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Bam Bam Bigelow Passes Away

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A few weeks ago wrestling legend Bam Bam Bigelow passed away while living at his home in Florida. Bam Bam was from the same part of New Jersey where I currently live and his death was felt in the very towns where I work. Some suspect that the worst in Bam Bam’s death, but I believe that he was just worn out given the hectic life that he led.

Bigelow had a lot to live for including a son who is an outstanding football player and a hometown that loved him. He also had one of the most loving families and will be remembered by all in the wrestling business as a gentle giant.

It is humorous (to me) that Bam Bam will probably be remembered for two things in his wrestling career and that both of these events define his professionally and personally. The first is his loss against Lawrence Taylor at WrestleMania. This showed Bigelow’s professional side where he was willing to take a hit for the company – and in 1995 losing to anyone “outside” the business was still considered taboo.

The second thing that Bigelow will be remembered for in his wrestling career was the night he threw Spike Dudley into the fans at the ECW Arena. That short clip of video has been played over and over again and shows how Bam Bam Bigelow helped to shape and define a new definition of hardcore action in Extreme Championship Wrestling.

The wrestling world will miss Bam Bam Bigelow just as the rest of us will. He is my #1 pick to enter the WWE Hall of Fame if not as a past World Champion many times over, then at least for his contributions to the World Wrestling Federation in taking the dive from LT at WrestleMania.

Getting Taxes Done…

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My taxes are a bit complicated this year because I’ve got three different employers (W-2’s) to list plus Schedule C business income from Usable Web Solutions, LLC (actually, it’s a loss, but whatever).

I just wanted to put up here that for those of you doing your own taxes, H&R Block TaxCut Premium is the way to go. I purchased this program (which is a write-off) and it’s been a pleasure to work with so far.

And let me also say that my charitable donations over the last year built up to a lot more than I thought…which H&R Block’s Deduction Pro helped me realize. Again, go for the H&R Block tax software – it’s good stuff!

A Bunch of Jerks Sue TrimSpa & Anna Nicole Smith

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A bunch of idiots are suing TrimSpa and Anna Nicole Smith claiming that the weight loss drug didn’t quite do its job. Only in America in 2007 could such a stupid lawsuit be filed and taken seriously.

I interpret this as us nearing the end of Western Civilization. Here you have people that were told, “Come on! Take this pill…you’ll, uhhh, lose weight.” This obviously doesn’t happen to the extent that they expected it to happen and their recourse isn’t to stop taking the pill, but rather to sue?!?

No wonder the court system is so bogged up with bullshit.

This case should be thrown out immediately. What the fuck ever happened to caveat emptor? Or better yet – what ever happened to using your f’ing head when deciding to go on a weight loss regime?

And as a person who has lost over 100 pounds in my life, you cannot tell me that these plaintiffs stuck to a tight workout and diet while they were taking TrimSpa. Ugh. Un-fucking-believable…

Sigma Pi Fraternity’s Mid-Year Conference 2007

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This past weekend I was fortunate enough to spend Thursday – Sunday in St. Louis at Sigma Pi Fraternity, International’s 2007 Mid-Year Leadership Conference. The Mid-Year Conference is a free event where the Executive Office and National Governing Board of Sigma Pi get to train the new undergraduate Presidents and Treasurers.

This year they had Recruitment Chairmen come along to listen to a completely outstanding presentation by Phired Up’s Josh Orendi. For those of you that do not know, Josh is co-author of the best book on recruitment that I’ve ever read: Good Guys – The Eight Steps to Limitless Possibility for Fraternity Recruitment. His presentation was both timely and on-target for today’s undergraduates.

For any fraternity or sorority folks out there – I cannot recommend Josh highly enough to come and speak to your chapter or your campus. Great presentation.

This was also my first chance to do a little touring of the St. Louis area even though it’s my fourth trip out there. I got to ride up to the top of the famous St. Louis Gateway Arch as well as go on a tour of Budweiser’s World Headquarters. I should have pictures of both up in my Google/Picasa photo album soon.

Anyway, these events are great for volunteers like me because it recharges our “fraternal batteries” and gets us back on track to help better advise our undergraduates. I had a great time out in St. Louis with my undergraduates and my fellow alumni volunteers and I can’t wait for Sigma Pi University to take place in Nashville, Tennessee this July!

Book Review: Why We Want You To Be Rich

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Co-authors Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki combined their efforts to write Why We Want You To Be Rich. This is a good read for any one who wants a different, highly successful look at the concept of money and financial education. However, the two authors repeat the mistakes of their previous books by not addressing real-world issues to the readers.

The biggest problem that I have with the message in this book is that both Donald and Robert completely neglect and discussion of existing debt. Granted, my $116,000 student loan debt is a bit extreme, but there is no discussion of how to handle credit card debt, smaller student loan debt, or other types of “bad” debt.

Both authors make implied points that readers should pay off their existing bad debts before they make strides towards becoming financially free, but they don’t address the fact that today’s workers need to work to pay off their long-term debts. Neither of these men have had these issues in their personal life and it shows. Sure, they’ve had huge losses in the business world, but it’s much different when an LLC is at risk of being dissolved as opposed to when an individual is at risk of losing their credit rating.

Unfortunately, there is no discussion of the real problem that many people face today. It’s not a growing debt for existing debtors – it’s a growing number of existing debtors overall. Many people have finally realized that they can’t spend like drunken sailors and that they need to stop using credit cards and taking out high interest loans. These people have indeed stopped these bad habits. However, there is absolutely no option to stop working or start putting money in a different high-interest yielding account when you have to pay to keep the electricity on as well as to pay down your credit card debts.

So, if you’ve got real-world debt and you are literally in a situation where you need to work to continue living – this book is not for you.

Now then, there ARE people who do NOT have large debts or who are lucky enough to have a completely free college education. THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU! Both Trump and Kiyosaki’s take on living and learning in the financial world is exactly what you should have learned in high school and college. Chances are you didn’t learn their take on assets and liabilities (where a house is a liability instead of an asset).

I highly recommend this book for those without real-world debt. For everyone else, save the $20 and put it towards your next long-term debt payment!