It’s been AGES since I last added a blog post, a victim to the pressure of blogging. I became another statistic.

Or did I?

When I started blogging back in 2007, I saw a lot of blogs, visited a ton of sites, and made a few blogging buddies along the way. We were all focused on making money, the glitz and glamor of leaving your day job and sitting at home in your PJ’s playing PlayStation all day. Sad to say, I didn’t quite reach that goal.

A recession hit, housing prices tanked, unemployment rose higher than Gary Coleman’s height. I kept a bunch of links to the sites I used to visit, and that landscape has changed immensely! It seems like a TON of people who used to be here have moved on to other things, and I’m guessing it’s mostly because of the pressure to write valuable posts and the time and expense involved in doing so. It’s much easier to just walk away versus trying to truly figure out a way to making a living with this thing.

Well, turns out the da hustler succumbed to the pressure as well. No $10k months, no expensive trips to Vegas, none of that. Just normal, everyday life where you work for the man and do what he wants you to do in exchange for not being homeless. And I have to say, I am quite content with not being homeless!

One thing I am very happy about though, is keeping the site here in cyberspace. Yes, I paid my hosting fees and preserved the space here over the years, but that was about it. I can’t tell you how much I really MISSED you guys and being able to really connect with the different people out there in the world, sharing common goals and providing great ideas to make some cash. Sometime in the last few months it occurred to me how much site like these were really needed, (uh oh, here it comes…) especially in times like these. (Yes, da hustler is sick and tired of hearing that phrase too!) if nothing more than to truly give hope to lots of people out there who need it.

So what does it mean to be “back?” Well, quite frankly after such a long hiatus, I feel like I have to get back into the swing of things. The years have brought changes in technology and the number of feasible ways to make money. For instance, I hear that Google AdSense & AdWords is either dead or dying, and Facebook is the new land of milk and honey. Sucks for da hustler, because he refuses to get a FB page, no matter what.

That just means more $$$ for you guys!

But before I end this post, I will say that I am so surprised that the site looks the way that it does! So there will be a change in that as well. Many of you may have just lucked upon this site somehow (I’m sorry to hurt your eyes like this), and some of you may have received a notice of a new post from a guy who was long thought to be dead & decaying. Not so! In any event, welcome if you are new, welcome back if you have been here before, and let’s get back to doing what we do best here…

Hustlin…

Without further ado, I present to you the very first Hustle Hiatus for 2007. Perhaps one of the biggest hustlers known to man is a man named Ron Popeil, otherwise known as the pitchman for The Ronco Corporation.

From the Showtime BBQ Grill to the Pocket Fisherman, Ron Popeil was one of the hardest working people in the infomercial market. Even if you didn’t like to watch them, whenever Ron was in an infomercial he always seemed to command your attention with his voice and style. He could make anything look like a jewel brought back by the astronauts on the Apollo 13 mission, and make you wonder how you went living for so long without one of his technological marvels.

These days, it seems as if Mr. Ronco himself has fallen off the face of the planet. His infomercials no longer grace the airwaves, and no one is seen with their credit card in hand and telephone in the other, ready to order the latest product. The age of the internet has ushered in a new way to engage in commerce, and that has perhaps put a huge strain on the market for products sold via half-hour television advertising. It’s a shame, because on a Saturday afternoon, when nothing else was on, you could always depend on Ronco to make the silliest looking contraption look like a household necessity.

“But wait! There’s more!”

Unfortunately, the empire that Mr. Popeil started has fallen on bad times, filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection just last month. Bitter infighting between the executives within the company is said to be one of the reasons for this motion, and the future for the once profitable organization is uncertain. Mr. Popeil is unaffected, however, because the company he started in 1958 was sold two years ago to a group of investors. Looks like they should have included his counsel in the deal…how do you run a company into the ground in just two short years? That must be some kind of record!

In 2006 Mr. Popeil was last reported spending quality time with his wife and two youngest daughters in Beverly Hills, California. He also has three older daughters from previous marriages.

Hmm. Inventor…or prophet?

Ronco’s Online Store: http://popeilfamilystore.com/index.html

Sources: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Wikipedia

Also, please bear with me as I test a new design for the site. There are some words out of place and formatting issues, but they will be worked out ASAP. Please tell me what you think of the new design! And don’t fret, the Top Commentators will be making a comeback, and all your results have been saved!

From the comments I received, it seems that people agree that Da Hustler — like any human — deserves a break every now and then, so this post shall enter the category of ‘Hustle Tips’ as a tip called: Take a Pause for the Cause. It’s important that you treat yourself good, because that’s the only way you can treat others the same way. Taking some time for yourself show that you do have a life, and you are not obsessed with work or obligation. Like that old slogan goes: Life is short — play hard! (was that Gatorade?)

In the meantime, as always, get ya hustle on.