and perhaps portfolios in recognition of the distance traveled to date. The S & P 500 is up 16.3% this year to 6,840, which is almost exactly 2,000 points higher than its intraday low at the depths of the tariff panic on April 7. With dividends, it's delivered more than 17%. Even the staid 60/40 stock-bond portfolio, as represented by the Vanguard Balanced Index Fund, has logged a total return of 13.1% this year, trouncing its long-term ave

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