So Few of Me

Book Description

"Just the message overscheduled families need in today's frantic world . . . delivered with humor and terrific artwork." — John de Graaf, national coordinator, Take Back Your Time

Leo's list of things to do keeps growing, until one day he wishes, "If only there were two of me." Just as the words are out of his mouth, poof! Another Leo appears! Two Leos become three, three become four, and four become more . . . but Leo can't help but notice that he has even more to do than before. As he struggles to deal with his overcomplicated life, Leo realizes that there may be a simpler solution to his overscheduling woes. Peter H. Reynolds, the award-winning author-illustrator of THE DOT and ISH, returns with an important message for readers of all ages: stop and take a little time to dream.

Customer Reviews:

Another great one from Peter Reynolds.......2007-03-28

A charming, genuinely funny book that recaptures the elegant, offhand magic of Reynolds' earlier gem, The Dot. Here a young man named Leo finds himself swamped under rapidly multiplying to-do lists and chores -- schoolwork, laundry, classes, cooking -- and he idly thinks to himself, how nice it would be if there were two of me, so I could do all my work faster. Well, poof! then there are two of him... then three... and eventually ten Leos, all running around, taking out the trash, studying calculus, rushing to soccer practice, making more to-do lists and trying to coordinate all their Leo labors... It turns out, though, that the more of you are, the harder and more hectic it gets: Leo winds up spending as much time managing his doppelgangers as he does getting any actual work done! A funny, gentle, incisive look at the modern problems of overbooked, overscheduled people everywhere, both kids and adults. The solution Leo comes up with is pretty nice, and the story is a great, entertaining read. I love Reynolds' artwork, too, especially how it evokes Jules Fieffer's old cartoons. Another highly recommended book from a guy who's rapidly becoming one of my favorite new children's book artists. [...]

A great gift book for the over scheduled person!.......2006-11-29

This is a wonderful book....it teaches kids a lesson that I (and probably many others!!) wish I'd learned at a young age...YOU CAN'T DO IT ALL...STOP TRYING!!! The pictures are humorous and simple and make the story seem really like a modern-day fable. This is truly a must-read for anyone that has a child that is a perfectionist or overscheduled. It is also perfect for the adult that is burning the candle at both ends themselves or worse...overscheduling their OWN kid!

Enjoy this...I bet it will be a gift you give others!

Even God Is Single, So Stop Giving Me A Hard Time

Average customer rating:

Disappointing
Great Pick Me Up
Let Me Be ...
Short and Sweet
A silly,unamusing book

Even God Is Single, So Stop Giving Me A Hard Time
Karen Salmansohn
Manufacturer: Workman Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 076112134X

Book Description

It's the edgy gift book for every unmarried woman who's fending off her nudgy mother and overly concerned (over-bearing?) friend, who can't go to a holiday dinner, class reunion, shower or wedding without hearing the usual round of questions. Something like So, why aren't you married yet? Or sometimes, Still not found that special someone? Or any variation thereof.

Delightful, irreverent, and witty, Even God is Single, So Stop Giving Me a Hard Time is an affirmation for every girl who's single and loving it. Even God is Single is strong, sexy, smart, and edgy. And joyous-it celebrates singlehood, just as it pays homage to the self-assured and savvy woman who knows that you're not half a person just because you're not half a couple.

Even God is Single asks is it "monogamy" or "monotony?" Shows that given the 50% divorce rate, you haven't missed out on marriage, you just skipped a few divorces. And fearlessly examines the role models. Married? Frankenstein, Linda Tripp, and 20,000 Moonies. Single? Catwoman, Superwoman--and, of course, God.

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing.......2007-05-09

This is not so much a book as a hard bound pamphlet. No substance to speak of and zero depth. Disappointing in that yet another book takes a flippant approach to singleness and Christianity.

Great Pick Me Up.......2005-11-04

Even God is Single is a wonderfully irreverent look at all the reasons why being single is not the end of the world and may even be a plus. Not only is it well written but the illustrations are fabulous. Never let anyone dare question your single status again. Buy the book if you or a friend needs a good laugh.

Let Me Be ..........2003-01-26

Let me be single. I do not want to get married. Thank you for this fun and interesting book.

Short and Sweet.......2003-01-17

This one is shorter than most of Karen Salmansohn's books, but it certainly is sweet. Marriage is not the be-all and end-all of life in the 21st Century !! Of course, if you do want to change your status, check out her new book for 2003 -- "How To Change Your Entire Life By Doing Absolutely Nothing" -- which I also enjoyed very much. Perceptive humor can be good for you.

A silly,unamusing book.......2002-04-24

I dont understand why any man would want to do the illustrations for Karen Salmansohns books.I personally am so repulsed by this woman I would want nothing to do with any of her projects.This book isnt any better than her other books,theyre all worthy of only one star reviews.

So Help Me God: The Ten Commandments, Judicial Tyranny, And The Battle For Religious Freedom

Average customer rating:

Perhaps past the point of no return, but a timely book.
crystal clear...
The State is the Church for Secular Humanist Liberals
Judge Moore for Supreme Court
The truth is told!!

So Help Me God: The Ten Commandments, Judicial Tyranny, And The Battle For Religious Freedom
Roy Moore , and John Perry
Manufacturer: B&H Publishing Group
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0805432639

Book Description

Chief Justice Roy Moore believes the state must acknowledge the moral principles on which America was founded and that it is not illegal to do so. While the separation of church and state may be a credible and legitimate tenet, it has been largely misconstrued and abused during the last forty years.

Moore was sworn to uphold the Constitution of the United States. His critics, both within conservative circles and without, have maintained that he violated the law by disobeying the order of a federal judge to remove a monument of the Ten Commandments. But Moore brilliantly argues that those who have ordered him to violate his oath have, in fact, broken the law.

So Help Me God will articulate why he believes elected and appointed government officials have the right and the obligation to acknowledge God as the foundation of American government and jurisprudence.

Customer Reviews:

Perhaps past the point of no return, but a timely book........2007-04-03

To those who believe in Jesus and familar with the history of our America will understand this book.

