Two Dog Zoo

Having raised a yellow lab from a puppy, I smiled and laughed right along as I read “Marley and Me”. If you’ve had a lab, or any dog for that matter, you’ll love reading this book. It’s a great story, well done, and really does a nice job of tying a family to a dog, showing you how a pet becomes part of the family, while keeping it a fun read.

Currently Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson are filming the movie based on the book.

I picked this book up to read on vacation, and it didn’t let me down. Marley was a great dog, but the writing about the dog was what was phenomenal. I’m telling you, how Mr. Grogan described the “Marley Mambo” and those silly 8’s, I could visualize those same exact movements that our lab had done.

Our yellow lab went on to keep my kids company and be a constant companion as our family split and divorce pulled us apart. Through it all, they had their yellow lab though, and I know that she’s the best kind of a friend a boy can have. She was tolerant, loving, silly and loved the kids unconditionally.

Great read: tearful moments, giggles, and warm and full laughter.

I WAS GLUED TO THIS BOOK! Seriously, here I am on vacation, and I can’t put this book down. I knew I’d like it, so I bought two of her books together. I’m currently reading and laughing my way through “Such a Pretty Fat” too.

Okay, back to Bitter…life has changed for Jen (just don’t call her Jenny), and she’s catapulted unexpectedly from designer boutiques to Target, from upscale Chicago digs to a run down neighborhood. Things aren’t quite as she expected, and the turmoil that goes along with this snarky and clever girl’s life will keep you in stitches. She’s the girl you love to hate, along with the girl you’d love to hang out with, all rolled up in one! You don’t know if you’re in love with her brazen snappy comments, or if you’d curl up and die of embarrassment!

I didn’t realize she has a blog as well, so if you’re looking for a little laughter today, and you’re too damn cheap to buy the book (check your library), head to her blog at Jennsylvania.com.

Yes Jen, if you’re reading this, I bought my books! Though I’m a library hound as well….learn about Fletch, Loki and Maisy…it’s well worth your time, and a great summer read.

I’ve been reading the Stephanie Plum series, and have two of Janet’s books under my belt. I’ll be starting the third book this week. Let me just say for the record, “I’m hot for Morelli”. Yes, it’s true, I’m hot for a literary character. I don’t have a vivid image of him in my mind yet, but that’s okay.

Stephanie Plum is a bounty hunter, and well….she’s not very good at it. Truth is, she stumbled into the job and is stumbling around trying to get things done. It’s great humor, and as it’s set in Trenton…makes for great reading. I grew up in Bucks County, about 20 mins out of Trenton. I know the area well, and love the references. Now that I’m a Jersey girl (lived here for 5 years now, and 5 during my youth), I giggle at some of the Jersey references too.

Anyway, if you’re in for a fun series, pick this one up!

I’ve never had the urge to walk the Appalachian Trail, though I’m glad Bill Bryson did. I’m really enjoying his humorous look at the life on the trail, along with his commentary about the journey he’s taken with his friend Steve Katz. Katz is quite a character, and I can vividly see them both on the trail.

I picked the book up last night and couldn’t put it down. After reading for 3 hours, my eyes said “Enough all ready!”, and I had to put it down.

If you’re looking for a fun, follow along adventure of what it’s like to hike the trail from a regular, non-hiker’s perspective, you’ll smile and laugh all the way through this one!

“A Walk in the Woods”, gets a big thumbs up from me. I have three more of his books set aside for June!

Last week at the bookstore, I picked up a new book and a magazine. I went in to find “Invisible Acts of Power”, and scooped up the latest gossip edition of Us Weekly. As I went to pay for the book, there was a small book next to the cashier. It was called “The Last Lecture”. I didn’t think much about it, but the name stuck in my head.

Today, I was flipping through some top books on Amazon, and “The Last Lecture” jumped out at me again. I started to read the comments and reviews on the book, and in one of them I came to find out there is a lecture online with similar material. I found the lecture at TheLastLecture.com. The link to it is on the bottom of the navigation bar. The lecture is close to 2 hours long, and I figured I’d listen to a few minutes while I did some other things.

I listed to the full 1 hour and 44 minutes. Randy is both charismatic, entertaining, and giving you some great life lessons. When Randy gave this lecture, he had recently been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer…and here he was giving the “Last Lecture” which is a term used for colleges when people give speeches to the graduating classes, full of life lesson.

Little did I know I’d be transfixed and listen to the full thing. Well done, great listen….I wanted to share the info.

I have a stack of books to read this summer, and a bunch to get through on audio. As soon as I think I’m caught up on what I want to read, my list starts to grow again….and I have another list backed up!

I’m currently starting the Janet Evanovich series starting with “One for the Money”. I have “Marley and Me” set aside for beach reading. “Glass Castles” is the next audio I’ll be listening too, but I’m also going to listen to “Night” along with “My Sister’s Keeper”, and a few others.

