Hey everybody thanks for all the tips, I am glad to read that it looks like everybody on the thread has gotten some direction and/or had the chance to share. Good lookin out!!
Absolutely nothing wrong with hedging a long portfolio with a short ETF. Another way to hedge a long port is selling VIX puts. The beauty of selling VIX puts (again against a portfolio with mostly long positions) is if your put loses money that means the vix has dropped significantly and the rest of your port is doing great! If your put expires OTM you keep the premium collected. Again options do offer many way to make (and lose) money so understand them and start small.