To those who do not believe in Jesus and care little about our nation's history will hate this book, just as Jesus was hated.

America has become pluralistic. A nation of many gods and idolotry. We worship anything and everything but the one and only God of Abraham, the Alpha and Omega, the great I am and Lord of the universe. We refuse to worship God Almighty because of pride and fear of rules. The liberal mindset of America today has violated the 2nd commandment -- thou shall not have make a graven image (idolotry). We have made a god to suit ourself, created our own rules and removed the once understood 10 commandments. Then we wonder why our country has so many problems with crime and immorality. We have forgot from where we came.

[...] Where will you go when you die? Are you Good enough to go to heaven?

crystal clear..........2007-01-03

Thank you, Judge Moore for your uncompromising stand in regard to following the Constitution, and the rule of law. It's so easy these days to compromise, and take the easy path. It's refreshing to see a man with backbone and courage, who counts the cost, and still does the right thing! You present your case explaining the foundations of the Constitution and rule of law with crystal clarity. You're truly an inspiration. In the ages to come, we will find Judge Moore hanging out with Jefferson, Washington, Adams...and the rest of our great nation's founders.

The State is the Church for Secular Humanist Liberals.......2006-11-08

In Alabama Judge Moore was not allowed to acknowledge the Judeo-Christian God and His ten commandments as being the foundation for our laws, something that is easily demonstrable and clearly our heritage. Judge Moore simply exposed the hypocrisy of a judicial system that acknowledges the Judeo-Christian God by opening in prayer and swearing oaths on a Bible, but prohibits acknowledging God in our historical foundation for law as he did. Judge Moore further demonstrated their logically fallacious reasoning in that they would not allow him to display the commandments, citing the establishment clause, but they refused to define the key word "religion" in this clause. So in effect, they decided that he violated a clause that they were unwilling to define. In doing so Judge Thompson actually stated that he found what Judge Moore did "religiously offensive." How ironic considering Thompson would not even define the word.

Simply put, every law and liberty upon which this country was founded is based on the Judeo-Christian ethic. The secular humanist liberal progressives do not want the American public to recognize that. They point to a few secular oriented statements, but fail to point out that the great preponderance of the evidence points toward biblical foundations for our laws and liberties. Facts like, 1/3 of the quotes in the books and papers written by founding fathers are Bible verses, that 52 of the 55 were regular in church attendance, and that the prolific use of references to God in official documents points to the fact that their view of the establishment clause was far different than the secularist of today that wishes to ban all such reference. Even the Declaration of Independence that established our liberty to be an independent nation states that our rights come from the Creator and because of that they are unalienable (absolute, not awarded by human power, not transferable to another power, and incapable of repudiation). This knowledge interferes with the humanist agenda to change laws and liberties as we humans progress to a so-called higher form of liberal society by casting off the shackles of these Creator endowed rights. But of course this is anarchy, for there are no humanistic standards for right and wrong that can be agreed upon by millions of discordant people each serving their own self-interest. Outside of the words of a revelatory God such as we find in the Bible nothing can be said to be inherently right or wrong. Furthermore, concepts like separation of church and state, freedom of speech, rule of law, juvenile restrictions, bearing false witness, sanctity of life, and marriage, are in and of themselves biblical concepts. They flow from and through that particular belief system.

The secular humanistic viewpoint is also hypocritical since it is itself a religious belief system. As it has been aptly said, there can be no separation of church and state for the secular humanist, for the state is their church. The establishment clause prohibits government interference with the free exercise of religion. By banning all acknowledgement of God by government officials, even when it is based on clear historical reference, the government is interfering. Even a world famous atheist that recently converted to theism because of the powerful argument to design from the plethora of discoveries in genetics and molecular cell biology says the liberal activist judges in the U.S. have interpreted the constitution the wrong way. Antony Flew said "the Supreme Court has utterly misinterpreted the clause in the Constitution about not establishing a religion: misunderstanding it as imposing a ban on all official reference to religion." Although a theist, he is only barely so. This guy hopes there is not an afterlife and does not like any organized religions (including Christianity), which makes him an especially credible witness to what is going on in this country.

The facts are clear, there is a faction that is currently trying to establish secular humanism as our national religion, and they are using state agency to do so. Will the American populace tolerate the complete secularization of society through government supported, communistic social policy dependency and its associated philosophical indoctrination into the state sponsored religion of secular humanism? Liberals don't want you to know that behind all the smoke and mirrors of political rhetoric and banter, this is the true battle raging in 21st century America.

Are our laws and liberties going to be subject to the whims of secular humanist progressives, or shall they remain in the domain of the constitution and its amendments as set forth with the original intent of the framers? We stand at a crossroads as we begin the 21st century. Is America going to become the brave new world of the liberal with all the moral norms of the jungle, or are we going to be a constitutional republic founded upon biblical principles, the same principles that made this nation great for its first 200 years. This is the generation that must choose. Read Roy's book, it is an eye opener, but don't expect those of the secular humanist persuasion to give it a good review.

Judge Moore for Supreme Court.......2005-11-08

Wow, finally the whole story. It is hard to believe that men with as much courage, backbone, and strong morality still exist in America. This, folks, is the story of a modern American HERO. Nowadays, true heroes are ignored, blacklisted, put in jail, harassed, made fun of, and purposely misunderstood. Moore is no exception, as this story points out. In the meantime, I will be helping this man become the next governor of Alabama.

The truth is told!!.......2005-09-28

If you want to know the truth of what happened during those dark days in Alabama you need to get this book!!!

