Wednesday, December 18, 2013

White Hole

 White Hole



White hole: the theoretical posterior of a black hole—the discharging end of where one universe's devoured cosmic energy and matter is ejected into a new universe. Some scientists theorize that a black hole is a collapsing or imploding star that began its new existence by grabbing onto nearby mass and energy. The end result is an eternal implosion that gets larger and larger. White holes are a feasible theory when considering the mystery of where all that devoured matter and energy goes. It has sometimes been theorized that our own universe was created by a star in another universe that died out, imploded and fed life into our own by delivering astronomical amounts of mass and energy through the receiving end of the black hole; the white hole.

I woke up this morning not looking forward to facing the day. The previous evening I learned that because of a minor flaw in financing, one of my real estate buyers would be unable to close on a listing of mine. Worse yet, this created a domino effect that killed a double whammy transaction. The buyer was supposed to purchase a listing of mine, and the sellers of mine were supposed to purchase another home I had sold them. Losing the sale was only half of the grief. I also felt guilty because three couples—possibly four—had learned that they were not going to close. I believed that I was the one who was supposed to make things happen for these people. Imagine waking up one morning with such horrible thoughts of guilt before even putting your feet on the floor.

In further frustration and hopelessness, I began to beat myself down while reminding myself that for a couple months I hadn't seen a sale. Was real estate the job for me? Then, just as I rolled over to push myself out of bed, I glanced at the floor and noticed a Christmas ornament that had somehow fallen from the tree months ago, and ended up near my bed. It had about a dozen braids of gold that when hung as a decoration would look like a golden icicle. The way it laid there, it reminded me of an ancient statue called the Hindu Dance of Creation. This suggestion catapulted me into speculating the different theories of how the universe was constructed which did give me some sort of relief from the despair I was feeling.

Suddenly, I remembered a dream from the previous night in which I was way out in space and observed an enormous hole radiating the most beautiful, brilliant, white light I had ever seen. It was likened to being a tiny bug in a swimming pool that observed the jet end of water shooting out of a pool filter. I could actually see the light as bubbling mass that ran out like water and flowed all over the cosmos.

That's when it hit me! Inside of me was a black hole that consumed all of my energy. It definitely felt like a dying star. But there had to be receiving end to the black hole, right? With this speculation in mind, I declared that every time a real estate deal fell apart, or my luck seemed to be down; I would become a white hole in space that radiates light and energy comparable to trillions of suns. New life... New Energy... A NEW UNIVERSE INSIDE OF ME!

I sprang up (but was careful not to wake the wife) and went to the kitchen to make coffee. "Look at all that mass and energy converting grinded beans into coffee!"

I poured milk into my cup and was amazed, "Look at the gravity pulling the mass out of this milk jug!"

Only moments ago I was careful not to wake my wife while getting out of bed. But now I had to wake her just to show her the wonderful phenomenon.

"Honey, wake up! Look!"

She looked confused and concerned as to why I woke her up.

"This milk jug represents an entire universe of mass and energy trapped in a black hole. The gravity on the outside is like a white hole when I tip the jug over and pour the milk into the glass! See how the milk jug is a beautiful white hole in space, radiating an astronomical amount of mass and energy!"

She nearly smacked me on the head. "You woke me up for that?"

***

Later that day I visited a potential client to present a market evaluation. The husband and wife wished to sell their home and were curious of its market price. But why not sneak in a little sales presentation along with it? Among the items used for this presentation were a few small containers of milk. This was going to be a new tactic that I called "White Hole Marketing". It would bring new life into my usual, boring sales pitches.

"So what are you going to do when your home has been for sale for a long time?”It's priced right, and you're getting all the exposure with no offers? Are you going to feel down? What are you going to do when you are a few weeks from closing and find out that the buyer lost his job and can't close on your home? Are you going to fall into despair? No you are not! You will become the receiving end of a black hole way out in space. You will be like a white hole radiating new energy comparable to trillions of suns. See this small container of milk? This container represents you; an entire universe! The milk represents all your hopes and dreams. But what do you do when your hopes and dreams are smashed to pieces like me throwing the container of milk on the floor and jumping on it like this..."

