December 22, 2006
-
Determination
The investment group eyed the entrepreneur with caution, their expressions flickering from skepticism to intrigue and back again.
“Your bold plan holds promise” their spokesman conceded. “But it is costly and entirely speculative. Our mathematicians mistrust your figures. Why should we entrust our money into your hands? What do you know that we do not know?”
“For one thing,” he replied, “I know how to balance an egg on it’s point without outside support. Do you?” And with that, the entrepreneur reached into his satchel and delicately withdrew a fresh hen’s egg. He handed over the egg to the financial tycoons, who passed it amongst themselves trying to carry out the simple task. At last they gave up. In exasperation they declared, “What you ask is impossible! No man can balance an egg on its point.”
So the entrepreneur took back the egg from the annoyed businessmen and placed it upon the fine oak table, holding it so that its point faced down. Lightly but firmly, he pushed down on the egg with just enough force to crush in its bottom about half an inch. When he took his hand away, the egg stood there on its own, somewhat messy, but definitely balanced. “Was that impossible?” he asked.
“It’s just a trick,” cried the businessmen. “Once you know how, anyone can do it.”
“True enough” came the retort. “But the same can be said for anything. Before you know how, it seems an impossibility. Once the way is revealed, it’s so simple that you wonder why you never thought of it that way before. Let me show you that easy way, so others may follow. Will you trust me?”
Eventually convinced that this entrepreneur might possibly have something to show them, the skeptical venture capatalists funded his project. From the tiny Andalusina port of Palos de Moguer set forth the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria led by an entrerepenuer with a slighly borken egg and his own ideas: Christopher Coumbus.
Many have since followed.
–Excerpted from Perl Cookbook, Second Editionby Tom Christiansen and Nathan Torkington
Comments (7)
*nods* Good story handsome.
Think I’ve heard it before, but couldn’t tell you were, for all I know I could have read the book you took it from.
Went to the library today, but I can’t find that book your looking for.
They have 230 hardy boy books, but I can’t find the one with the comic book figures. *disapointed look* Sorry babe.
Hehe. Very clever. And it makes sense.
P.S. Forgive me for a random comment.
I love your profile pic. A friend of mine has that on his phone.
~Jack
Yes, Sir. Right away, Sir. Telling them to come by, Sir.
~Jack
As a reply to lesbians comment… Im not quite sure where you got the implication about removing lesbians from. Perhaps you were over analyzing a personal observation…which is exactly why there’s no neatly packaged ending or “point”. It’s an observation, not a theory, not a judgement.
Hi Tomas!
Hope you had a decent Christmas. It’s been interesting here, as you know. So, you’re working in a restaurant now. Good. I hear there’s a 2nd job at a TV station also. Good. I guess you’ve recovered well enough, then
Good story about Christopher Columbus. How true is it? See ya ~ Terri