| The last few days have been beautiful fall weather, and I can't help but wonder – do you ever miss having your Ferrari convertible? |
| Although some days are perfect convertible weather, given I barely drove it the last few years I owned it, averaging less than 50 miles a year, I can honestly say, "No." In fact, I cannot even remember the last time I drove it. |
| I can't help you with that, but I'll never forget the last day we taught at KIPP Houston High School, and you drove it there. You should've seen the student's faces as you were lowering the top on it. |
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Black
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| Funny thing is I never took the car to KIPP because I did not want anyone to think I was showing off, but I forgot how exciting it is for motorheads to see special cars – whether new or vintage. |
|
I doubt everyone crowding around your car was a motorhead, but they certainly
were excited to see your car. Boys AND girls! At the risk of sounding warm and fuzzy, I
think the fact you not only drove a Ferrari, but also raced them, gave the girls a feeling of
empowerment, that they really can do anything. |
| I guess because I always worked in male-dominated industries, I got used to being the "token" woman. Regardless, I never look at things as being gender-specific. |
| That's because you never look at anything like the rest of the world does, or at least most people do. A perfect example of that is you giving Juan a ride in the Ferrari. I doubt many people would have done that. |
| It seemed only fair since he tried to make a "deal" with me the day before – a hand of poker or even a flip of a coin. If he wins, he gets a ride in the Ferrari. If I win, he will be my slave for a day. Giving him a ride in the car was a reward for having the chutzpah to try to make a deal with me. And, in the two years we taught at KIPP, of the over 200 students who took our Personal Finance & Life 101 class, he was the only one ever to do that. |
| I'll never forget how you also told them that although it may not be the proper definition for the Yiddish word "chutzpah," the real-life definition is "having balls." |
| How else would you explain it? |
| You should know as many people have used that word to describe you. And it was consistent with the lesson we taught them about how you "confronted" Bob Weinstein (of the movie producing Weinstein Brothers) at a conference in New York. (Granted, it was well before the #MeToo scandal.) You realized you had nothing to lose, not to mention you were well-prepared. |
| In most scenarios, if you do not ask for something, you will not receive it. So, what is the risk of asking? Someone may say "no"? The way I see it, you are no worse off than before you asked. So, in reality, there is no downside risk, but there IS upside potential. They may say "yes." |
| True. And I laughed, although I wasn't surprised when everyone else started asking for a ride in the Ferrari! |
| Except Juan did not just ask for a ride. He tried to negotiate a deal. He structured it so that there was an upside for me if he lost the bet, which obviously would be the downside for him. But, what impressed me the most was that he was proactive and took a chance, albeit a long shot, to get something he wanted. |
| And given the smile on his face when you drove off, it obviously paid off. I bet, even though it has been many years, it's something he's never forgotten. |
|
The lesson or the ride
in the Ferrari? |
| Both. And I will go out on a limb and say I bet many of the kids standing around the car when you told Juan to jump in, and then explained why, may also remember not only that day but the importance of the lesson. |
| Then, it was a perfect day for a convertible ride. |
Red
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You may have to wait until the end of the month to celebrate Halloween, but the entire month of October is Bat Appreciation Month. So, Red can’t help but reminisce about when her oldest daughter, Natasha, first fell in love with bats. And Black? She can’t help but think of her first tattoo?!
| Thanks for sending me Natasha's Austin-inspired business plan. But while I know that's her future, I can't help but think about the first time I took her to Austin. |
| All I remember is that it was love at first sight. |
| It was on our way home from taking Sawyer to camp, and I told her we were making a slight "detour". She was so excited when I pulled up to the hotel as she's always loved hotels. But that night, as we walked onto Congress Avenue Bridge and saw the thousands and thousands of bats fly out into the sunset, she was mesmerized and "in love". |
| Although I knew about the bats (the largest urban colony of bats in the world), if it were not for Natasha, I never would have planned a trip to Austin just to see them. But having watched her watching the bats, I was not surprised, years later, when her first tattoo was a bat. |
| That may not have been surprising, but I was shocked when a few weeks later you decided to get a tattoo, and it was identical to hers. I didn't know that you were such a fan of bats. |
| It was not the bats; it was the fact it was identical to her tat. Although, I think Natasha and I should add a few more bats. And this time, do it in Austin. |
| It's amazing how so many of my memories of the girls growing up are connected to Austin. |
| Funny thing is whenever I would be there with you and the girls, and they would "drag" me to that old-time candy store at the top of Congress, I would see things I had not seen since we were little, so would be reminded of us as children. |
| That's always one of the first places they'd want to go to in Austin. That and Green Mesquite BBQ. They both loved Austin, and it wasn't like going to a large city, where there are so many places to go and sites to see. They were always happy to go back to the same familiar places and enjoy simple things, like that snow cone truck or even just walking around downtown. |
| For as long as I can remember, Austin has always been a foodie town. And, it had food trucks before they became popular around the country. Austin has a unique culture, which may be why the girls, but especially Natasha, love it. And, its " Keep Austin Weird" vibe not only makes it the perfect place for her, but has provided some great ideas for her business concept. |
| I'll leave the business analysis to you. I know that she's doing that as part of her studies in the U.K., but I prefer to think about the great times we've had in Austin. And the mom in me thinks she'd be very happy to one day make Austin her home. |
| Especially as that's where millions of her beloved Austin bats live. |