There are a lot of issues in the upcoming election: Jobs, Taxes, The Economy, (Lithium) Wars, Healthcare, Energy, Environment, Schools, National Security, Immigration, Veterans, Witches, Aqua Buddhas, Fascism, Puppet Politicians, Corporate Socialism, our “fake” Free Market, Nationalism, Foreign Military Bases, Freedom, Erosion of Human Rights, Money Junkies and Power Junkies that need a “hot shot”, Agflation, Modern day Wall Street Robber Barons, The Sell-off of America, Maintaining our Global “Empire”, Suppression of the Arts, Terrorism, disintegration of quality through corporations like Walmart, worthless College Diplomas, The Federal Reserve heisting the Middle Class through Inflation and transferring wealth to Wall Street, Cronyism, Corruption, and Weed to name a few.
The sad this is, no matter which political party wins big, we are all still screwed. (And we will continue to be until all political parties are abolished and the bloody heads of The Corporatocracy are hoisted up on pikes, but that is another story for another time).
This all being said, I make all my voting decisions on one issue.
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA The Seventh Letter
AKA Your favorite International Playboy’s favorite International Playboy
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
I am literally amazed by the amount of open fly girls on the streets. High heels. Cobblestones. Short Skirts. Cold.
I approach five different girls and get two sets of numbers. Decent. (I will get more into Street Game in Riga a little later.)
Get some work done, take a little Vampire Nap and head out into the cold and beautiful evil that is nighttime in Riga.
I have some decent Data Sheets of bars I accumulated from some people and I decide to check them out.
It’s Wednesday night, and Riga seems curiously dead. I check out three or four spots that were recommended to me, and they all turn out to be airballs. (Typical, as not everyone comes through with the bulletproof Data Sheets like The G Manifesto. My Riga, Latvia nightclub/bar Data Sheets coming soon.)
I grab a Kebab and switch up my buzz. As I walk down the main street, two pretty fly girls check me out and step to me in transition.
“How are you?” I say.
“Why you speak in English?”, one of the fly girls says.
“I am from California. American.” I respond.
“Oh, good.” Both Latvian/Russian girls say. Although the reaction is more of a “Oh, good.”, like “Ok“. Not a pre-George Bush “Oh, good.” which ment “Cool, I am really interested in getting to know you and swoop you”.
The trap is set.
Let me back up a minute:
I had heard before about the scams in Riga where girls try to get you to go to a bar and then you get overcharged, but I am not thinking about this now.
So you don’t fall victim to this one, here is how the scam goes down:
1. Fly girls step to you, and invite you to a bar that they like.
2. You get mad overcharged.
3. You argue about the bill.
4. Russian Thugs jump you and beat you senseless until you give up your PIN #.
Smooth scam. And I fell for it. And I was even warned about it previously.
But then again, I am the perfect “Mark” for a scam such as this as my Ego is huge and two fly girls stepping to me happens all the time, so it didn’t give off any red flags.
Here is another thing about me: Money has very little value.
I am a complete moron when it comes to money. I have had a certain ability to make it my whole life, but I have also hadan equal ability to lose it. Sort of like Mike Tyson.
In the spirit of this, I didn’t even bother to check out the exchange rates between Latvian Lats to USD before I rolled out for the evening.
And for some reason, I was thinking in my head it was 2 USD to 1 LVL. But in reality it is 1 LVL to .5 USD.
So these girls were showing me around and we got some food and drinks. When I got the bill, I noticed it was a little expensive, but not knowing the exchange rates, I was actually doubly hustled.
(I found this out the next day. Oh well. I will Charge it to The Game. You can keep the change, but I got to hold on to my receipt.)
After partying with these girls for a while, I end up ditching them for some other fly girls and end up raging till 6am. I think I actually got scammed again, but didn’t realize it again. Full idiot move.
Finally, with a little downtime after London Fashion Week and post-week madness, I had a chance to answer some questions from readers sent to The G Manifesto:
Q: Should you ever button the 2nd button on a two-button suit?
Michael Mason: You should almost never button the second button on a two-button suit. The only exception is if it is a “high-two” like some of the suits that Ozwald Boateng has been busting out lately. If you don’t button the second button on those, it looks weesh.
Q: Recently, I saw you sparring at The Wildcard Gym in Los Angeles. I noticed you were working off the double jab and throwing a left hook off that. Would you say that is your signature combination?
Michael Mason: If you saw me sparring at Wildcard recently, then you saw me take some heavy shots. I was super hungover those days. But that is neither here nor there. Back to your question, I do work off the double jab frequently. I don’t know if its my “signature combination” with the hook though. My favorite combo lately has been the jab, “ride out” then counter the opponents jab with a straight right over the top. Very Mayweatheresque.
Q: Hows it going? I live in Dana Point and want to start dressing well, I’ve asked around and no one seems to know shit about tailors etc, do you happen to know of a good one and or any good shops in the area?
Michael Mason: Yeah, Orange County is pretty clueless on that front. However, you are in luck. I have a really good friend in Newport Beach, who swears by Gary’s in I think Fashion Island.
If I recall correctly, I have been there before and picked up some ties and pocket squares a while back. Place is pretty dope and will definitely be able to steer you in the right direction.
Q: Mr. Mason, I am entering my junior year of college, and am becoming a member of the weed trade. I will be living in a building with about 800 students, most of them freshmen and sophomores (not too smart).
The issue I have is that I only deal in the best weed, and cannot possibly compete with the wanks selling shwag at 50-60 an eighth. I need to charge 70 to smoke for free, and about 75 an eighth to make a profit.