I Really Want to Change... So, Help Me God

Average customer rating:

Hope for the hopeless
An insightful walk thru God's Word for real life change
Biblical Principles Revealed
You Will Change
THIS BOOK CHANGED MY LIFE

I Really Want to Change... So, Help Me God
James MacDonald
Manufacturer: Moody Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0802434231

Book Description

I REALLY want to change. Do you? Are you truly serious about allowing the power of God to transform your life? If you are, then prepare yourself for an incredible, life-changing experience. Change is difficult, but it's made even harder without practical guidance on how to do it. You will find that guidance in I Really Want to Change ... So, Help Me God. James MacDonald is serious about the business of change according to God's Word. While many tell us that we should change and be more like Christ, MacDonald actually teaches us how to do it.I Really Want to Change ... So, Help Me God is split into three sections as the model for approaching change: The Preparation for Change: choosing the right method and partnering with God to select the areas in need of change in your life. The Process of Change: exploring the biblical method of saying 'no' to sinful patterns and 'yes' to the things God desires for you. The Power to Change: explaining how to experience the power of God personally and continuously.This is a book about a different you. There are no warm fuzzies within these pages. Rather, MacDonald is a direct, to-the-point pastor with a heart for seeing lives completely transformed by the truth of the Gospel. If you're serious about changing your life, I Really Want to Change ... So, Help Me God is just what you need.

Customer Reviews:

Hope for the hopeless.......2007-04-26

Hope for those who are tired of failing. This book gets to the heart of the matter, no new age psychology just the bare bones of the biblical perspective for real change. If you only want to be reassured or feel good about the problem you are facing, this is not the book for you. IF you however want real change, be prepared to work. This is a Christian book; the whole premise is about FAITH. There is ONLY ONE answer, ONE true source of success. Real change is possible to those who are willing to make the commitment and willing to acknowledge the ONE TRUE source for overcoming. It is written in simple everyday language, a letter from a survivor who lived through the experience who is encouraging another. If you've tried everything in your power to change and failed every time you tried, give this book a chance. I was blessed, encouraged and given hope.

An insightful walk thru God's Word for real life change.......2006-05-04

James is just as candid with his writing as he is in speaking. He is a conversational writer that gets to the point and his points are always well poised. If you are looking for biblical instruction that is easily applied to your life, this is a read for you. I've taught numerous sermons based upon this writing and would recommend it to anyone seeking life change based on Godly principles.

Biblical Principles Revealed.......2006-04-23

In a way, the book should be titled, "I Really Want to Repent...So, Help Me God" because the focus of the book *is* about change through true repentance.

Having said that, it was a difficult (in a good way) book for me to read as it forced me to face my sins and make a decision as to whether I would trust God or if I would continue to do things my way.

If you're struggling with depression or something similar, it may not necessarily be the book to read because it's possible to be depressed and not fully understand the source of the depression. I think in this case, praying to God and asking Him to reveal the source; there are so many different factors that cause depression.

While it is a challenge, I highly recommend this book for anyone who is seriously desiring to change ... that is repent and turn away for their sins.

You Will Change.......2005-07-16

I slowly worked through this book more than once. My attitude changed towards my former husband. After 10 years of separation I offered to reconcile.It is an excellent book.

THIS BOOK CHANGED MY LIFE.......2004-01-08

Forget secular self help books, this book gives you a structured biblical approach to change that really works, I bought the Tape eries from his web site for over $50 because I loved the book so much.

The strategies only work if you commit and put faith in God.

When We're In Public, Pretend You Don't Know Me: Surviving Your Daughter's Adolescence so You Don't Look like an Idiot and She Still Talks to You
Average customer rating:

99% of this book is GREAT!

Easy read with a few laughs

excellent with one big BUT....

Laughing all the way to adulthood

Hilarious and helpful

When We're In Public, Pretend You Don't Know Me: Surviving Your Daughter's Adolescence so You Don't Look like an Idiot and She Still Talks to You
Susan Borowitz
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Accessories:

philosophy hope in a jar daily moisturizer

ASIN: 0446679518

Book Description

'The two worst times in a woman's life is when she is 13 and when her daughter is 13,' or so goes a popular maxim in psychology circles. During these adolescent years, mothers are constantly struggling with how to handle their daughters-and themselves around their daughters. WHEN WE'RE IN PUBLIC.... is a survival handbook that discusses such important issues as beauty and body image, public behavior (both hers and moms), privileges and punishment, and sex. Written by the mother of a teenage daughter and featuring expert advice from a noted child psychologist, the book also offers simple steps to avoid disaster (i.e. before you think of dressing like your daughter, remember one word: Cher) and practical wisdom culled from numerous interviews with mothers of teenage daughters.

Customer Reviews:

99% of this book is GREAT!.......2006-08-15

I have a 13 year old daughter, and this book really resonated with me. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I already fit in the "Uncool Mom" category, but I still learned a lot from the common sense tips. I also really enjoyed the way that this book is written, with humor and anecdotes that keep you in stitches while helping you understand your daughter just a little better.

My one problem with the book was when the author recommended not teaching abstinance. I do think that it's naive to ONLY teach abstinance, but I think teaching kids that abstinance is an option is very important. By not teaching abstinance at all, but teaching kids about safe sex, what they will hear is that they are expected to have pre-marital sex. When you teach abstinance AND safe sex in conjunction, you are telling them that if they don't want to, it's a valid choice and they should feel confident in it, and if they do choose to have sex, here's how to stay safe.

Easy read with a few laughs.......2005-08-18

I am preparing for a teenage daughter (in about 3 years) and am trying to open myself up to a variety of tactics to handle those bouts of emotions. This book was an easy read and came with a few laughs, to prepare for the onslaught of teenage cruelty. The author shares her experiences with the rest of us, but it is up to us to decide what is best for our children. As an Uncool mom in training, I recommend this book to glean different perspectives in adolescent separation.

excellent with one big BUT...........2005-06-03

I really liked this book except for one thing which echoes what a previous reviewer said. teens can and do abstain. I know quite a few of them. people in the media saying that kids cant abstain so teaching abstinance leads to a downward spiral: who wants to try and do the impossible.
this aside though, this is an excellent book. I read some of the parts to my husband and we wondered if this woman has been in our home eavesdropping.

Laughing all the way to adulthood.......2004-07-24

I am the mother of a 14 year-old girl. She's a great kid, but when she went away to camp for a month and people asked me if I missed her, I said, "NO."

I'm a pretty good mom; I used to teach teenagers, and I have some clue about what this age is about. Still, Borowitz's book had me laughing out loud, and while I was laughing, some new ideas slipped in. Life post-camp is looking a little brighter.