I threw the container of milk on the floor and jumped on it which made the container explode and spray milk out all over the kitchen. I grabbed another and another and repeated so the seller would get the idea, "See... you are a beautiful white hole in space... THIS IS HOW WE SELL YOUR HOME!!!"

Suddenly, the husband leapt out of his seat as if struck by sublime motivation. But what was this? His choice of words was most unexpected. "Alright, you can leave! Get out of here before we call the police! Does your broker know you do this?"

I didn't let the rejection get me down. I figured my energy was too intense for the sellers, and they were not ready for a Realtor of such magnitude. I drove off and couldn't wait to meet the next seller or buyer with my "White Hole Marketing" presentation.

Early in the evening I watched a news story on TV that reported plans were being made to launch the first manned mission to Mars in the next couple decades. I thought about what a perfect opportunity it would be to seek out new, prime real estate on Mars. From that moment, on, I decided to become the first Re/Max agent to land the Re/Max balloon on Mars. I formulated the future advertisement in my head, "When the first human foot touches the soil of Mars, Re/Max will be there, scouting out prime real estate for residential and commercial needs. Why not list your home with an agent who is going places?"

***

And that's what selling homes is all about. You've got to be a source of energy and new ideas for your buyers and sellers. You've got to think and act quickly. You've got to be cutting edge, and you have to realize that for every opportunity, there is an obstacle; and for every obstacle, there is a new opportunity.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The Screaming Worm

      I used to enjoy a little fishing every now and then. I wasn't too serious with the sport as most fishers would laugh at the idea of me using worms -- the mark of a truly-inexperienced fisher. If one is truly experienced and plans on going after large fish, the technique of casting lures is used.

I gave up fishing with worms the day I baited a hook and could hear the poor invertebrate-creature screaming. I kid you not: the worm was making a high-pitched hissing noise that I identified as screaming -- evidence that the worm was traumatized by what had happened. I looked in the container purchased at the bait shop and felt as though the worms were watching me and saying that I would pay dearly for my atrocious acts of violence. I never baited another worm ever again!

Friday, June 12, 2009

The Eye

 Hello All:

Here's another strange story I had included in one of the Hello All portions of a column back in 2000/2001. I wish I could remember the inspiration for writing this story. Was this a dream I had, or was this one of those strange thoughts that become real when you are alone?


The Eye


Well it’s Monday again. Everyone knows by now that Monday is my favorite day of the week. This Monday was a little strange for me. I got up in the late afternoon like I do every Monday. My wife does not get home until 7:30, so I got myself ready for the day and proceeded to clean the apartment. As I went to the guest closet where we keep our vacuum cleaner, I had a strange urge to look out of my peep hole to see if someone was at the door. What I saw shocked me. An eye was peering through the hole and touched mine and felt as if it was scanning my brain. I think that who or whatever was out there was controlling my brain because the next thing I did was open the door to let “them” in”. I could not believe that I did this! I was terrified of who was out there, but I let them in. I have no recollection of anything after that. I only remember thinking about what happened while I was vacuuming. I proceeded to make dinner, and did not tell my wife about the incident. Not much time had lapsed between the opening the door and vacuuming. “They” must have been inside the apartment for seconds and then left.


Thursday, December 4, 2008

Silence, Beautiful Silence

Silence, Beautiful Silence


Famous quote: Music is the pause between the notes! Many people might argue that music is about sound, so how could the silent pauses between the notes be music? But if you think about it, if the music was a constant surge of noise, it would just be unintelligible noise.  There has to be an empty space in-between each note for the sound to be recognizably music. Oh sure; today's modern music offers high-energy, high-speed tunes that makes some people wonder if it's music, but if you listen closely, there are brief pauses in between the notes -- as small as those pauses might be.

From the moment a child wakes up, his or her day is constant sound, stimulus, and chatter. If you've ever asked a child to enjoy the silence for a brief moment, it is not understood by the child. Silence with no stimulus is boring and depressing to a child. Enjoying the silence could be another way of saying, "You are being punished!" But to a parent, silence is a wonderful thing. Many parents seize those small moments when they are alone to enjoy the silence -- peace and quiet. So what is this need to enjoy peace and quiet? Why do some people crave a few moments of silence?

