For those of you that are horse "affectionados", the super horse "Big Brown" runs the second leg of the Triple Crown this weekend. He seems destined for greatness.
The owner of Big Brown named him after UPS Delivery Service (sometimes known as Brown). Mr. Pompa runs a distribution company that uses UPS to deliver a variety of products. Pompa bought the horse for a bargain price and ran him in the New York Derby. Big Brown won the $190,000 first prize. Mr. Pompa was approached by a syndicate of Arabs from Dubai, Saudi Arabia. He sold 75% interest in Big Brown for $2.5 million dollars and retained 25% ownership. Not bad! I'm sure the profit of several million dollars was appreciated.
Then, Big Brown won the Kentucky Derby and the horse's value just went up. Big Brown is estimated to be worth $80 million in stud fees. So now Mr. Pompa has the prospect of another $20 million of future income (his 25%). Whoa! This "Big Brown thing" is turning out pretty well.
My Mother Alice, known for her practical wisdom, always offered the observation that "some people can fall into a pile of sh-- and come out smelling like a rose". I don't know if this applies to Mr. Pompa exactly, but he certainly is smelling like a rose these days.
In one of my conversations with God, I indicated that I would be satisfied with one "Big Brown" event. You know! Buy something silly on e-Bay that happens to be traceable back to the Ming Dynasty and it turns out to be worth millions. Or go to a baseball game, where Barry Bonds hits a history making home run and you catch it in the stands. You get the idea.
Dream on!
The lesson Grasshoppers is you never know when that pile of brown stuff you fall into might turn into something special. Don't plan on it! You'll be happier if you set goals for yourself and work towards them.
Go Big Brown!
Love,
Dad