Hilarious and helpful.......2003-12-03

Okay, I'm not a parent, let alone parent of a teenager...but I will be someday, and I'm interested, so I'm thinking about it and reading up. Here's what I'm thinking about this book:

I love it. It's wryly funny -- even occasionally hysterical -- and much of it rings true from watching my relatives bring up teenagers, being one not too long ago myself (though I didn't have some of the more extreme issues I notice in others), watching my own mom cope with me, and seeing the daily struggles between my peers and their moms when we were teens. There's a lot of "common sense" here, but don't let that statement fool you into thinking the book's useless; the best of us sometimes forget to exercise our "common" sense.

I particularly appreciate the ("common sense?") idea that moms should not fall into the trap of being "clueless" or the opposite trap of being your daughter's "cool" best friend. The best way to be both parent and friend is to be what Mrs. Borowitz calls "the uncool mom:" setting good boundaries, remaining in control, being yourself, picking your battles, and butting out when your daughter needs to manage on her own (which is more often than you think.) My own mother did a generally great job of this, and we are now what one might call "best friends" as adults -- still very much mother-daughter, but with mutual respect, friendship, and tolerance built out of (usually, and usually this was Mom's doing) handling our conflicts in a healthy way when I was a minor. This book is written by a mom who sounds a lot like mine...but even my mom could have learned something from her.

So Sue Me! How to Protect your Assets from the Lawsuit Explosion
Average customer rating:

Good Information if you're a beginner to the topic......

Want to protect yourself!

I Only Wish I'd Had this Book a Few Years Ago

So Sue Me! How to Protect your Assets from the Lawsuit Explosion
Arnold S. Goldstein
Manufacturer: Garrett Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Cover Your Assets: Lawsuit Protection: How to Safeguard Yourself, Your Family, and Your Business in the Litigation Jungle

How to Use Limited Liability Companies & Limited Partnerships

ASIN: 1880539608

Book Description

America is lawsuit crazy. We are becoming bankrupted through sky rocketing insurance premiums and ravaged by ludicrous jury awards. Nobody is safe from the million lawyers hunting their next victim.

Can you afford to lose what you have to a frivolous lawsuit? If you are in a car accident, involved in a divorce, or any type of lawsuit-no matter how insignificant it may seem-someone may attempt to leverage a huge settlement. Careful planning before problems arise places your assets securely out of reach from those who would take your hard-earned money.

So Sue Me! provides you with the sound legal financial advice to protect your assets!Arnold S. Goldstein, Ph.D., one of the country's foremost authorities in asset protection, teaches you to safeguard yourself against creditors, lawsuits, divorce, the IRS and bankruptcy.

Read this eye-opening financial primer and defend yorself against those who would rob you of your possessions, money and security.

Customer Reviews:

Good Information if you're a beginner to the topic.............2006-02-08

This book is very easy to read and provides some excellent general advice and information for readers who are unfamiliar with the topic.

However, it does not provide the detailed information needed by someone who wants to formulate their own tailored estate and/or asset protection plan even though the book implies that it does. For example, some of the 'information' relating the differences between states is outdated and/or wrong.

Read this book for fundamental information and as a wake up call for the need for protection rather than as detailed advice on how you can do it!

Want to protect yourself!.......2005-12-06

Author Goldstein has been an asset protection attorney for many years. His first book, Asset Protection Secrets, was a best seller. This one is for everyone: people with money; people with little assets but they don't want to lose them; young and old; married, divorced and single; savvy or naive.

These chilling words set the tone: "You just never know what a jury will do," and "Juries decide if a case has merit." He states that 93% of Americans have absolutely no lawsuit protection aside from their liability insurance--because we procrastinate and don't think it will ever happen to us.

You don't have to do anything wrong to be sued and lose. You only have to be in the wrong place at the wrong time--or come across some greedy lunatic who things he has a reason to be grieved.

Goldstein's advice and strategies show how you can protect yourself against lawsuits, divorce, creditors, the IRS and other deadly threats to your wealth and assets (money, investments, possession, businesses, etc.).

Bulging with easy-to-understand advice, the book might make you to decide TODAY is the time to start protecting your assets and no longer be non-protected.

From personal experience, I know that money and time spent now can save you a lot of both later. It is shocking that only one in five Americans have even a simple will to define their wishes.

The author ends with four important steps:
1.Commit to action: Set a goal and get started.

2.Organize your team of advisors to protect your assets, including family members, business associates, etc.--people you can trust.

3.Recruit the right professionals: your lawyer, accountant, banker, financial planner/investment advisor, insurance professional--and what criteria to use.

4.Stay proactive in maintaining financial security: Be your own counsel in addition to your advisors; learn, read, be proactive.

Armchair Interviews says: So Sue Me should scare you right into your lawyers and accountant's office, place a call to your insurance man, and generally "look over your shoulder" now that you know how easily you can lose your assets.

I Only Wish I'd Had this Book a Few Years Ago.......2005-09-01

This is a book that I wish I'd had (and paid attention to) some years ago, that is, before being sued for divorce. I then had to learn what he says here through talking to attorneys (at $much per hour this is an expensive approach) and by writing my ex-wife big checks (but I got sole custody of the kid so it was worth it).

Dr. Goldstein is talking about protecting what assets you have (after divorce that may be considerably less than you had before). When your major assets have been stripped away, you still need to protect what you have left, but some of the rules change. For instance liability insurance, if you carry a million dollar liability policy and have only $10,000 in assets, this may entice a hungry attorney to sue you while if you only had $20,000 in insurance, he may go look for another target.

Meet Me...Don't Delete Me. Internet Dating: I've Made All The Mistakes So You Don't Have To!

