“I was supposed to retire in seven years. Seven years,” my Uncle Robert was telling me over hot dogs at a Memorial Day picnic on Sunday.

“I want to retire already. This is insane.”

He's not alone.

But as the United States struggles through a recession, baby boomers like my uncle are in a bad place.

Their 401(k) plans and other investment savings have taken a big hit, along with their homes. Others have found themselves unemployed and unemployable just years from retirement with insufficient savings.

Millions have saved less than $50,000 for retirement.

Millions more are in for quite a rude awakening.

Unfortunately, many are making the same mistakes over and over again, letting the over-leveraged hijinks of Wall Street chase them away from the market.

They're letting the Facebook, banking, and global government shenanigans deter them from the real money-making trades.

But I'll tell you what I've been telling my uncle for months: Bet on natural gas.

Natural gas is offering smart investors the opportunity of a lifetime.

The Recent Run-up Won't Last 

I said this at $3.60. I said it below $2. And I'll say it again...

Demand for natural gas will not catch up to supply. We will never consume all the gas we have in this country.

In fact, there's so much gas out there that analysts fear we'll run out of places left to store it.

"I cannot in my memory recall a time like this, when we have created a surplus that may be beyond our capacity to store," says Weeden & Co.

According to MIT, we have 90 years' worth at current consumption rates (or 650 trillion cubic feet of recoverable supply). An Energy Information Administration report estimates 750 trillion cubic feet — more than a 100-year supply. The Marcellus Shale could extend these figures.

The bottom is not in.

I have no intention of going long — and neither should you.

~~wd_nat_gas~~

The lower the cost of natural gas, the lower the cost for switching vehicles to gas.

It's why Pickens' company, Clean Energy Fuels Corp., has 273 fueling stations and is spending $450 million to build a network of LNG stations on major trucking corridors across the country.

They're partnering with Pilot Flying J to add natural gas tanks at more than 100 truck stops by year-end.

Waste Management (WM) will only buy natural gas trucks.

FedEx will have its first long-haul nat gas truck on the highways this summer.

UPS bought 48 natural gas-powered rigs just last month.

Wal-Mart, AT&T, General Motors, and Coca-Cola are all switching over.

Even Frito-Lay says running natural gas powered trucks costs about 40% less a mile...

The company is replacing most of its long-haul trucks with natural gas vehicles.

How to Trade It

You'll want to keep an eye on companies like Westport Innovations (NASDAQ: WPRT, TSX: WPT).

These are the guys that make low-emission engines and fuel systems for natural gas-fueled vehicles.

Companies like Cummins and PACCAR are already seeing big demand for these natural gas vehicles.

~~ians_signoff~~