Heady aroma overwhelms my senses.
You're secrets revealed one petal at a time.
Sun breaks and you open to me, still dewey from the nights labors.
My touch ...tentative.
Beauty is ever bound with thorny rewards!
My resistance disolves...
I reach out to bring you closer,
to share you're perfection for only a moment.
Well worth the price I pay with pain.
F. Michael Sigler
Sales Techniques
Salesman are not born, they are made. Most really great sales people either came from nothing, and made their way out of bad times by working hard and selling, or came from a life with everything, and received everything they ever asked for. My reason for stating this is: that if you want to sell effectively you have to be able to ask for the sale, and believe with all your heart that it is already yours.
There are steps to a sale: Introductions, qualifying the customer, asking for the sale, rebuttal, and closing the sale. These steps are not techniques. A true sales person sells you without you knowing it.
These are sales techniques explained:
The most subtle sale, and the most effective, is; To assume the sale. This is where you walk into the store(could be anything cars, computers, refrigerators, anything) and the sales person asks if they can show you something. What are you looking for? Then they take you where they want you to buy, and talk to you on the way. They are getting to know you, and most likely picking up on the subtleties of your personality: If your quiet they're quiet, if your a straight shooter guess what so are they. You trust yourself, and they remind you of...you; you trust them.
They show you the product, and it's way out of your budget, either you fawn over it and they've got financing available let them show you how it's done, and before you know it your signing papers, SALE; or you say it's way too expensive, so they say what's your budget? They are qualifying you, are you buying, or not. The whole time they are looking for buyer's questions: How much? Do you have this in black? Do you have one with a thingie that does this? You don't ask these questions if your not buying. If in fact you do ask one of these "buyer's questions" the sale is made. Yes we do! Come up to the front and we'll finish the paperwork up there while Jim gos and gets it for you. By the way, a good salesman always has a "Jim" around to fetch it for you, this is another salesman not selling at the moment, and they help each other all the time. If "Jim's" also selling they can get you started on the paperwork, and you can finish while they get it for you. Either way your not looking anymore, your buying.
Another technique is the "take away", a tricky sale, but very effective. You want it because you can't have what you want. This is already taken, but let's run your credit, and see if we can find anything else you like. When you qualify they take you to a model that's much higher, and much prettier, and you fall in love with it, let's go see if we can get you approved for this baby, SALE. If your not going that route, and you pursue the original product that was out of stock, already taken, out of your budget, well let me see what I can do. Don't move I'll be right back, miracle of miracles if you put down two thousand today my sales manager says he won't hold it for that other guy, it's yours today. Or: He said we can give you the floor model, it's in perfect condition and he's going to knock off fifty bucks cause it's already out of the box, SALE.
There are countless variations to these two techniques, and there are countless other techniques besides these. The bottom line is: if you know how to do the previously stated techniques, you'll learn everything else while you make money.
F.MIchael Sigler
Home Improvement: A Guide for the weekend warrior
Curb appeal:
Whether your showing your home to a potential buyer, or you'd just like to make an impression on your guests this season, you'll never get a second chance to make a good first impression.
Touch up or repaint your house numbers: On your curb, or next to your front door, if your house numbers look old, or faded they can give a potential buyer the wrong impression of your home.
On the house: Check for any guidelines your HMA may have outlined before doing anything drastic. You can get a lot of great ideas at your local hardware store. A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is to have them stand out, without sticking out. I like to go with the color of the house trim, keeping them in plain view of the street.
Let a professional handle the numbers on the curb, some HMA's can be very touchy in this area. Potential cost: Somewhere in the neighborhood(no pun intended)of $15 to $35. Helping the fire department to find your home quickly: priceless.
Paint is worth it's weight in gold: Literally, a good paint job will not only improve your chances of selling quickly, but it may increase of overall value of your home. It's the same concept as giving that old trade-in a good cleaning, and the second coat of wax. This trick has been adding thousands of dollars to the deal since Buick first rolled off the assembly lines.
Make sure your dealing with a reputable contractor. A good company, or independent contractor will have no trouble giving you references, and a copy of their contractors license. These are essential when the jobs not up to standards, and fly by night painters can disappear without a trace.
Get rid of that clutter: Anything that doesn't add to the overall aesthetic value of your home should be removed immediately.