Average customer rating:

Like Being on a Bad Date...
Don't waste your money
How annoying....
fun, informative, entertaining!!
Online Dating Story

Meet Me...Don't Delete Me. Internet Dating: I've Made All The Mistakes So You Don't Have To!
Bev Bacon
Manufacturer: Slapstick Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Internet Dating: Tips, Tricks and Tactics
The Ultimate Man's Guide to Internet Dating: The premier men's resource for finding, attracting, meeting and dating women online (Ultimate Man's Guide)

ASIN: 0974434582

Book Description

Meet Me...Don't Delete Me! is a very unique book on Internet dating. It not only gives great advice about dating online, but also includes funny, zany stories and hilarious photos. The author uses her own personal experiences to let you know you're not out there alone! Internet dating is a fun, exciting way of meeting tons of people. This book reminds us that even the worst date can be the funniest story at any get together. Find out:

How to post the right photo

How long to correspond before meeting

When and where to meet

What to say and what NOT to say

How to screen for the best and safest results

How to laugh at the author's mistakes, all made

so YOU don't have to

AND lots more!
So put down the TV remote and the Twinkie and find out how to jump start your love life.

Customer Reviews:

Like Being on a Bad Date..........2006-03-20

When I received the book, the first thing I did was flip to the "About the Author" page and I was really pleased to see that Ms. Bacon had both a degree in psychology and a background in law enforcement. Those things gave me high hopes that the book would contain some real insight and solid information about the on-line dating dynamic that would work alongside the real-life experiences she'd be sharing with the reader. I was so wrong. Her introduction was pretty good, however, once she got into the advice and anecdotes the book went straight down hill. I found her level of social naiveté to be kind of shocking and her inability to understand why someone (both her dates and her readers) would do something, or even view a situation, differently from her personal viewpoint or opinion, downright irritating. Also, the attempts at humor led me to far more "Huh?" moments than "Ha!" moments. I think the author was going for wit, but she missed. What she got was sarcastic and even demeaning to her readers in several places. I had to force myself to continue past about page 20. The second half of the book was a bit better than the first, but by then she'd already lost me.

I've read enough on-line ads to know that there are people out there who actually *do* need to be told to post a good picture, use spell checker, don't lie in your ad, and do your best not to sound desperate. But, if you're beyond that point and looking for a guide that will help you compose a stand-out ad, write follow-up messages that will help you screen out people who aren't for you, get you to the next level with people who are your type, and safely, successfully, negotiate the transition from on-line and e-mail to face-to-face; do yourself a favor and skip this book.

Don't waste your money.......2006-03-20

Don't waste your money. I bought this book and read it cover to cover without gleaming an ounce of useful information. Firstly it is primarily geared towards women, not much useful in there for us guys. That being said unless you are a 5 year old girl or have been kept in a box your entire life, all the suggestions are plain and simple common sense. The book has numerous stories of Bev Bacons' encounters with dates. There is absolutely nothing funny or out of the ordinary about her dates. It just goes to show that no one is perfect. As one would think the ultimate goal of Internet dating is to find a long term partner I was left wondering why the author spent so many years dating. Maybe it is her that has a problem! The only useful information that I took home from reading the book I gained from reading between the lines. This is that the internet will attract those who like "shopping" for their dates. So if you meet someone who loves shopping run away, run away, because next week when you are out of fashion they will be back on the internet looking for something bigger and better. Alternatively if you are out of work consider doing the same as the author, write a book about common sense things to do, then spend a year dating normal people and write a book about it, then con loads of people into buying it.

How annoying...........2005-10-02

I can hardly read this...every cliche you can imagine and some more. Sarcastic, mocking, with tips such as...your picture is very important. A waste of $$. Don't let this book discourage you from getting on line to meet a match.

fun, informative, entertaining!!.......2005-06-20

Really enjoyed the book...lots of humor, lots of great information to help those who are currently online dating or those who have been thinking about it. Bev gives you a lot of great tidbits, lots of things you need to look for in a "dating mate" before taking the "plunge" and wasting your time and your heart! Nothing like getting all excited about the perfect "date" and then finding out later in the dating process that they leave out that little fact of ...Oh I am married or have a girlfriend, guess it just slipped my mind when I asked you out! Lots of other great info...a must to read before going out into the online dating world.!!!!

Online Dating Story.......2004-11-05

Ok, this book was difficult for me to rate. I loved the book itself...it's a great read and gives tons of good advice if you're looking to meet someone online.

However, I took the book's advice and ended up meeting someone online (so it DOES work). I met this guy on a site called catch27.com, and he seemed really awesome when I chatted with him online and talked with him on the phone. BUT, when we met in person, he was terrible! Rude, loud, and obnoxious...the date was just aweful!

Now I understand that this was just one experience, but it's made me question the idea of meeting people online - you can never be sure of what you're going to get. So, while the book is a wonderful and interesting read, make sure you're really ready to meet someone online before you take any of its advice!

WAYMISH: Why are you making it so hard for me to give you my money?

Average customer rating:

Lots of CEO's should read this book
Make sure you & your folks aren't doing this!

WAYMISH: Why are you making it so hard for me to give you my money?
Ray Considine , and Ted Cohn
Manufacturer: Waymish Pub. Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Think Two Products Ahead: Secrets the Big Advertising Agencies Don't Want You to Know and How to Use Them for Bigger Profits
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ASIN: 0967324505

Book Description

WAYMISH means Why Are You Making It So Hard...for me to give you my money? A "Waymish" is any dumb mistake made when dealing with a customer. It's the disastrous effect of one minute's lousy service which loses a customer ready and willing to spend money.

One "Waymish." One customer lost. All future profits gone.

The book's examples make excellent staff training material.

Customer Reviews:

Lots of CEO's should read this book.......2006-05-08

As a long time small business owner I have read hundreds of business books in my time. Some are good, some pathetic, and some ignorant. I have read useful books and books that are only good for firestarters. Some have been written by P.H.D's who don't have a clue about the real world and some that do - but WAYMISH is by far the best and most useful business book I have ever seen or read. I usually keep a dosen or so copies at the store and regularly send them to business owners or suppliers that I like and companies that need help.
Simply written and easily readable in a few hours - I read it about every 6 months and remind myself that the only reason my customers shop at my store - is because (and if) I provide excellent service.
If you own a business or want to start one BUY THIS BOOK. Don't do it later do it now - you won't regret it. My advice is to buy some extra copies to pass around, after reading it you will want to.

