The End… Or the beginning?

•June 25, 2007 • Leave a Comment

INT. OVERCROWDED PRISON CELL – NIGHT

COREY RAVEN is sitting on his bunk while his three
cellmates,LAWRENCE, RAYNOLDO and JOEBOB snore loudly,
respectively, in the bottom bunk and on two inflatable
mattresses on the floor. COREY’s melancholy is obvious on
his face as he reads a letter from one of his Upholderz with
the small keychain flashlight another of the Upholderz
smuggled to him in a rare visit.

COREY
(sadly)
How did I get here? Things were
going so juicy and so organic! I
had the dealz rolling in, and the
houses I bought looked so sweet the
day the banks took them back. I
had a book deal with a sweet publisher
who knew how to drive organic
traffic to my blog– foreclosuredonotwant.com.
It’s just like that that Talking
Heads song, “Once in a Lifetime”
that that ABC interviewer played
when he talked to me. That Ron
Jonon… Things went from bad to
worse after that sweet interview!

JOEBOB
(waking irritably)
Cores, will you shut the fuck up?

COREY
(whining)

I was just telling my story!

JOEBOB
Shit, I heard enough of your story
already in that USA Today article.
If you don’t shut the fuck up, I’m
gonna wake Raynaldo, and you’re not
gonna like that!

COREY
Damn it, JoeBob– I thought we had
a sweet deal going. I get the bunk
and you get me in the shower…
Why do you have to bring Ray into
it?

JOEBOB
I’m sick of your whining,
prettyboy.

COREY
But Joeeeee… Are you a Loatherz
now?

JOEBOB
Shut the fuck up! If you don’t
shut your stupid yap right now, I’m
gonna wrestle you outta that bunk
and wake Ray. You know how much
he’d love to have ya as a
snugglebunny every night!

COREY
But I can’t sleep until I finish my
story!

JOEBOB
(relenting)
All right. Your ass is still tight
enough that I’ll let you get by
this time. Just keep your whining
quiet, Cores, or you’ll be floundering
in Ray’s grip.

COREY
Yeah, Joe…
(whispers)

COREY CONT’D
…so, yeah, I was at the peak,
touring the sweet Outback when the
Loatherz found me. But how did I
get to the land of canned spaghetti
on toast? Well, it all started
when…

The Seminar…

•June 25, 2007 • Leave a Comment

INT. HOTEL BALLROOM – AFTERNOON

COREY RAVEN and his wife, MELINDA RAVEN, are sitting in
standard metal-framed and barely cushioned convention-hall
chairs. They are surrounded by forty or fifty enthusiastic
SEMINAR GOERS who cheer as WEALTHY BROTHER struts in front
of them, belting out slogans interspersed with advice.

WEALTHY BROTHER
(yelling)
…keep that cashflow coming in!
When you’re in the Cash Flow
Triangle, the cash rushes in toward
you like a huge gushing river! You
know what you need to do to bring
the cash in. What do you have to
do?

SEMINAR GOERS
(in unison)
Invest in real estate!

WEALTHY BROTHER
That’s right, my friends! Real
estate holds the answers to all of
your problems! Get out of the rat
race, and invest, invest, invest!
What’s the first step to opening
your Cash Flow Triangle?

SEMINAR GOERS
100% financing and cash back!

WEALTHY BROTHER
To help you open your Cash Flow
Triangle, my assistant in the
rear– that’s right, stand up
Kristi!– will be selling my
15-part home course on tape. Do
you want to be rich?

SEMINAR GOERS
Yeah!

WEALTHY BROTHER
Then you need my home-study
course. And you can get it here,
at 50% off the internet price,
because you’re a valued attendee!
Don’t you feel the cash flowing
through you?

SEMINAR GOERS
Yeah!

COREY jumps up with all the SEMINAR GOERS, but MELINDA sits
with an oddly skeptical look on her face.

WEALTHY BROTHER
It’s been a busy morning, and I’m
sure your minds are whirling with
all kinds of cash-flowing
activities. Let’s break for a
quick lunch, and come back for more
wealth-building knowledge in an
hour. Let your minds absorb the
cash vibes, for there will be so
much more after lunch. Give Kristi
a holler on your way out!

WEALTHY BROTHER puts down his microphone and heads out the
rear exit behind his podium. As many of the SEMINAR GOERS
stand up around them, MELINDA speaks to COREY.

MELINDA
Cor, you don’t buy any of this, do
you? I mean, the guy seems
genuine, but I don’t know…

COREY
Isn’t he great? I can feel the
cash flowing through my veins!
Sweet!

MELINDA
You’re joking me, right?

COREY
You can’t, Mel? Luckily, you
married an entrepreneur.

MELINDA
I hope you’re right, Cor. This
real estate thing seems risky.

COREY
Money comes from risk. But that’s
why we’re here right now– to learn
how to avoid the risk and get some
sweet passive income.

MELINDA
You could just go back to work if
you want money…

COREY
You know we’ll be fine, Mel. And
real estate is full of opportunity
for the investor who’s in the
know. And you know how much I made
when I sold my condo– and that was
with no effort at all!

MELINDA
(sighs)
Yeah, I guess you’re right.

COREY
Come on, have faith! Have I ever
let you down?

MELINDA
No.

COREY
I’ll be the best and richest
provider on the West Coast. We’ll
be invincible, Mel.

MELINDA
I do trust you, Cor.