This one is cool too.

I’ve been fascinated by the story of Casey Serin, a 24-year-old who dived into real estate investing as the market turned sour. He bought the bulk of his properties in 2005 with “liar loans,” which lets borrowers state their own income to get into more house that they could afford. And with interest-only payments, for at least a few years you can afford your dream house. This housing boom has created new rules that prevent housing from ever going down; by the time you balloon payment begins, you can refinance and cash out a little to get marble countertops or a new car. Unfortunately for many people reading from a DC condo right now, we know this recent housing boom was no different from previous ones.

Casey bought houses at their peak prices, sometimes without even looking at them in person, and found himself unable to get buyers interested. Since he quit his web designer job to be a RE investor, there was no income coming in. He started a blog about his problems, which was immediately successful though it put him on the hook legally since he admits to lying on his loans. The USA Today did a profile on him called 10 mistakes that made flipping a flop.

In one year, the 24-year-old website-designer-turned-real estate-flipper bought eight homes in four states — and in every case but one, he put no money down. At his peak, in April, Serin had $93,000 he’d taken out of the homes as he bought them. By July, he was broke, desperate for one last deal.

Now? Serin has $140,000 in credit card and credit-line debt and five houses in foreclosure. Last month, he started iamfacingforeclosure.com, a blog that’s drawn both notes of condolence and expletive-laced condemnation.

He is sitting on $2.2 million in debt. Only in America will banks lend such a large amount of money to a web designer. But to his credit, if he simply dived in four years earlier, he would be a very wealthy man right now.

I’m not a RE investor but I’m fascinated by this story because I completely missed the boat. I did not buy any properties and got to sit on the sidelines watching other people’s wealth increase. I am a bitter renter. But the fact that my rent payment is less than what many of you Whole Food shoppers pay for food a month does ease the pain.

The fun part of all this, and why I’m writing about Casey, is his brilliant blog. He is a soap opera writer, stirring up the pot and getting everyone in a froth over his idiotic moves and statements. Examples:

- Continual search for “creative” and “sweet” deals even though he has to borrow thousands of dollars a month from friends and family.
- Selling a reliable car and buying a used Jetta with a subwoofer that is in dire condition.
- Following the advice of “gurus” and attending real estate seminars. He recently attended a one-week RE seminar and posted about how the book Getting Things Done might turn things around for him.
- Postings of his discretionary spending which includes visits to Macaroni Grill and Jamba Juice (West Coast equivalent of Smoothie King). The Jamba Juice mentions guarantee at least 100 comments.
- Complete unwillingness to file for bankruptcy (until yesterday).

For the past couple months I know he’s been trolling, but I just can’t look away. I really want to see where this ends up: if his wife will divorce him, if he will go to jail, or if he will land a sweet deal to get him out of the mess. And it’s educational too because I have learned more about RE investing from the hilarious comments section than anywhere else.

I look forward to a housing crash, which would only affect speculators like Casey or buyers who bought more than they could afford. Unless the dollar falls, which is a real possibility for 2007, a housing free-fall would be a most pleasant development to someone like me who is sitting on cash.

- IAmFacingForeclosure.com

Here’s an educational video that shows how cocaine is made. Unfortunately there were no bare-breasted women cutting up the coke like in the movie New Jack City.

I’ve never tried cocaine before and after watching this I don’t think I ever will, especially when recycled gasoline is a main ingredient. Ammonia and sulphuric acid is also used. The filter of choice is a dirty rag.

The impurities and chemical residues will get you before the drug does.

Source: ThrowAwayYourTV.com

This weekend I was in an Atlantic City casino where my views were polluted with ugly and low-class people. It felt like I was at the DMV for two days.

I dominated low-limit poker, not by playing tight-aggressive and using actual skill, but by using mind-games that overworked my opponents’ pacemakers. Here is my TOWER OF STRENGTH & POWER:

Nothing intimidates your opponents more than making a bet from a phallic metaphor.

After passing by the blackjack tables where mouth-breathers were hooting and hollering after winning $5 bets, I went to watch at a roulette table, which I’m convinced is the unofficial gathering place for people with the lowest IQs in society. These people are betting their hard-earned money on a plastic ball spinning around a wooden bowl. I have more respect for state lottery players. The best part of the game is at the end of a spin when the casino employee literally flushes a mountain of chips down a drain built into the table.

As the tower suggests, I did win overall (+2 BB/hour), but until casinos are full of hot-bodied 21-year-old South American women instead of smelly senior citizens, I’ll leave gambling for the dreamers.

I give you video entertainment to last the long weekend.

Smashing a Playstation 3 in front of nerds waiting to buy one.

Amazing ‘David Blaine’ street magic.

“Either the general population will take control of its own destiny… or alternatively, there will be no destiny for anyone to control.”

Idiot breaks into liquor store, can’t get out.

“If Cookie Monster calls, tell him I’m not talking to him until he comes out of rehab.”

“I, locust… FUCK TO YOU.”

Latin America’s answer to Eddie Murphy’s Party all the Time (now a club monster).

Guy at my gym who always tries to show off to the girls gets OWNED.

Japanese guy gets pranked with ride of his life.

Stop complaining at work because it could be worse.

The world series of dice.

George Carlin: owners of this country (i.e. not you) and religion.

Calvin and Hobbes: The Untold Story.

Demetri Martin is a funny dude.

May you eat until you are ill and spend until you are broke.

“I got married.”

Let’s have a ten minute silence for all the players out there.

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Thank you.

We won’t stop. We can’t stop.

I’ve known about Pastor Ted Haggard for a couple years now so I’ve been closely following the recent revelation of his drug-fueld tryst with a gay man.

For those of you who only read my blog and nothing else, he started his New Life church in the basement of his home with only one church member. He then built it up over many years to a 14,000 follower behemoth that holds services in a stadium. (New Life also has affiliates in other countries.) He led the National Association of Evangelicals which represents 30 million Americans. He had policy discussions with President Bush. He was an extremely powerful man. His decisions not only affected his followers, but Americans not under his leadership. Short of becoming President himself, there are not many ways he could have increased his power here in the United States. This is why his downfall is so amazing. How can a man so close to God have so little self-control?

A lot of people like reading stories of how people succeed. But I like stories of how people fall. And it’s not because I’m a sadist, but because the success that everyone loves to praise and masturbate to is often built on weak character that cannot survive the test of time. The success is a fluke, an aberration. In a couple years Pastor Ted will be that crazy guy on a university campus trying to get the attention of passerby’s. The next hypocrite who replaces him will lead people who memorize thousands year old scripture as fact, but can’t seem to remember how many religious leaders have fooled them in the past twenty years.