Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Summer 2007 - The Album

How time flies. The Blog is over a year old already. Anyway.. even though this was my first summer as an adult, I still want to continue the tradition of having a song to represent every week of my summer. Now go to i-tunes (haha suckers) or wherever you download music from and check these songs out.

June
01 - Throw Some D's - Rich Boy
02 -Stokie - QQ
03 - Flex - Mad Cobra
04 - A Bay Bay - Hurricane Chris
July
05 - 9 to 5 - Dollar Parton
06 - Computer Games - Yellow Magic Orchestra
07 - Crank That - Soulja Boy
08 - Anonymous - Bobby Valentino
August
09 - I Can't Help It - Michael Jackson
10 - When Can I See You Again - Babyface
11 - Backseat - Brian McKnight
12 - Beautiful Girl - Michael Jackson


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Sunday, August 12, 2007

Pyramids are for Pharos... and Suckers!

What a crazy month I've had, and I never not once ever got to write it down on the internet for total strangers to see. I almost got involved in a pyramid scheme, my job pushed me one foot over the edge, and I'm starting to get into a serious relationship.

Sadly, my blog has to remain job complaint free. Equally as sad is the fact that my budding relationship has to remain sarcasm free... to a point. So I'm gonna focus on this awesome business opportunity.. uhh, I mean pyramid scheme.

As you know I'm taking the steps to become a freelance graphic designer. I went to Barnes & Nobles to buy a book on graphic design after work. This guy and his wife apporaches me talking about how he has a buisness and they do work with Circut City which he asssumes I work for since he apparently can't read the logo on my shirt. He asks me if I'm keeping my options open to make more money (who isn't ) and he takes my cell number. He calls me a week later and we set up a meeting at Barnes & Nobles.

Thus begins the madness.
To me this guy was the posterboy for unprofessional details. He pulls out a business folder filled with loose-leaf sheets torn from a binder. Like he couldn't open the binder and take the paper out. Alright whatever, I wanna hear how I'm gonna make this money. Nope. First we discuss why 10% of the world owns 90% of the wealth, what my dreams are, and the difference between residual and linear income. That last one is apparenlty a big selling point. Do some work now, get paid forever. Makes sense to me. He tells me the compnay sets you up with an internet store and they're not looking to take my money...We arrange another meeting for him to actually explain how the "system" works.

At the next meeting (froth with more torn looseleaf), the guy slowly goes into how the business actually works. Within seconds I recognize that this is a pyramid scheme. Well after some internet research, it's really called Multi-Level Marketing. Essentially, you sell stuff, you keep a percentage of the profit, and your "upline" or the guy who signed you up gets a percentage, and so forth. Obviously here it's good to be the king. My research showed that the guys at the top make most of their money from selling "optional" motivational books to the guys near the bottom. Even though I was no longer interested in this "buisness opportunity" he kept calling me honest and sharp so I continued the process while playing the PS3 version of Devil's Advocate.

The next and final meeting is at this guys house where he's supposed to show me his business website. Mind you, even mapquest couldn't find this place in Hialeah, Fl. All the while I'm paying specific attention to things in this guy's home because he claims to be a successful business owner through the system. Well not enough to upgrade the 1997 Eclipse in the driveway.

Nobody answered the door, but he suddenly appeared from the side. He leads me into the side of the house into this tiny room. I'm not sure if he lives in all of this house or just this little studio looking place on the side. Furthermore, the only furniture in this room was an old love seat and two 1985 lawn chairs. We are now playing Devil's Advocate on the Hard setting.

He tells me more about how the business works and that I'd have to make a list of people to recruit. He never talked about selling stuff on your store, just about recruiting people to become your downlines, and helping your downlines get their own downlines... Another interesting fact was that during the first month, your store has to make $200. So if nobody buys anything, you have to buy it yourself. Why do that when you can goto walmart? Well this guy didn't think it through cause his whole house was stocked with stuff from his own store.

Finally, after more looseleaf paper ripped from binders, he decides to show a video about a successful couple who used to program to become millionaires. I almost lost it when lo and behold, we watched the dvd on his Playstation 2! Business owner!!!! You are watching a promotional video with a perspecitve client on the playstation? Later I found out the guy in the video is actually the CEO of the whole company and did not go through the system...

I prompty told the guy I wasn't interested anymore and went to work. But the sad part is this dude is an electrical engineer with no sense. I still got his card. I'm gonna send a spy in a year and find out if he's a millionair or not.

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