Then there’s a book by Carolyn Myss, one by Dave Ramsey, and another by Christopher Moore (Fluke).

The question is, will I have read them all by the fall? I guess time will tell!

One of my favorite books is called “Zen Miracles”. When my trainer had suggested I read “A New Earth”, it reminded me of my own favorite book. While I think “Zen Miracles” is an easier and better read, and the other is a little more dry, they both talk about similar things. They talk about letting go of the ego, and living in the moment.

Just like “The Secret” being a big success last year with the law of attraction, it comes down to the power of positive thinking. I love any of these topics, and I try to live my life by these methods. I’ve been reading books like this for the last 10 years. I think my 30’s were all about self discovery. Now that I’m in my 40’s, I have so much inner peaces from practicing some of the things I’ve read about. Being in the moment, letting go, and truly trying to simplify.

Have you heard of “The Sedona Method” yet? If you loved “A New Earth”, “Zen Miracles”, or “The Secret”, you’ll see how The Sedona Method is the bridge between The Secret and the Law of Attraction and other books like this. See, these books are new to people who aren’t familiar with this genre, but it’s been around for a long time. Heck, “The Sedona Method” has been around for over 30 years, and speaks of similar processes.

It’s not just about reading books like this, it’s about putting the things you learn into action. So many times, people read things, and then go on with their life doing nothing. It’s when you put these practices into action, that you can see a difference in your life. This is how things start to make sense.

Would you like to learn more? You can actually get a free DVD and CD from them. Then you’ll get a feel of what “The Sedona Method” is all about. This particular package helps you work with your emotional barriers. It can help you learn to change and improve your outlook.

Being aware, or in the moment is truly a gift. Think about when you go out to dinner. You’re sitting there with your salad, and thinking about what you want for dessert. You’re all ready thinking ahead. Slow down, appreciate what’s in front of you. If you’re busy thinking about dessert, you aren’t in the moment of enjoying what you’re having now. This is a very basic sample, but it sheds light on how this can apply in your life in other avenues. If you’re so busy wondering about tomorrow, you’re totally missing today. You can really achieve great things, and have more inner peace when you let go of the tomorrows, and live here today.

When it comes to Ego, when you’re more aware of it, you can see if you’re truly reacting based on your ego, or based on true decisions. It’s an interesting process to look at something taking your ego out of it.

If you’ve read anything by Chuck Palahniuk, you know he has his own style of writing. His best known story is “Fight Club” which later became a movie. My personal favorite book of his is “Choke”.

I recently picked up “Rant” and “Diary”. I hope to finish them both up in the next 2 weeks. His writing is funny, crude, slick and his characters are zany, just like I like them.

“Rant” is told from other people’s perspective. They’re remembering Buster “Rant” Casey, now that he’s dead. Of course everyone has a different perspective of the guy. It grabbed me immediately, and refused to let go. I finally had to cave because it was late and my eyes were tired, but I’ll be diving in again today. I’m sure this one will have me holding on until the end, entertaining me the entire way.

I was surfing along the internet one day, and saw that Oprah was giving away ebook copies of Suze Orman’s book “Women and Money”. I hopped on over to pick up a copy, and the offer was over. One of Oprah’s comments I read made me want to look into this book a little more. She mentioned it was a book that every woman should read. I decided to go over to Amazon and read the reviews.

There were a ton of them, and they praised the book greatly. I decided to buy a copy and read it this past week. It was an easy read, almost novel like, and offered excellent information. I love how she didn’t talk down to you, but brought it to a level and with language that helped you understand a language you may not have been familiar with.

I’ll be honest, my husband’s the money guy. He’s a finance guy, so he “gets” that kind of stuff. Me on the other hand, give me some weekend cash, a credit card when I travel, and point me in the general direction of what needs to be done. I’m a happy camper, but honestly, I’m lost when it comes to stocks, Money Market Accounts, IRAs and the sort.

Suze did an excellent job of making me understand not only what all these things are, why I need to know them, but also helped me want to know more.

It was definitely a great read, and one I’d recommend to women everywhere. It’s not your regular, textbook boring finance book, this is a good read, and you learn. What more could you want?

Oprah Winfrey has chosen Eckhart Tolle’s “A New Earth,” a self-help guide by the author of the million-selling “The Power of Now,” as her latest book club selection. Winfrey made the announcement Wednesday on her television talk show, which airs from Chicago.

Source

Talk about good timing, eh? I’m in the middle of reading this particular book now. Not because Oprah chose it, though I do love Oprah, but because my trainer told me it made a big impact on her. In return, I told her about a book that made a huge impact on me, “Zen Miracles: Finding Peace in an Insane World”.

What are you currently reading?

I should mention, I have three books going at once, depending on my mood! I’m also reading two other books simultaneously.