Fred Flintstone's Pies

I will never forgot Fred Flintstone's plan to make it rich selling pies, only to make too many without refrigerating them, and ended up having to sell them for pennies. The reason I remember it is the animators made ole' Freddy out to be a real numbskull for even trying to pull such a feat off. In reality, it takes a pure act of phenomenal human energy and imagination to even try something that is, to everyone else, obviously way over the person's head.

What it does do, is cause a person to immediately jump out of a life of consistency and routine, into a crazy rush of survival. I know; I've been down this road a few times. Let's take a new example here, one that's relevant to where I'm at now. The Amazon Jungle is host to mo re living things, and biomass, than any other place on earth. It's also home to the revered Acai berry, renowned for its anti-oxidant powers and shipped all over the world for consumption. The prices have inflated so highly that the locals who pick them can't even afford to eat them anymore.

Now, I'm in Boa Vista. There's no rain forest to clear or damage here, and it seems to be able to sustain a lot of green life. In fact I finally found one of the elusive acai palms in a backyard this morning. So, what would it take to start up a successful acai business in Boa Vista?

Land, irrigation, pickers, water, knowledge of the plants, fertilizer. Most importantly though, would be how to ship it from here to the market (acai's nutritional value is said to decrease 75% within 24 hours of picking). Others freeze it, but it then becomes mostly water. Freeze-dried, or made into powder. Some companies are even shipping live acai palm to you so you can grow them yourselves............ and physically want to harm them after 10 fruitless years. Anyways, someone decided it was a good idea to take a risk, buy a bunch of baby palms, and get into the acai business.

And what is really fascinating to me is that part of human nature that is a risk-taker. The best risk-takers are ones that calculate their risks, and do business plans, but there is always a chance of losing everything. I grew up with very little risk of anything negative happening in a safe, protective household and farm, but I still have a need to take risks, to feel the rush, and to take a chance on something. It feels more alive to me than just going to a job everyday for 30 years.

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” - Winston Churchill

I've learned everything I need to navigate a happy, healthy life. I know that smart risk-takers start taking risks with things they know about, and with friends and family. It's about slowly, and surely building the ability to deal with fear, making sure to do whatever it takes to succeed. The adage that 'you can do anything' requires a slight disclaimer. Instead 'you can do anything' as long as you work everyday towards it, taking baby steps every moment to build your confidence, lean heavily on friends and family, and learn most importantly how to deal with the physical symptoms of 'fear'. You've got to take care of yourself a lot more if you're doing something that scares you.

Some extra photos of a strange flower, and another palm, but with nuts that are so hard they barely cracked when I threw one against a concrete wall.