Category: reading

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Book Review: Hi-Cat

Book Review

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a book review. More than a few years. I agreed to read two books pre-publication and review them. Life happens, and you forget things until they pop back up in the form of a calendar notification or an email. I realized I would be getting both books about the same time. I knew I would be excited about reading one of the author’s book. I’ve read, blogged, tweeted, and given out his books on a regular basis. I didn’t really know what to expect with the other author. So I made a deal with myself: read them in the order you receive them. Problem solved.

 

I got the other one first, by less than a day.

A deal is a deal. Now I have both books. One I know is going to be what I want; what I need to hear. That’s always been my experience reading works by this author. As the universe would have it, I got the other one first. I didn’t know what it was about, what kind of “messages” would be inside, or have any expectations. It’s written by a local pastor.

 

Why did I agree to do this anyway?

I didn’t – I asked to read it. Why? The name, well the subtitle really. Hi-Cat: What Can’t Happen At Camp David Just Did. And the cover: there are two men on the cover, one a Marine and one in the Navy. I have a military and presidential family history. I have heard story after story from my grandfather about President Eisenhower and family. He was their personal photographer. I know the old cliche, “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.” I did. I saw the cover on Facebook and just knew I had to read it.

 

So what did I think?

I told you, I started it with the feeling of… drudgery? I wanted to read the other one first. Right off the bat, in the section “ONE WORD OF STRONG CAUTION” in the first line I actually breathed a sigh as he says “Most of my previous books have been devotional or self-help in nature. This is neither.” Wait, why a sigh? I’m a Christian, and I don’t mind a good devotional or self-help book? I guess I just wasn’t feeling like being preached at. If I am being honest, I think that’s the truth behind my dread. So first sentence – we’re good. In that section he also explains that this book isn’t unicorns and roses. My words, not his. It’s a graphic book. There’s murder, suicide, talk of rape, and some other messiness that is life. He offers that if this offends or upsets you to stop reading. Nice. I’ve more than once been knee-deep in a book or show and had some really unexpected “plot twist” made me more than uncomfortable.

 

“A Personal Note”

As you begin the book, it actually starts off with “A Personal Note.” He explains what this book is and is not. He doesn’t try to hide or surprise you with his message. He tells you straight up front. Then he does this: “But before you check out, I’m throwing down the gauntlet:

Try me. Let me take you on this one-of-a-kind ride. Atheist, Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, skeptic – whatever. Even if you dislike my Best Friend, it doesn’t matter. I’ll make it worth your while.”

 

I was torn between “this guys got a big ego” and “hell yeah! Preach it brother!”

 

Prologue

The book starts off with an equally disturbing and beautiful prologue. It’s set in Indiana in the spring. The way Stephen describes the scenes it’s like I’m right there, like in my front yard. “The intoxicating perfume of a nearby planting of pink peonies wafts in…” Then in my backyard “…he stumbles as the footing changes from Bluegrass to a thick, springy Zoysia.” The prologue ends, and you are left feeling like “uhh wow, next chapter please.”

 

The rest of the book

I really liked how it was laid out. (I know this is pre-publication, so it might change some.) The super short sections made this an overall great read for people who “don’t have time to read.” It gives you quick little sections that make it easy to read in between life. Except there is one problem – you just don’t want to put it down.

 

The book dives into what seems to be a completely different book than the prologue. I read the first few sections, then flipped back to the prologue to try to make it fit. I finally let it go because I was so wrapped up in the humor, dialogue, and predicaments of the new characters.  I found it interesting how much I was drawn into each one; they could easily be a main character in their own book, right down to the waiter, Zee.

 

Overall

Stephen was right: he definitely made the read worth while. I giggled when I read Zee talking about another book “killed me to put it down, but I had to catch some shuteye so I could show up for work this mornin’,” because that was exactly how I felt. After the first few pages, I quickly forgot that deal I’d made with myself. I wanted to read this book, and I’m sure you will too!

 

*I didn’t get paid to write this blog. I was given a copy of the book. After publication I will update this blog with a link to buy the book. You can thank me for it after you read it.

 

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Xoom Test Drive

(This article originally appeared in the Evansville Business Journal )

With less than a month on the market, I was given the opportunity to test drive a Motorola Xoom. This tablet has a lot of veryinteresting features that make it more desirable in some ways than an ipad2. Ifyou’re an Apple fan, and are used to Mac products, you might be more comfortablewith an ipad.

This tablet is comparable in price, processor and screensize. The resolution on the Xoom is slightly higher, and it has a 32 GB microSD, expandable memory that you can’t get with the ipad2.

The cameras arenotable better.  While the addition of a backcamera with the release of the ipad2 was a big selling point, it was also a biglet down in the quality of camera.  Thefront camera on the Xoom is a two MP and the back camera has a full five MP. Ifthe camera is important to you, the Xoom will win your heart.

Another big benefit ofthe Xoom is its ability to support flash within the web browser. If you do alot of browsing on your tablet, this might be a very important feature for you.Another feature that sets Xoom apart from the ipad2 is the extra ports.

