（外文电子版资料）Stephenson, Neal - The Great Simoleon Caper.pdf

The Great Simoleon Caper by Neal Stephenson Hard to imagine a less attractive life-style for a young man just out of college than going back to Bismarck to live with his parents - unless its living with his brother in the suburbs of Chicago, which, naturally, is what I did. Mom at least bakes a mean cherry pie. Joe, on the other hand, got me into a permanent emotional headlock and found some way, every day, to give me psychic noogies. For example, there was the day he gave me the job of figuring out how many jelly beans it would take to fill up Soldier Field. Let us stipulate that its all my fault; Joe would want me to be clear on that point. Just as he was always good with people, I was always good with numbers. As Joe tells me at least once a week, I should have studied engineering. Drifted between majors instead, ended up with a major in math and a minor in art - just about the worst thing you can put on a job app. Joe, on the other hand, went into the ad game. When the Internet and optical fiber and HDTV and digital cash all came together and turned into what we now call the Metaverse, most of the big ad agencies got hammered - because in the Metaverse, you can actually whip out a gun and blow the Energizer Bunnys head off, and a lot of people did. Joe borrowed 10,000 bucks from Mom and Dad and started this clever young ad agency. If youve spent any time crawling the Metaverse, youve seen his work - and its seen you, and talked to you, and followed you around. Mom and Dad stayed in their same little house in Bismarck, North Dakota. None of their neighbors guessed that if they cashed in their stock in Joes agency, theyd be worth about $20 million. I nagged them to diversify their portfolio - you know, buy a bushel basket of Krugerrands and bury them in the backyard, or maybe put a few million into a mutual fund. But Mom and Dad felt this would be a no-confidence vote in Joe.