Les Berman Weekly 6-1 Asteroid. Aftershock. Wooly Mammoth. Glow in the Dark Cockroach. And a Monkey with Colorful Attributes !

I’m certain that you were out there today to make sure that the asteroid missed us. This event, with its moon in tow, just missed hitting planet Earth today, by a mere 3.6 million miles. So asteroid 1998 QE2 was big enough to wipe out a good part of the world’s population. OK, so that could have been a major issue, but to those of us who survived, the question would be whether or not our insurance would cover the catastrophe. My sources told me that if the asteroid or a meteorite scored a direct hit on your house, you would be covered. Of course, I think the insurance company would have insisted on a copy of the policy which, no doubt, have been incinerated. Likely along with you. So who cares? right? But this is where it gets interesting.

 

If your house was demolished by the aftershock or by shockwaves from the impact, too bad… you’re on your own. I wonder if this would be declared a disaster area?  Similarly, your auto policy would likely cover a direct hit, but none of the peripheral stuff. So the advice would be to make sure that you read the scientific parts of your on line news, do your calculations, and if you’re right… run like hell !

Of course, we don’t know if the impact would cause a global warming event, or if it would be followed by an ice age. I mean, maybe, except in southern California where the weather is always pleasant. Think of the possibilities.

 

Eons from now (eons are slightly shorter than “a long, long time”), perhaps some space alien archaeologist would discover some remains of something, just like they did recently on a remote island in the Arctic Ocean. These people discovered the remains of a wooly mammoth, estimated to be from 10 – 15,000 years old. That in and of itself, is extremely noteworthy. Even better was the discovery of blood that was so well preserved that it flowed freely from this carcass. The muscle tissue of the animal was so well preserved that it looked like fresh meat.

 

Is this important? Of course it is. If a wooly mammoth could be cloned a la Jurassic Park, the scientists could win a huge award from the X Prize. That would be cool, especially if it was put on display where we tourists could be taken (in more ways than one) on tours.

 

While we’re discussing animals, it seems that in 2012, a number of previously unknown specieswere discovered. Those would include a glow in the dark cockroach, a snake that eats snails, a meat eating sponge, and a monkey with, yup, bald, blue testicles. Now the natives have known of this monkey for some time and have hunted the monkeys because they are, apparently, good eating.

 

I wonder if you guys have known of this primate from the time when we were younger and more naive, and unfortunately, too frequently ended up with blue balls. (I sure hope this gets past the spam blockers). There is no evidence that the lesula monkey, native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo has any special properties other than as meat. I would, however, guess that no research would have been done on this topic anyway!

 

In other news from the science department, it has been announced that it has only taken 168 years to identify the pathogen that created the Irish Potato Famine, killing an estimated one million people. The scientists have postulated that the pathogen in question is now extinct. I have no idea how they would know that, but I’m easy and I’ll go with the flow. I wonder why, with apologies to those of Irish descent, if there was a shortage of potatoes, would they not have remembered the words of the late Marie Antoinette, and just eaten cake instead of potatoes.

 

It truly would have been ironic, I think, that if the Irish were able to change their diets to coincide with the words of the late Queen, and saved themselves, that the Queen’s execution would have been somehow rescinded. Food for thought ! (very bad pun !!)

Once more, it’s time for the blatant commercial. I am in the business of providing mortgages – every kind: VA, conventional FHA, jumbo, reverse, etc. If you are thinking about buying a home, or refinancing, you really should be calling me – today. 818.305.4695.

And please, have a better week !!

Les

Berman’s Factoids of the Week:

How many times is it appropriate to say “What?”, before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear or understand a word they said?

I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front.

Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey – but I’d bet everyone can find and push the snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time.

The first testicular guard, the “Cup,” was used in Hockey in 1874 and the first helmet was used in 1974. That means it only took 100 years for men to realize that their brain is also important.

 

 

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Les Berman CMC Real Estate Loan Specialist         NMLS ID 227675 Voice: 818.305.4695 Email: les@lesberman.com