The human brain is a complex organ that was designed to be constantly active. It constantly seeks information, and constantly thinks in words. Many times the brain urges you to communicate thoughts and ideas. The brain just never shuts up, even when it is asleep. But often we steal a moment to find a time and place when we can deprive our brains of stimulus and silence our internal dialogs. Isn't it strangely un-natural? The brain wants to keep going, but there is a certain part of us that want it to shut down for a while. Sometimes people meditate and concentrate on silence. They actually have to force the brain to be silent. In the metaphysical world, we are told that humans live in idea-construction realities. The very place we exist is fueled by constant thoughts and beliefs. And the reason we sleep is because we no longer have the energy to sustain the idea-construction reality. It takes time to restore this energy before we are ready to once again form that world we live in.

So why do wide-awake people crave silence, and why do they wish to silence their thoughts? Is it because they realize they miss something by totally existing in this idea-construction reality? Is there a point in people's life when they want to enter situations without any pre-conceived notions altering their decisions or the things they say?

Ask yourself, "Do you like commercials?" Sure, some of them can be entertaining at times, but can you honestly say you enjoy having -- say for example -- car commercials with finance options being broadcasted into your brain? Or do you like it when you go to work and someone starts broadcasting all their woes and negative gossip about work into your brain before you even sit down to your work station? I would bet most of you like to start your day off with a fresh, clean mind and really don't care to have car commercials and negative gossip flooding your mind.

Silence is a very difficult concept to write about. But I would bet most of you agree that silence is a beautiful thing and a very useful tool to gather strength, energy, and insight. Someone once asked me what kind of music I like to listen to at home. And my kind of music goes like this: I sit down on the floor and close my eyes with head tilted slightly up. I relax my abdomen and breathe easily and relaxed. There is no noise around me, no stimulus, and no outside information to be digested. Soon my eyes begin to relax and seem to focus on the darkness of my mind. Ah... the peace and quiet can finally be felt within.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Forget IQ; It's EQ that Matters Most

Hello All,

The rules of society have changed as far as courtesy is concerned. What do I mean by that? Let’s say your neighbor started a party on Sunday afternoon, but it is now Monday morning at 1:30 am and there are a few heavy partiers still lighting fireworks, and listening to loud music. You need to get up for work early, and as far as you remember, it was courteous to keep the noise down to a minimum after 10:00 pm so people can sleep. If you go to your neighbor’s house to ask him to please keep it down, you are now being the rude person! In today’s society, you are being self-centered by expecting a great party to keep it down after 10:00 pm!

Or, suppose you and your spouse go to a nice, expensive restaurant one evening and at one of the tables nearby is a couple who brought their two-year-old son who has been screaming and crying the entire dinner. The other couple doesn’t seem to be doing anything to keep the child quiet and if this were McDonald’s it would be okay to bring a noisy child to dinner. But as far as you remember, it was courteous to at least quiet down or remove a screaming child from the table at an expensive restaurant. If you complain or expect the other couple to do something about the screaming two-year-old, you are being the rude and self-centered person. The rules of society have changed! But I wonder if that same couple, years later, would follow the same rule and be okay with another couple leaving their screaming kid in an expensive restaurant. Or would they now expect some courtesy and expect differently?

I am taking a critical thinking class by a professor who is a clinical psychologist. In a recent lecture, he introduced a concept of EQ which basically over-shadowed the traditional IQ as a measurement for intelligence. I’m not sure if my introduction above has anything to do with EQ, but half-way through the lecture, I was delighted to hear that the 5 characteristics of someone with high EQ matched people with courteous and thoughtful attitudes. It was like a small beacon of light of promise in a world where rudeness prevails… being rude gets results… and people are learning not to care about other people. Today’s column is a summary of the 5 characteristics of high EQ

 Forget IQ; It's EQ that Matters Most


For decades, the primary test and measurement for intelligence was the IQ test. The higher your IQ score, the higher your intelligence. IQ measures how fast someone’s brain can process information, memorize series of numbers and answer trivial questions such as “How long did the Civil war last?”, “Who was the 23rd president of the United States?” The theory is if someone can retain that much information and process information at a high speed, then the amount of intelligence must be great.

IQ cannot be developed. You are born with a certain amount of IQ and that is all you are going to have. And as you age, your IQ decreases – unless of course you continue to challenge your brain throughout your lifetime.