You've been driving up to your home for a while now, and while everything may seem necessary to your point of view, that old garden hose stands out like a sore thumb to a potential buyer.
Never park in front of your home: Vehicles in front of your home obstruct your buyers view, and give your home a feel of being too small to handle their needs.
If your garage is still full of last years "Build a better coffee table" project, there's no better time to clean it out. If you don't have a garage, park neatly in the driveway, or ask a sympathetic neighbor to allow you to park in front of their place while showing your home.
Landscaping: This falls under the same concept of cleaning the car before you trade it in. Your lawn can make or break a buyers impulse to make a deal.
Don't have the budget to hire a professional? Use this trick to get some pointers, before you visit the local plant nursery. Call two or three landscapers and ask for an on-sight estimate, most companies will do this at no charge. Careful, the guy they send is probably their best salesman.
Schedule their reps. for non-conflicting appointments this weekend, and ask for pointers to increase the aesthetics of your landscape. Then tell them your comparing prices with some other companies before you make your decision. Who knows, it may be more affordable than you anticipated once they hear that your comparison shopping. Once again, if your having a professional do the work, check their references and ask for a copy of the contractors license. If you still decide you'd rather do the work on you own, you've got some professional opinions to help you decide what to do.
Increasing your curb appeal can bring your home value, and new life. It may take some time, and effort on your part, but in the long run it can turn out to be the most rewarding project you ever invested in your home.
God is the creator, the beginning and the end, omnipresent. God is the energy source of the universe.
Those that reason with science will understand this philosophy, every first year student learns the basic tenants of energy, and the prime tenant of energy is that: Energy cannot be created or destroyed, it has always existed in one form or another, and it will always exist in one form or another, it simply changes forms.
Therefore God has always existed in one form or another. He simply was not created; He IS the beginning, and the end, the Alpha, and the Omega.
That's allot to get your head around I know, I'm sitting here trying to do it myself.
I've tried to expound on this subject, but I think that's all there is to it. Except this: I know this concept seems impossible, but look at what your doing right now, you are reading my thoughts from across the state, country, world. Moments from thier conception in my own mind. I'm sorry to say but if not for a higher power capable of things far beyond our reasoning, I think we'd still be hanging out in the woods scratching around for our next meal. The part of us that step beyond survival is the life that God breathed into us. You might think this world is screwed up, but if it wasn't for a higher power we wouldn't even know better, or have any chance of doing anything about it. To me that's a lot more amazing than God just existing without beginning or end.
Stand Up with the Burmese protesters
After decades of military dictatorship, the people of Burma are rising – and they need our help. Marches begun by monks and nuns snowballed, bringing hundreds of thousands to the streets. Now the crackdown has begun, but the protests are spreading...
When the Burmese last marched in 1988, the military massacred thousands. If the world stands up and supports their struggle, this time they could win. We're in a race against time-- targeting the dictatorship's main backer China in a global advertising campaign, delivering the petition to the UN secretary-general and sending the Burmese our support via radio--
To Chinese President Hu Jintao and the UN Security Council:
We stand alongside the citizens of Burma in their peaceful protests. We urge you to oppose a violent crackdown on the demonstrators, and to support genuine reconciliation and democracy in Burma. We pledge to hold you accountable for any further bloodshed.
This petition has reached over 500,000 names, our goal is One Million please help. href="http://www.avaaz.org/en/stand_with_burma/"
Concentrate, Relax, Have a good attitude.
You can restore your ability to relax by learning how to concentrate. Concentration, under the right conditions, actually quiets the mind. It opens time up. It creates a relaxed state and restores a confident attitude.
These Three things can restore your health, and help to bring you to a state of fulfillment, and completeness.
Take a walk, relax, pick something out that you see on your way and think about how you would describe it to someone who had never seen one before.
Check these guys outhttp://www.avatarcargard.com
Circles: a poem by F.Michael Sigler
Growing hand in hand with our challenges
There are those who are destined To be ever-flowing in the patterns of our lives
and those who only touch us in movements of their own
Circles and cycles interwoven
acting patterns only the creator can fathom
A pause in time of heartfelt thanks
for the pattern within the pattern
the creators creation bringing our circles into reach to touch
for only a moment
or an eternity.
