Recruited By Aliens

Tom stuck his head in the office and said, “You should take a look at this blog entry. It’s probably harmless, but you never know.”

“My guess is that the comments started out as a review of the ‘Recruited’ book. It then morphed into something different. This guy is either an big fan, and you should embrace him, or he’s a nut case and you should run.”

“Here’s the entry.”

___

While looking for a new book to review, I stumbled on this little gem, “Recruited By Aliens.”

I seldom read a book’s Preface. It’s usually a boring, self-promoting introduction. This one, however, caught my attention, and it was different.

Within two sentences it sounded like the call of a Carnival pitch man. And this was no ordinary pitch. It held that Aliens inserted rules into our DNA based survival responses to help us through the early times on Earth. Yada, yada. Then the Aliens left without giving us any way to upgrade the rules.

I wasn’t impressed. This was just another sales pitch. Then the ball dropped. The Preface said, “I have evidence, and I’m going to show you right now.”

It did just that. I was amazed. Was it real evidence? Well, it was a little loose, but I couldn’t dispute it. I was hooked.”

There was no more discussion of these rules. I guess this was a slap in the face to get my attention and start reading. It did. Wow.

The book starts with the adventures of teenage New York street magicians. They are clever, gutsy, and skilled at illusions.

Maybe I was softened up by the Preface’s Alien evidence, but I felt connected to these kids. If this wasn’t a Sci-Fi story, I’d quit my creepy job in Cincinnati and join them in New York. My Aunt Beatrice could take my cat. She always liked it. But was a Sci-Fi story.

Moving on, the kids’ Magic reputation grew. They were the masters of illusion. They felt real. Maybe I’d just go to New York for a weekend. If they existed, I could find them.

Back to the book. Next, an Alien group had a problem and they recruited the kids to help them. Kids combined illusions and Evolutionary Anthropology insights to solve the problem and save 400 million lives.

It was a touching and surprising emotional ending. I didn’t cry, but it was close.

The book should have ended there, but it was as if the author couldn’t shut up. He went on and on about deeper insights and illusions. His explanations were terse. I didn‘t understand all the concepts.

At this point, the author admitted that the material was difficult to learn. It needed a method for practice with clear and immediate feedback.

He then knocked me off my chair. He suggested that the best place to learn this decision principles was in a Sports Book. Analysis was complex and feedback immediate. With a couple of references to Mexican food, he hinted that Las Vegas was the best spot for Sports Books.

That did it. I’d go to New York next year. I was off to Vegas.

And I would find the author. He hinted that he’d hang with anyone for five million dollars. My guess is that he would explain the issues around ‘Dancing Patterns’ and how to overcome internal obstacles. His comments on a Universal communication link gave me goose bumps.

I want to see what others don’t. The author could teach me that skill. Five million seems like a fair price.

Forget the price. I have nothing near that. For now, the burritos are on me.

Here’s why I’m excited. I can find the author, and he’ll like my enthusiasm. I’ll cruise the Sports Books looking for a short guy with a Yankees cap. Trust me, it may take a few introductions, but it will would work.

I’m off to Vegas, baby. Aunt Beatrice can have the cat.

____

JD looked at Tom and said, “He’s okay. Anyway, I’m not that short. He’ll never find me.”

“Where did he get that five million dollars idea from?”

Tom shrugged. “Five million may have come up in one of the earlier questions. It didn’t seem very significant.”

JD said, “It feels more important than a simple mention in passing. Could the money issue be some form of a weird test? It doesn’t make sense.”

Tom replied, “This definitely feels hinky, and we do love hinky. It has led us to strange places.”

“It certainly has. Life would have been a lot less interesting without hinky leads and crazy illusions.” JD paused, “Maybe I’ll wear my Mets cap for a while.”

They both laughed.