“May God give you health.
And may He be not unmindful of me as well.”
– John Steinbeck,
in a letter to his editor
and friend, Pascal Covici
The BeaglesWord this week was Optimism
And the rabbit hole theme was Play.
Even when you're feeling pessimistic,
do what an optimistic person would do.
Sometimes it pays off…
—–Original Message—–
From: Ira Weissman
Sent: Wednesday, February 25, 2009 1:43 AM
To: corrine@wizardofads.com, lonny.burgos@wizardofads.com
Subject: From former Leo Schachter (Israel) employee
Hi there. My name is Ira Weissman. Up until about 3 months ago, I was an employee of Elliot Tannenbaum's at Leo Schachter for about 6 years. I was actually on the Elexese team in Israel back when Roy was consulting for us. I fondly remember being handed Roy's book by Elliot and enjoying it very much.
I recently had the idea to create a website offering free advice to confused consumers, so I decided to plug in “truthaboutdiamonds.com”(among numerous other related ones) and lo and behold, it already existed. Imagine my huge smile when a “whois” search turned up the owner of the domain as “wizardofads.com!”
I'm not sure if either of you two are the proper destination for my question, but these are the two addresses associated with the domain on the whois search. I am interested in purchasing that domain, if it's not too expensive. I'm on a very tight budget as I have no income now. I am asking about truthaboutdiamonds.com and not askadiamondexpert.com because I see that it's not the primary domain for that site, and so I figure there's a better chance you'd be willing to part with it for a small amount.
Thank you very much for your consideration and keep up the good work!
Fondest Regards,
Ira Weissman
# # # #
Corrine,
Please let Ira know that I've thought about it and have decided to give him truthaboutdiamonds.com as a mitzvah. No charge.
It is a highly desirable domain name.
I ask only that his website – truthaboutdiamonds.com – be considerate when it comes to clarity enhanced diamonds. Ron and Dror Yehuda are very close friends of mine and longtime clients. If Ira is willing to speak of their diamonds with respect on his website, I will be happy to give the domain name to him.
If giving this domain to Ira helps get the Israeli diamond business back on its feet, even a tiny bit, it is a good investment.
Elliot Tannenbaum is also a friend. I have good memories of my association with the Leo Schachter organization and I wish them well.
Please have Lonny facilitate the transfer of truthaboutdiamonds.com to Mr. Ira Weissman.
Thanks,
Roy H. Williams
CC Ira Weissman, Lonny Burgos, Dror Yehuda
# # # #
Corrine,
Please relay to Mr. Williams that I am completely floored by his generosity. I've learned from my past experiences to always be very pessimistic when it comes to solicitations like these. Usually just receiving a response of any kind is a welcome break from the norm of being ignored. But to receive such an overwhelmingly positive response is totally unexpected and truly appreciated.
I will definitely mention Yehuda positively. My general gist is to help remove enough “illusion” to teach people to find the best value, but not remove it all so as to leave the reader with no more desire for diamonds. The idea is similar to what you discussed on “askadiamondexpert.com” — you should pay only for perceptible beauty of a stone, not for imperceptible and unnecessary upgrades. Clarity enhanced diamonds fit beautifully into that overall theme.
With Sincere Thanks,
Ira Weissman
The small outbuildings to the left and right of the underground art gallery/wine cellar are a storage room (L) and the elevator equipment room (R.) The roofs are sloped because they get covered by an arched bridge that will span the chasm and allow ground-floor entrance to the banquet/concert hall. Next week we'll have photos of that floor!
Thank you for becoming a Rider of the Storm. You're going to be HUGELY glad you did this when you receive your invitation to the Grand Opening Gala.