F.Michael Sigler
"Desire" an excerpt from "Khah~Lehna" by F.Michael Sigler
Jake was a tall man, with a large frame. His hair was short, close cropped, and the color of leaves in late Fall. His eyes were blue, the shade of ice burgs, and ancient waters. He was a hard working man, he appreciated a job well done. You might say he was comfortable in his own skin. "Jake has a quiet confidence about himself", thought Jhanell as she watched as her husband walk up the road with the last of the material for the new fence.
They were a young couple, and had been married for less than a year now. In the mornings she would wake up just before he did, so she could watch him sleeping, her eyes softly caressing his unfurled brow, strong nose, and the almost feminine curve of his lips. She loved this act of voyeuristic innocence she secretly enjoyed. Jhannel loved this man, she was happy as a kitten with a full belly of milk, lying in the warm sunshine of the porch. "I do have a full belly too." She thought, smiling in spite of herself. She was sure of it now, the way only a woman could be. " I think it's time we told your Daddy that you're on the way little one." She said, placing a loving hand protectively over her ,as yet, still flat tummy. " We'll tell him tonight." She said aloud, and began preparing a special meal to celebrate the occasion. Softly singing a melody as she went back to her work.
The sun reminded her of a ripe peach, as it laid to rest in the mountains silhouetting the surrounding landscape. Jake was washing up after the long workday. She watched as the well water cascaded down his upper torso, over thick arms, to his flat stomach. Years of hard work in sun and wind made his skin resemble old oak after years of care.
"She's still a vision", thought Jake. Catching a glimpse of his wife at the window as he made his way up the path to the house. He tapped the mud from his boots, and thought back to the first time he was blessed with the vision of his love.
His father had taken him into town for supplies, and Jake's mind had been entirely focused on the chore at hand. His mother had asked him to get a few things from the fabric shop, and he was determined not to let her down. Not that she would be cross with him if he did forget something, it was just that she worked so hard for them that the least he could do was make sure she got what she needed for the month.
Jake had been so caught up in his own thoughts that he nearly knocked a girl down as she came out of the fabric shop with her arms full of packages. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry!" He said, as he bent to pick up the fallen items. Whack! Their heads collided. Jhannel had also bent to retrieve her items before they could be soiled in the mud. "Damn" thought Jake. "Wouldn't do to get knocked unconscious out here in the street, would it." "Sorry" an angels voice spoke from somewhere above him. Jake looked up and thought "Maybe it did knock me out, I'm seeing things." There, above him, with sunlight streaming through auburn hair, skin as translucent as alabaster bathed in moonlight, an angel was gazing at him through jade green eyes. "With just a hint of gold in their depths." Thought Jake, and she's laughing at me. "Are you alright?" The angel said. They had been married less than a year later, and Jake had never had a head injury that he was happier to receive.
The next nine months went by in a flash. Before they knew it they had a beautiful baby girl in their arms. "She's a little vision just like her Momma." Jake said, as he gazed upon his daughter wrapped tight in her mother's arms. "We shall call her Khah~Lehna, which in the old tongue means "Born of Angels".
Lehna grew up tall, and strong. She had her mother's looks, and her father's eyes. A quick girl, with long legs, and a sharp intellect. She was always glad to help out, and she never fell behind in her studies. she was constantly exploring and questioning everything she could. Yet, there was something in the girls eyes that made you take a second look, a longing. Lhena was passionate about life, she would read anything she could get her hands on about the lands of the realms most distant from their home. She would boldly question any outsider she met; "Where had they traveled from, where were they headed?" At first Jake and Jhannel, were concerned about this behavior, but they quickly learned that it was only Lehna's way. She thirsted for information, the way a lioness thirsts for the hunt. She wasn't trying to be rude, she just couldn't help but find out as much as she could about the world around her.
Lehna didn't go undetected by the boys either, you could say they did some thirsting of their own, but that's as far as they got. It wasn't as if Lehna was uninterested with their affections, quite the contrary. She enjoyed the attention, and went to the dances in town when asked. Which was very frequent indeed, but that wasn't her passion, she simply had other priorities.
