A Screaming Goat Wins Four Grammy Awards (1/3) I grew up one block away from Shakira. Okay, let me clarify this: Shakira didn't grow up there. But I grew up a block from where Shakira bought an entire apartment building for her parents. The building and the block it was on remained empty most of...

I am a sucker for a get-rich-quick scheme (3/3) There I was, a brand new immigrant, newly arrived in California, ready to consume all the information to get me started on the oh-so-American path from rags to riches. The seminar organizers were prepared to give me even more than I had bargained f...

I am a sucker for a get-rich-quick scheme The stranger made a beeline for my wife and me through the sea of Christmas shoppers, drowning in the desperation to find the perfect last-minute gift in Walnut Creek's open-air mall, Broadway Plaza. "Wow, you have an amazing smile!" He said. "Here we go...

I am a sucker for a get-rich-quick scheme (2/3) Jamal came by on the day of our meeting. He knocked on the door, and I let him in. The person who walked into my living room was a stranger in my friend's body who asked me, "Can any of your knives cut through a Coca-Cola can?" I felt silly admittin...