The Larry Bird of 7-11..

"Audacity is the key ingredient in entrepreneurship. Getting past any of your prior restraints is what being audacious is all about. A budding entrepreneur? They think about where things are going, not where they are at now."  Robert Joseph Astle

I talked with my biggest fan/critic, cousin Sally. She told me this. "I wish you would stop quoting yourself. It makes you look arrogant." I love my cousin Sally more than anything. Sally isn't really my cousin, not blood. She's a girl from my hometown, we've been friends for 30 some years. She told me something a long time ago, that I hope one day will come true. "Robbie, your going to make something out of yourself, something big! Just don't forget about your cousin Sally when you hit." She's the only person who has ever said anything like that about me. I hope she is right.

One of my favorite regulars at 7-11 is a guy named Javier. You know how I tell everyone about how diverse the clientele at 7-11 is? Bum on the street to the hottest girl in town. Well, Javier is the 'bum on the street' of that equation. It's not funny, but it kind of is. He's got to be the best panhandler I've ever seen. He makes his way through the line, and I ask him what the word on the street is. He looks at me with his tired eyes, grubby beard, and says. "The word is Larry Bird. Bird is the word." I found his answer peculiar. Larry Bird has been a role model of mine for decades, the last person I would ever think would know who Larry Bird is? Javier. So I asked him? "You know who Larry Bird is?" I'm not sure Javier has all his screws tightened, so I had to make sure he wasn't just mumbling. He answered me like this:

"What do you mean? Do I know who Larry Bird is? What do you think I'm stupid?" He then lifted up his sweatshirt to reveal a vintage Bird jersey that he was wearing. I could tell I struck a nerve with him when he added this. "I'm from Boston. I grew up loving the Celtics. Larry Bird is my favorite player of all-time. My dad told me this when I was young about 'Larry Legend'. Son if you can end up like #33 you will be alright. He epitomizes what it takes to be successful." I agreed with Javier 100%. After he leaves, I start thinking to myself- "Back when I was a kid in Kansas? My buddies and I would always use the 'Bird is the word' tag line. To hear it come out of Javier's mouth? Well, it brought back some fun memories."