Jake had known this day was coming for quite some time now, but he still had trouble in dealing with the reality of it all. "Little girls were supposed to grow up and get married, and have lots of grand babies, weren't they?" He shook his head to clear the thought, and walked out into the yard where Jhannel, and Lehna waited. "Please don't try to talk me out of this again Father." Lehna said, a look of determination on her angels face. Jake looked to his wife for support, but saw nothing there except a mixture of pleasure, and pride on his wife's face. "Looks like you've found an ally in your quest little one." "She's not little anymore Jake." Jhannel said softly, as she lovingly took her husbands hand in hers. Jake knew when he was beaten, and didn't want to see his daughter off in a way that would bode ill on her journey as she set out to see the world. Jhannel was right of course. "She usually was," he thought with a smile. "Share with us Father, what brings a smile to your somber mood this fine morning?" Lehna said, with a smile of her own. "She is a bold one" thought Jake. "Just considering how a man works hard his whole life only to be bested by two females on his own front porch is all." That brought a laugh from them all, and everything was OK again. After a long and heartfelt farewell all around, they finally sent their daughter off on her adventure. Jake, and Jhannel arm in arm, watched silently as Lehna rode out of the yard, and down the road at a brisk pace, looking as noble as a queen as she turned once and gave them a final wave.
Lhena had waited for this moment all of her life, to be free and completely self dependent. It wasn't as if she didn't love and adore her parents, quite the contrary, she regretted only that she wouldn't have them here to share her new experiences with. She had worked hard for as long as she could remember to realize this dream." I am as ready for this as I will ever be." She thought to herself, as she neared the docks. The ship was preparing for it's long journey, and the docks were bustling with activity.
Lhena took her horse to the stable master as planned, and turned the fine stallion over to his care. "Goodbye Nicker" she whispered to the horse as she dismounted, and pulled her pack off. She had raised the horse herself, bought as a foal originally for the investment value, but now it was more like letting go of a friend. "They'll take good care of you boy." She was sure of that, she had known the stable master for years now, and would part with her horse to nobody less than the man himself. "You can always purchase him back if you decide to upon your return. I'll be keeping our friend here in my personal stable Lhena." " Thank you Freeman Khenn." Lhena said , as she patted Knicker one last time. " But it may be some time before my return. "
"He'll be here, now go or you'll miss the voyage to the New Lands."
"Farewell Khenn"
" And, to you as well fair lady." With that, Lhena set off, on her way to the New Lands. A newly discovered continent that begged of adventure, and new discoveries.
F.Michael Sigler
Does True Love really last forever?
Yes, but only under the efforts of both parties involved. Like anything of real intrinsic value, true love must be respected to be preserved.
The problem with our society is that everything is so disposable. We've gotten so accustomed to the "use it until it's useless, and replace it with a new one" philosophy that we don't cherish anything anymore.
If you posses something that is as precious as true love, care for it, preserve it. Take time out to enjoy it, and above all work diligently to keep it.
Yes, true love lasts forever, when properly cared for, and given the respect it truly deserves. When we begin to invest ourselves in taking care of, and cherishing that person that has been so graciously entrusted to our care, forever is but a blink of an eye.
F.Michael Sigler
Bank Job
I was at the end of my rope. If I didn't do something today we were going to be out on the street. That was all there was to it. You could dress it up any way you wanted to, but that's what it came down to. I took one more shot at the job center/welfare office. The bank was right down the street, and I had everything I needed for the job. The lady behind the desk looked at me like I was a bug on her club sandwich. She made me feel like just what I was, one more out of work slob keeping her from what she really wanted to do. One more coat of nail polish. I knew what I was going to have to do already. No matter what happened here today I wasn't going to get what I needed, cash. I was only putting off what I had already decided to do. The savings were gone, and I had made way too much money in the last year. Just as I thought, they weren't going to help me with assistance. On to the job placement assistance desk I went. Half an hour later I broke free of the gravitational pull of the "job center". I could feel it pulling at my back like a desperate man grasping at his last chance for life. As easy as it would be to sit in the air conditioned office looking at row after row of minimum wage jobs staring back at me from one of the too small computer desks, I knew I was only stalling. As I walked back to my truck butterflies started up in my belly. Something I was going to get quite used to, but never enjoy, over the months ahead. They stayed with me as I drove the short distance down the street past what I would forever think of as "my first bank". I parked my truck a half a block straight down from the bank, and went through it one more time in my head. OK, the truck was out of view of the bank, just around the corner of a low end mechanics shop, so they couldn't I.D. me that way. I pulled out my "disguise" something I had well thought out. Baseball hat, geeky shades, and a loud Hawaiian shirt, anything to draw attention. My plan was, make the description easy for them, then pull it back off out of their line of sight. I rolled it up and tucked it under my arm, (didn't want to be seen in it around my truck) and walked the half block to the bank...