Intelligence has been associated with an ability to make money and be successful. So naturally, someone with a high IQ would be considered someone most likely to be successful. Look at the high school yearbooks. They usually have recognitions such as “person most likely to succeed”. These assumptions are usually based on how well the student did in high school.

Define success: we could say it is the ability to be happy. Recently, studies suggest that IQ has absolutely nothing to do with success and personal happiness. The new thinking is that IQ is similar to rating how fast a CPU processes data. A new measurement called EQ (emotional intelligence) just might be the gage that determines how successful and happy someone can be. And guess what? Unlike IQ, EQ can be developed throughout your lifetime! It can also be taught by parents, teachers, and peers.

EQ can be defined as an ability to be aware of ones feelings and emotions as well as the feelings and emotions of other people. With this awareness, someone with high EQ can control his or her actions and ultimately take control of his or her own life. 

There are 5 elements of EQ: self awareness, self control, delay of gratification, empathy, and social skills revolving around an awareness of others. The elements can be further classified so that EQ becomes a two-tiered model containing Intrapersonal skills and Interpersonal skills.


Intrapersonal Skills

Self Awareness

Self Control

Delay of Gratification


Interpersonal Skills:

Empathy

Awareness of Others


Self Awareness: A simple thing like paying attention to what is going on inside of you and knowing how it is that you feel can be an important step to developing EQ. Many people are not consciously aware that today “they are a little irked from what the boss said at the meeting”, or “maybe a little nervous about meeting that important client at the end of the week”.

Jill went about the whole day at work being short with some of her co-workers. She never took the time to think that later in the week she had an important sales presentation and was a little nervous and this was manifesting itself by being short with co-workers.

Jane on the other hand was in a really bad mood while driving home from work. She realized that being that she lost an important account for the company, it was making her feel worthless. She actually went home and told her husband of the bad news instead of keeping her feelings buried in her subconscious for them to manifest later.


Self Control: Conquering thoughts or emotions that could create obstacles in attaining happiness and success is another characteristic of someone with high EQ. Okay, you are in a bad mood from work, but do you really need to take it out on the spouse and kids at home?

Some things got John upset at the office today. He knew he had a bad day, but when he went home, he yelled at his wife for not having dinner ready on time and severely scolded his kid for not taking out the garbage. It made for a bad evening.

Steve on the other hand came home from a bad day and made sure he was nice to his family despite the way he felt from work. Being home with his family and keeping things peaceful actually made him feel better before going to bed.


Delay of Gratification: Many people are in tune with instant gratification. The need to seek out pleasure now is a natural human instinct. But a characteristic of high EQ is an ability to put off a pleasurable experience now for a higher cause or reward later.

Jim stops at a local bar on the way home from work and decides to have a few drinks after his long day at work. He knows that he’s been trying to cut back on drinking and promised his wife not to drink heavily – much less drink on a Tuesday afternoon. But once he has a few drinks, he ends up drinking more and gets hammered! How can he conquer his drinking problem without delay of gratification?

Betty on the other hand sticks with her diet despite the fact that her co-workers are all going to Taco Bell for lunch. She would love to pig out on half-dozen tacos and probably more, but she stays at the office and has her brown bag lunch with healthier food.


Empathy: Everyone is born with a natural inclination to be empathetic. If you go to a day care and a child falls down and cries, the other children who come from nurturing environments will surround the crying child to see if he or she is okay. But if the daycare is in an environment where moms and dads are not so nurturing, the other kids will not go to see if the fallen child is okay. In fact, some of the un-nurtured kids will approach the crying child and tell him or her to shut up, even slap the crying child!

Mary comes back to work after grieving the loss of her mother. No sooner does she sit down at her desk, her boss slaps a stack of papers down and tells her the assignments due and to hurry up because they fell behind while she was gone. He never even extended sympathy for the loss of her mother!

Minutes later, some of Mary’s co-workers approach her and extended their sympathies for the loss of her mother. And although Mary refused, her co-workers offered to take some of her assignments so she can catch up and let her know they can help if needed.

Social Skills (being aware of others): You are at a party with a mixed group of people all having different beliefs and values. If you are sensible, you know of the standards and etiquette used when engaging in discussion. You must be considerate of those around you and contemplate whether something you say could upset someone. And I’m sure you’ve seen them, but there are plenty of people out there who don’t do this!