I have no doubt that what I will be moving is the best on campus (it will make you see god.) How do I take my quality product and advertise it properly so that the true afficianodo’s come to me? My strategy right now is to reach out to a few smoakers I know and get them to vouch for my product on their floors. What further advice do you have so that I can distinguish myself from the wannabee freshmen who sell stuff which could be confused as oregano?
Michael Mason: I think you will be fine. In any business, a superior product advertises itself.
This Summer I have been logging in heavy hours at The Del Mar Race Track, hustling, gambling and swooping fly girls. I have even taken to eating lemondrops at the track (and I don’t mean those shots that Strip Club Waitress’ always try to get me to do pro-bono, either), all the while enjoying the beautiful 70 degree weather that coastal Southern California has been offering, while the rest of the country sweats it out.
I have been mostly holding court dayside (pre-track) at Red Tracton’s and nightside (post-track) at L’Auberge Del Mar. I did take time to catch Juan Manuel Marquez cook Juan Diaz in the rematch, like I said he would. Another big win for 70’s babies over 80’s babies. And another decent win for my Custom Suit pocket.
I also saw Zenyatta go 18-0 in what Del Mar Thoroughbred Club CEO, Joe Harper, called, “This is the best day Del Mar has ever had. And thanks to not just Zenyatta, but the style and eloquence of people you see in front of you,” from the relaxing confines of The Del Mar Turf Club.
Now after having The Best Feeling again, its time to plan my next strike. Hope your summer is going well also.
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
May 1st is a big day and the official start to the summer on The G Manifesto Calendar with The Kentucky Derby and Floyd Mayweather VS Sugar Shane Mosley.
Here is how you always can win at the Racetrack:
Your Running Partner must be short, like jockey short.
Find your mark in the crowd. The good thing is, The Racetrack has never had a shortage of suckers looking for “inside tips” and “sure things” as long as you have a little Street Sense (And I don’t mean 2007 Derby winner Street Sense, either).
Approach the mark, Custom Suited Down (very important) and introduce yourself all Charismatic-like (And I don’t mean 1999 Derby winner Charismatic, either) . “My name is Michael Mason”, shake the mark’s hand. “What horses are you betting on?”
(Actually, use an alias or an AKA, and just so its straight, my AK was my AKA since before I learned my ABC’s and the courts sent me to AA and NA, and now it’s all A-OK, Ok?)
The mark usually says something like, “Not sure yet, have you got any picks?”
Say, “No, I wish.” Then look around and say, “Wait, do you see that guy over there?”, while pointing to your running partner/“Jockey” who is busy writing down figures on a of paper.
The mark will usually say something like, “Yeah, I see him. Who is he?”
Reply, “That is XXXX XXXXXX, the famous jockey. He works with Bob Baffert.” (Always insert the name of a famous trainer.)
Then get the mark thinking: “I wonder what he is working on?”
The mark will say, “Me too”.
“If only there was a way we could meet him…Screw it, let’s go talk with him.”
“Good idea”.
To the jockey, “Hi, Michael Mason, we were wondering what you were working on.”
“Um, I was just figuring out how much money I could make today”, the jockey says.
The mark will usually take it from there, “How do you know you will win?”
Then the jockey will lower his voice Real Quiet and say, “I know I am going to win because I am racing. You two gentleman look like you can be trusted, but it must be strictly confidential. Ok? My boss is going to make a killing, and he let me have a piece of the action”. (And I don’t mean 1998 Derby winner Real Quiet, either).
Then say, “You wouldn’t mind sharing a little info would you?”
Jockey says, “I can’t do that. No way. I always keep my word to the boss. If I leak the info, it will affect the odds. And my boss always puts his bets in at the last minute.”
The mark is usually hooked with Greed at this time and will usually spew something like, “Damn. I thought you might have a tip for us.”
Then say, “How about this, if you won’t tell us the horses, can you make bets for us when you do?”
The jockey will consider this for a little bit, and say, “Sure, but I still can’t tell you the name of the horses.”
Say, “That’s ok, I just want to hit a big bet, and here is $8,000.”
The mark will inevitably say, “Here is my $7,500.”
Jockey says, “Ok, I will meet you in The Turf Club after the sixth.”
Leave with the mark, and enthusiastically get a “celebratory” cocktail. Hell, even buy it. And go for gin. (And I don’t mean 1994 Kentucky Derby winner Go for Gin, either).
Give the mark the slip.
There you go, that’s how you always win at The Kentucky Derby. Old-school hustler style.
Sans armes, Ni haine, Ni violence
See you there.
If you like to go a more conventional route and bet on The Kentucky Derby, listen to NW DC’s Andy Beyer:
“In the Kentucky Derby, more than any other race, pace is often a crucial determinant. When the pace is moderate — if, say, the first half-mile is run in 47 seconds or thereabouts — the early leaders often seize a tactical advantage. But every time the first half-mile of the Derby has been run in 45.4 seconds or faster, the pace has taken a destructive toll on all of the early pacesetters. After a 45.38 half-mile in 2005, the leaders collapsed, and the horses running 18-6-11-19 at the four-furlong mark wound up finishing 1-2-3-4, with Giacomo winning at 50 to 1. In 2001, when the pace was 44.86, the three early leaders wound up finishing 13th, 14th and 16th in the field of 17 as Monarchos and other stretch-runners dominated the race.
In a field in which it is hard to muster an ironclad conviction, Ice Box offers the best betting value. Based on the assumption that all the speed horses in the Derby will collapse, my play will be an exacta box of Ice Box and Lookin At Lucky.”
I was there to see Ice Box win at The Florida Derby. Impressive horse.
If you want to go by the “name system” and want a long shot, go with Paddy O’Prado and Jockey Kent Desormeaux.
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
Early contender for Track of the Summer:
Cypress Hill feat.Pitbull & Marc Anthony – “Armada Latina” 2010