F.Michael Sigler
Is GOD Allowing EVIL to PERSIST!
Religious or not just take a minute, and read this.
I'm not judging or preaching, just pondering. (if you've got a minute read this, if you've got two tell me what you think of it.)
God created us all with a choice, to serve Him or to serve ourselves. True evil in our world comes from the later of the two choices. That is truly what we are here to learn. When you follow the first of all the directives that Jesus put forth, IE: When Jesus was asked " Teacher what is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." "This is the first and great commandment." Matthew 22:36-38. When we follow this commandment we are bound to do God's will. Within that state of mind there is no doubt, all of our fear, and hatred, and self serving nature is defeated. When true evil manifests it is from these that it is born. When you look to any sin you have committed throughout all of your existence you most probably will come back to one of these. Especially fear. When you keep your mind, your heart, and your soul focused on loving God there is no room for evil.
I believe that the lesson that we are here to learn is just that; Doing YOUR will allows evil to gain a handhold on your life. Doing God's will serves God and evil is defeated.
If God were to remove evil, He would in effect be taking away your choice, your free will. At the very least removing evil would remove any opportunity for us to see the consequences of our actions.
In closing I would just like to point out that as men, and women we may never be able to completely ignore our impulse to take control and go our own way succoming to our base impulses, and fears, it is very difficult to completely surrender your will to God. Those that have are said to reach sainthood. Those that have not are still loved and cherished by God. That is what grace is, only by the grace of God are we saved. Hopefully we can gain faith in our lives, and accept His will, day by day, a little more. Because I believe that the more we do, the less evil will be with us.
If you look at it this way I guess the question would be better served; Why we as the children of God, allow for evil to persist?
F.Michael Sigler
Stop Killing for funding!
It is wrong to use animals for medical research. Just because they don't have the ability to say something about it, it should be right? Why not use the handicapped for experimentation then, or orphaned children too young to speak? No, we couldn't do that because we have a moral responsibility to protect those who can't protect themselves, right?
Then how does it make it OK to put an animal in the same position? Don't we have a moral responsibility to protect animals from cruelty too? Don't get me wrong I'm not a vegetarian, but there are laws regulating how animals are killed for our meat industry, these laws don't apply to the scientists though, for them it's no holes barred.
As far as saving human lives gos, that's a load of crap. How many mice have been injected with cancer, and AIDS so far? It makes little difference to humans if the scientist can cure a rodent with AIDS, they still have to find a group of people to volunteer for study before they know if it works on people, and there is no shortage of people who are willing, if it means a cure. Even if they know it may not mean a cure for them there are people willing to sacrifice themselves to help others down the line. If a person is willing to make that sacrifice then OK experiment away, but you can't just make that decision for anyone or anything. It is simply not our right to decide that another creature be injected with AIDS, and watched while it dies a slow and painful death, just to generate some freaking statistics. "We've concluded after extensive research that nine thousand nine hundred fifty seven mice will die within the first six months after being injected with X. Seven thousand will die after a year, and fifteen are still alive, so we need two million dollars to see if we can get a different result this time." These guys are sick, some spend their entire careers torturing animals, and all they can show for it is a better shampoo, that's just wrong, I don't care who you are it's wrong.
Mark my words, perception is everything: The Nazis thought they would be revered for the advances they brought to medical research, and just as the Nazis were acting in an immoral fashion, people will eventually come to see that this behavior towards animals is unacceptable. We should be held responsible to act in a moral fashion concerning animals.
Scientists need to do something else with their time instead of torturing animals all day to generate statistics. Maybe then they can actually make some advances, after all I'm sure they can't concentrate when there's still so many mice out there that need injecting, and look at all those puppies with no shampoo in their eyes; work work work!
F.Michael Sigler