Bob Jacobsen
Galaxy Hobby

Make sure you & your folks aren't doing this!.......2005-04-12

First, and in the interest of full disclosure: As many of you know, Ray Considine has been one of my closest personal friends, most trusted mentors/business associates since we first met some 35 years ago. He is, in a word, AWESOME!

Now let's talk about the book "WAYMISH" ("Why Are You Making It So Hard . . . for me to give you my money?").

If you will just purchase/read this book, then carefully study your own sales/customer service techniques against it (and those of your entire organization!), you'll quickly discover that you are probably throwing away 20-40% of all your established and potential sales volume. And I'm not exaggerating!

While the "WAYMISH" stories of poor service/missed sales are amusing at first (some are absolutely hysterical!), as you read on, you'll see far more of your own sales/customer service operation than you'd ever want . . . to the point that you'll become absolutely uncomfortable at times. I sure was!

As you know, when going about your own day-to-day activities, the sales/customer service world is frequently staffed by the untrained (our fault!) and absolute morons (accident of birth, I assume). Well, here's a news flash! While we laugh at those poor, sad folks . . . THEY ARE AMONG US! Or, as "Pogo" once said, "We have met the enemy and he is us!"

See, while my "The Closers" series will teach you everything you need to know about closing sales, if you're letting them all get out the back door after that, you can't close enough sales to save yourself!

Let me cut it short with some personal advice: Buy "WAYMISH" from Amazon.com . . . right now, while you're still on this page!

Note: You may have noticed that all of my book reviews carry "5 Star" ratings (*****). But that's not the sign of a "soft reviewer." I only review books to which I can honestly give a "5 Star" rating. You may assume, therefore, that any sales training/self-improvement book without my "5 Star" rating is either something less that "5 Star," or I simply haven't gotten to it yet . . . and there are certainly plenty of those!

Thank You, Tony Robbins: How Tony's Success Programs Helped Me Design My Life So I Can Do What I Want When I Want

Average customer rating:

Outstanding!!!!
Interesting but a bit flat...
I would give this book 6 stars
Thank You, Manny Ibay!!!
Thank you, Tony Robbins

Thank You, Tony Robbins: How Tony's Success Programs Helped Me Design My Life So I Can Do What I Want When I Want
Manny Ibay
Manufacturer: Destini Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Motivational | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Personal Transformation | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Success | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0971770077

Book Description

Manny Ibay, a Los Angeles trial attorney, tells how he applied the Robbins' principles, step by step, to remake his life. Actual excerpts from Mr. Ibay's success journal chronicle his ten-year experience with Robbins' books, tapes and live seminars to move from a $1,000 per month job he hated to designing his dream life and become master of his own destiny. A lifestyle, which enabled him to go on thirty-six vacations in the past five years as well, as operate his own business. Unlike many books on personal development, this is told in storybook form--of how one underachiever was able to follow a well known and widely available success program and use it to his great benefit. This book answers the questions that Tony Robbins fans and skeptics ask after viewing his infomercial. Do the tapes really work? And how can they work for me?

Customer Reviews:

Outstanding!!!!.......2007-10-04

Absolutely undeniably a must read if you think you "can't" do it.
-Timothy Kendrick
PTSD: Pathways Through the Secret Door

Interesting but a bit flat..........2007-08-28

Manny tells his story about how Tony Robbins helped him change his life.
I was expecting more out of this book and bought it out of curiosity.
There really isn't much meat in it.

I would give this book 6 stars.......2005-09-20

It's the similarity of the author's goals to mine - to do what I want, when I want - that drew me to the book. As also, the essence of Tony Robbins' principles that Manny Ibay has captured so well. Based on the title and subtitle, on an impulse, I ordered the book from Amazon, and it has proven to the best purchase to date I have made.

I am a huge fan of Tony Robbins, but the immense volume of his work makes it difficult to satisfactorily get one's hands around it all, in its entirety. The conciseness of this book, tightly summarizing the distilled wisdom of Tony, makes it a gem. It might sound exaggerated but, truly, I consider this book a jewel in the crown of my library of Tony's books and tapes. The author meticulously records the details of how he applied Tony's advice to his life. He lays bare his own failure/aspirations, provides simple but valuable illustrations from his success journals, outlines the action steps he took, and tracks his progress. His story rings true and convincing. Cynics might say he has not conquered the earth by following his dreams (Becoming a lawyer ...traveling extensively ... acquiring a ritzy convertible, etc) but, in a manner of speaking, he has: what better a world to conquer than the one of your dreams, whatever they may be!

I am particularly appreciative of the moments of doubt/failure that he chose to reveal. It's those instances that made his narrative very real to me, and had me convinced that Tony's success formula does indeed work. That even if it takes a decade, Tony's advice works, if sincerely ACTED UPON. That lofty goals of an Agassi or Mandela are not the only ones worthy of consideration - even breaking out of a dead-end job, yes, is lofty enough for many of us. In fact, it's the very "smallness" of everyday challenges that has most of us, stymied. It's when I can't seem to follow through on even a simple resolve (... like waking up earlier to work on my goals!) that makes me wonder, how the heck do doer's get so much accomplished. The manner in which Manny Ibay, an average Joe, as he calls himself, pulled himself out of his rut has me inspired. It makes me go, yesss, it's possible - and this is how. Thank you, Manny, for sharing your success.

It has been insightful for me to follow the thought processes and actions behind the transformation of a so-called average person - coz' I am average. I have no gut-wrenching handicaps to overcome, or incredibly dazzling heights to reach. I'm yet another dreamer, seeking, amongst other things, a fulfilling, paying, career that will afford me money, flexibility, and leisure - to travel. That's where this book comes in, and scores. It's an excellent model and motivational tool for an "average" person. It's not theoretical pep talk, but a practical, how-to manual -- a step by step, real life example -- on which to base one's own plans for change. I read this book almost every day, to fire me up. I overwrite sections of its workbook/journal with my own "success" entries and/or "failure", which has helped to give form to my own dreams and designs for living. So, how would I rate this book ? 6 stars -- on a scale of Amazon's 1 to 5.