Mark is standing with a group of people at a party and a discussion begins about a recent bank robbery down the street. Because the suspects at large are two black men, Mark makes a comment that if we get rid of all the black people in this country we’ll be better off. He never considered that Susan standing with the group of people had a black husband! And to top it off, her husband was a police officer!

Carl gets up from the table during a dinner with friends and steps outside to take a phone call. Rather than drown out the dinner discussion and gross out his friends with the details of his colonoscopy, he steps outside to quietly discuss the results with his doctor. And no, he doesn’t return talking about the details during dinner!

Tuesday, February 27, 2001

NEWSWEEK Feb26-Mar3, 4022--America In Crisis!

Hello All:

And now lets talk about the future. There was once a time when science fiction writers wrote about the future. Home computers, massive Internet connections, regular trips into space. Guess what? The future is already here! What about tomorrow? Has technology gone so far that we can hardly imagine what the next couple of centuries will bring? One author has fallen short of his predictions on the future. Arthur C. Clarke promised that by 2001 we would have computers that are self aware and self creating. In his book 2001 Space Odyssey, which was later turned into a movie, the HAL9000 computer was fully self aware and functioned like a human brain. So why haven’t we seen this sort of thing? Oh well, I’m sure that will eventually be made possible… 


NEWSWEEK Feb26-Mar3, 4022--America In Crisis!

Thousands of androids and supporters marched outside the nation's Capitol this week demanding equal rights for androids. The androids claim that the time has come for them to be accepted as humans. 

These are highly developed robots that are so human like that it is difficult to notice that they are machines. But these are not ordinary machines. These androids eat, sleep, they are warm to the touch, they have emotions, and many of them have complex human relationships with humans. 

One of the latest trends is for humans to marry an android; a highly controversial institution which has caused many marches in itself. In fact, many of the androids that marching outside the Capitol are accompanied by their spouses. They demand the right to breed with humans. The technology is there, and science is advanced enough to allow this. 

Just yesterday it was discovered that for over a decade, human to android hybrids have been created in an underground laboratory in Los Angeles. It is unclear as to just how many human to android hybrids are living out in society.

So what is America going to do with this crisis? There is a large percentage of the American population that still view androids as machines. And the thought of breeding with them is an outrage. Let’s look at the history of the development of these complex androids.

2005: Scientists and technologists have perfected the synthesis of human walking for mobile robots. After this date, walking robots were made available for commercial and industrial use.

2026: The first self aware microprocessor is made available to consumers world wide. In honor of Arthur C. Clarke’s 2001 Space Odyssey, the product is called the HAL9000. Businesses put this processor to use for advertising, marketing, music composition

Thursday, February 15, 2001

Boils on the Brain

Boils on the Brain 

Boils have been known to stop the flow of blood throughout the brain which causes severe madness. Normally it is caused by the full moon, fever, or even spells cast by a witch. Follow these remedies to treat any boils you may encounter.

1 BOIL:

BEHAVIOR: Behavior is somewhat irrational. The patient may be slightly mistrusting of other people or even accuse other people of things. Mood shifts can occur without warning.

REMEDY: Is the moon full? If so, wait until it is no longer full, and see if this affects the patient. Sometimes administering tea or wine to the patient helps eliminate the boil. Surgery should not be done for just 1 boil.

2-3 BOILS:

BEHAVIOR: Patient regularly slips in and out of reality. One moment the patient is fine, and the next minute is very dangerous. Extreme emotional outbursts can accompany as well as complaints of extreme headache pain. 

REMEDY: Treat the patient for fever. The boils could be brought on by some illness. Sometimes hanging the patient up-side-down for 12 - 15 hours causes some of the boils to disappear. Beat the patient with a whip in case the devil has gotten into him/her.

3-5 BOILS:

BEHAVIOR: Patient suffers from convulsions and foaming at the mouth. Patient is completely out of touch with reality and does not recognize familiar people. 

REMEDY: 1st, verify that a witch has not cast an evil spell on the patient. Do this by sending the townspeople on a witch hunt, and when you find her, burn her at the stake. If the patient holds a political office, find 3-5 witches and burn them at the stake. If the patient still does not improve, you must perform surgery. Using an iron stake, drive 3 holes in the skull to the center of the head. This should puncture and drain the boils.