Thank You, Manny Ibay!!!.......2004-01-21

Great read! If you have read a Tony Robbins book, listened to a tape, or have seen him live, then this book is for you! Manny shows how he started with just a great attitude and a belief system to having everything he has ever wanted. Hard work, dedication, and a persistence to accomplishing what you want is what lies ahead for the reader. I look forward to reading more of Mr. Ibay's work. To think, this book started as a thank you note to Tony Robbins. A job well done.

Thank you, Tony Robbins.......2003-11-10

Twice I have read this book from cover to cover, its very inspiring. I have been a tony robbins fan for a number of years and this book gives you a detailed account how Manny Ibay used tony's materials to bring a dramatic change in life. This book is must read if you are struggling and want to change for the better.

Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me (Twentieth-Century Classics)

Average customer rating:

a good book about a strange life
We Don't Like It When Someone Breaks the Rules
A specter of Cornell's past ?!
Disappointment for those who want real subversive literature
Do Not Read This Book

Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me (Twentieth-Century Classics)
Richard Farina
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Classics | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0140189300

Amazon.com

This is the ultimate novel of college life during the first hallucinatory flowering of what has famously come to be known as The Sixties. Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me follows haunted ur-hippy Gnossos Pappadopoulis upon return to his old university town that's just tilting into a new era, and Gnossos' involvement in a swirl of sixties-style drug taking and the search for love and the meaning of it all. It is a hilarious and haunting book.

Customer Reviews:

a good book about a strange life.......2007-05-15

this is real and worth reading for those who want to know about the strange times of beat era lifestyles. he doesnt dwell on the sex exploits, but they are there. as they were for all during those days (and still today). the best part is the way you see how open to change all the world was. the controls were much less than and odddball behavior was not anaylyzed. it just happened and changed the way people lived.

We Don't Like It When Someone Breaks the Rules.......2006-12-31

I was compelled to read this book. I had just read David Hajdu's wonderful biographical book, *Positively 4th Street: The Lives and Times of Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Mimi Baez Farina, and Richard Farina*, a book that I highly recommend to readers generally interested in Dylan and Baez and the cultural phenomenon of the 60s zeitgeist, or to readers wanting to know more about the U.S.'s fascination with folk music during the late 50s and early 60s.

I'll get to Farina's book in a second, but first I want to say something about Richard Farina. Hajdu's seductive account of Farina--his manic ambitions, peripatetic wanderings, multiple artistic talents, brilliant conversations, spontaneous insights, Lothario lifestyle, and con-artist bravado--compelled me to read Farina's one and only book just to see what he produced as a writer. Similarly, I was compelled to find Farina's two recordings for Vanguard Records (he made two very hip folk records with his wife Mimi Baez).

Farina was a character. He used others callously to gain opportunities for himself. In that respect, he was a lot like Dylan, and other successful artists, letting his self-centered ambitions guide his actions, regardless of how they affected others. Using others as stepping stones, he furthered his career, first as a writer and then as a singer/songwriter and musician, and then again as a writer. Having learned from Hajdu's book about Farina's talent for self-advancement, I was not surprised while reading Farina's novel to see he is uninterested in following established conventions of novel writing for his time. He had his own style. His writing has been called self-absorbed or solipsistic, and those criticisms are true. An example of Farina's self-absorbtion is that he is hardly interested in providing readers with the usual or conventional cues to orient the reader to the setting, plot, and point of view (the point of view exasperatingly alternates from first person to third person at the whim of the author); moreover, he provides no clear hierarchy of characters (e.g. major and minor characters).

Indeed, there is only one major character in *Been Down...* and he is Gnossos, whose life is oddly similar to Farina's: travling out West, to Cuba, Ireland, New York, and in the South; racking up numerous sexual conquests, experimenting with esoteric drugs and living the high life; manically seeking new experiences; in short, doing everything that supposedly defined coming of age in the U.S. during the sixties.

Readers rightly complain that the book is self-indulgent. Self-indulgence and narcissism were obvious guideposts in Farina's own life: he was ambitious and did not follow the rules. It fascinates me that his self-indulgence is manifested in his writing, which is experimental, self-pleasing, self-affirming, and self-interested.

Another reason this book, written between 1959 and 1965, is worth reading is that it presaged the coming Gonzo style of writing, later practiced to great effect by Hunter Thompson, Tom Wolfe, and a few others. The sixties bent the rules for what was allowable, indeed possible, in popular and artful writing, and Farina was riding that experimental wave long before others who eventually got the credit for "inventing" Gonzo style. If Farina hadn't died suddenly and at such a young age, he would probably be esteemed among the writers I mention above, as well as Norman Mailer, George Plimpton, Truman Capote, and a host of journalists like Lester Bangs and P. J. O'Rourke, all of whom experimented with Gonzo style or New Journalism, an offshoot of the Gonzo style of writing.

So, it seems to me, the value in reading this book is to understand how literary tides were changing in the Sixties. This book is a prime illustration of how those turbulent waters and winds of change altered the shores of contemporary literature. Although Gonzo "literature" never really amounted to a viable "school" of writing, elements of it are now evident in mainstream writing; for example, the birth of creative non-fiction as a genre of writing owes something to Gonzo "literature." Moreover, the Gonzo style opened the door for much more personal experimentation in writing, and Farina, as I said, was at the forefront. Farina may not have been interested in leading the Gonzo fight as Thompson did a couple years later ("Gonzo" was not even a word at the time of Farina's death), but he had tapped into a new experimental style of expression, and I like to speculate that he would have become every bit the artist and changeling that Dylan has become. Hajdu's biography of Farina et al. tacitly concludes that Farina in 1966, at 28 years of age, was already a remarkable, multi-talented, and accomplished artist whose potential was cut short by accidental death, just as he was coming into his own.

In my opinion, there is one other characteristic of Farina's first and only novel that makes it a worthy read: it has a remarkable similarity to Thomas Pynchon's first novel, *V*. Everything that I've said above about Farina's book equally describes Pynchon's first novel, too. Both writers were buddies at Cornell and read each other's stories as undergraduates. They were both autodidacts and injected their first novels with passing bits of arcana from countless esoteric subjects, from nuclear fission to Rennaisance art. Curiously, one song on Farina's first album of folk music, *Celebrations for a Grey Day*, is titled "V" and is a tribute to Pynchon's novel. I think it's fair to say that, even though Pynchon's novel was published in 1963 before Farina's novel, the writers were equally influenced by one another at that early stage in their careers.

So, I have given a number of good reasons to read Farina's book. But aside from these reasons, the question remains: Is Farina's novel a monumental work? Reading the rest of the reviews here in Amazon, I have to conclude Farina's novel annoys as many readers as it pleases. *Been Down...* probably will never be considered a great American novel, maybe not even a minor classic, but its sales will remain steady as long as readers are interested in socio-cultural history of the U.S. during the sixties; and the literature and music of that period will be appreciated for what it tells us about those times and its people. While it is true that Farina's book deviates significantly from conventional standards of good literature, that deviation is exactly why it is worth reading: it is an exemplary novel of artistic experimentation at a critical period of change in U.S. culture.

A specter of Cornell's past ?!.......2006-11-18

Farina captures with his semi-autobiographic book the spirit of the 60s as well as the spirit of Cornell and its campus life as it used to be and maybe sometimes still is.
Sometimes crude and to some maybe offensive, often surprising, but never boring, Farina tells the story of his hero Gnossos Pappadopoulis and his friends and opponents. Gnossos seems to navigate free spirited and independant through the shallows of his life and love, but more and more it becomes obvious that he is just a pawn in other peoples games.
Nevertheless, one immediately likes Gnossos and this feeling is not diminished by some of his actions and how he treats other people.
This story and the way it is told makes you regret that Farina died too young in an accident, probably with many stories untold.

Disappointment for those who want real subversive literature.......2006-09-14

I really wanted to like this book, I really did. Terse and sometimes difficult prose, drug flavored stream of consciousness, and heaping allusions to The Odyssey and pulp comic book heroes. At first the book seemed perfect for me, but not unpredictably Richard Farina's creative well was poisoned by the usual dose of misogyny. Usually I can stand some cognac in my literature, but in this case it felt as if there was more poison than water. Been Down is a frustrating book, where Farina's hatred of women overcomes, strangles, shoots, poisons, and drowns out any of his natural talent.

Been Down follows Gnossos Pappadopoulis as he navigates his way through college while the whiteheads of the sixties rebellion make their way through his circle of friends. Early on he seduces an engaged woman who quickly falls in love with Gnossos. Why? I have no clue because the description of the "seduction" veers precariously close to date rape. It is easily the least erotic love scene I've read. When the seduced woman informs her fiancé that she is in love with Gnossos, he ends up committing suicide. A paragraph of regret later and Gnossos is back to his old ways.

Gnossos eventually gets bitten by the love bug when he meets Kristin (of course, if you've read the novel you'll know that's not the only bug he gets bitten by). This gives Farina the opportunity to delve into some drug induced conversation and scenes. The first psychedelic set piece is rather successful, and it involves Farina describing a dream where he encounters a wolf. It actually plays rather well by taking the form of an allegory but denying the reader any strict one-to-one metaphor. This strong passage is offset by another psychedelic piece involving a demonic monkey. Yes, you read that right. It's funny for all the wrong reasons, and the only way I was able to get past these passages was by imagining the evil monkey that lives in Chris Griffin's closet on The Family Guy. (I took a similar approach in getting through Wuthering Heights by imagining that Joseph was the spitting image of Groundskeeper Willie).

Well, it goes without saying that Gnossos' love ends when they have a falling out, she becomes pregnant but decides to rid herself of the child, and, naturally, at the end of the book Gnossos ends up forcibly giving her a heroin suppository. Once again, you read that correctly. There are more subtle examples of Farina's misogyny, but you have to admit he saved the most flagrant for the finale.

At one point Kristin asks Gnossos if he ever gets tires "thinking about stuff all the time." This line is second only to the demonic monkey in unintentional humor. If you've ever wondered why so many progressive hippies became straight laced businessmen or fanatic evangelicals, then I have two untested observations. First, for a certain age group being a hippie was the norm, and for many was merely conformity to a subculture (Charles Manson comes to mind). Second, many just could not escape the lifestyle their parents had raised them in since birth. A summer of love can't quite overcome a childhood filled with gender roles. Farina suffers from the latter and it is readily apparent in Been Down.

It's a shame that Richard Farina dies so young, because at times you can see the talent peeping out of this novel. The prose can be really strong and unique, but unfortunately Farina suffers from an immaturity that is beneath his years. I can sense that a good book was in him if he has survived. Perhaps by the time he was sixty he would have written a novel with the insight of a thirty-year-old?

Do Not Read This Book.......2006-02-05

It could ruin your life. As a former young Goldwater conservative, reading this book had a devastating effect on my chosen path. It is so gratifying to see the new generation of neo-cons employing their superior intellectual and critical skills to steer impressionable students of beat and hipster cool away from this soul sucking drivel.

By all means encourage the young to look to James Joyce for his repressed, Jesuitical sexual thrills and Henry Miller for his enlightened views on sexual liberation. Certainly by evoking icons like Kerouac and Burroughs this upstart can be put in his place for immaturely handling alcohol and drug abuse. Pynchon is a much better role model for media relations than a tacky motorcycle death. Elevating Dylan's liner notes is a great idea and while we're at it let's give Andrew Loog Oldham his due

Do not fall into the trap of legitimizing Gnossos' bad-boy behavior by any comparisons to Huck. That whole Huck and slavery issue is completely different from some modern day opportunist allowing his name to be linked to so-called people's liberation movements in Cuba and Northern Ireland.

Finally, do not read this book because it is poorly written, the plot is not good, the characters are despicable and have funny names, women are objectified and treated unchivalrously, and legitimate authority is satirized and ridiculed.

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