The Xoomhas a micro USB 2.0 and an HDMI out, so if you’re into playing angry birds, youcan connect your Xoom to your 32 inch flat screen, and play some big angrybirds.

While Evansville is not on a 4G network at this time, the Xoomwill be capable of data transfer on this faster network when it does arrive. Ifyou travel, chances are many places you currently go are already equipped withthis faster network.
While we’re talking about the network, you can buy an ipad2 currentlywith no additional contract for a data plan. If you decide you need one you canpurchase it for the month or months you’ll need it. The Xoom isn’t currentlyoffered with a WiFi-only option.

After using this tablet for a few weeks, Ihave to say I really appreciate being on a data plan, as opposed to only havinga device that accesses the information I need when I’m near WiFi. If thenetwork was detected, and I had previously joined to that network, thetransition from 3G  to WiFi was seamless.

There are a variety of ways in which I could use this tabletas an e-reader. It came with an application called “Books.” This was verysimilar to the “Kindle” app, which was also available for this tablet.

The Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library has a system online that allows you to checkout e-books. You have to use their application called “Overdrive.” You simplygo to the EVPL website and enter your library card number. You open the bookwith this application, which is very similar most other readers. If you have atablet, whether it’s an ipad or a Xoom, I strongly encourage you to try thise-book borrowing system.

When the iPad was first released, many of the applicationsin the Apple market would work on their tablet. It took some time for thedevelopers to catch up and create a variety of applications that werespecifically for the larger screen, but it eventually did happen. The same istrue in the Android market. There are currently only a handful of apps that arespecifically designed for a tablet on the Honeycomb system, but just as theApple market caught up, I fully anticipate that developers will have the Androidmarket caught up in no time.

Watching TV episodes, like Fringe for example, directly fromtheir website, was done with ease. The sound and video were incredible, and theoverall use of the Xoom as multimedia player left me very impressed. I wasdisappointed to learn that Netflix, at this time, will not play on Android devices.  They’re working to remedy this issue. You can as of June, watch Netflix on the Xoom!  There are still issues with viewing content from Hulu.

My overall experience with the Xoom tablet left me veryimpressed with this device. If you’re that Mac user who’s more comfortable withApple products, and are hesitant to transfer because of the loss of music, besure to check out Double Twist, the itunes for Android, that will seamlesslyimport all your itunes.

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My 5 Must Have Books

 

#1

Almost isn’t good enough by Wayne Elsey.

#2

Branding Yourself by Erik Deckers and Kyle Lacy.

#3

UnMarketing: Stop Marketing. Start Engaging. by Scott Stratten

#4

Crush It!: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion  By Gary Vaynerchuk

#5

The Thank You Economy By Gary Vaynerchuk


Fine Print: These are in no particular order. I have not received any money for my endorsements. I did receive my copy of Branding Yourself for free because I hassled Erik to death about it:) The Links are to my affiliate Amazon account.
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I want to be Like Pooh

…Pooh, the most effortless Bear we’ve ever seen.
“Just how do you do it Pooh?”
“Do what?” asked Pooh.
“Become so effortless.”
” I don’t do much of anything,” he said.
” But all of those things of yours get done.”
” They just sort of happen,” he said.
“Wait a minute that reminds me of something from the Tao Te Ching,” I said, reaching for a book. Here it is, chapter thirty-seven. Translated, it reads something like “Tao does not do, but nothing is not done.”

When I first started doing the blog-a-thon, one of the first writers to pick up the gauntlet and run with me was @YogawithStyle, and one of her very first posts was from the Tao of Pooh. As luck would have it, I even had a copy of it on my desk that very same day. It’s an interesting little book relating to the art of Taoism and its translations to the life of Pooh, and translating them into Pooh-isms.

In reading the above passage, I often wonder if I could ever be like Pooh, and just be. I often catch myself worrying  about every detail of everything I’m trying to get done, and wonder, if I just take the time to be, would it all still get done?

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Rushing Back to You

 
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hN9jYQjzsg&hl=en&fs=1]

Now you know why I am itching to be back with you all, enjoying your company, teaching, speaking, laughing and loving the life that is mine.

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Reading with my eyes closed

I underwent the procedure to remove my stents today. The CT scan

was inconclusive so the hope was to remove the stents and see if that was the problem. As I mentioned before this is too soon for them to cone out. There are still lots of stone fragments that need to come out. Without

 

the stents this will be a painful process. I came home with aspirations of reading. I have three must reads in my possession.

Content rules by CC Chapman and Ann Handley.

Almost isn’t good enough by Wayne Elsey.

Branding Yourself by Erik Deckers and Kyle Lacy.

What I have managed to do is bend the binding, mark myself up with my highlighter, and place a sleep scar on my face in the impression of a book corner. I have tried to read, but the medication has other plans for today.

So now I bid you all good night. (This post was written quickly before I fell asleep again and on my iPhone. )

*
DISCLOSURE:I borrowed the book Content Rules from our local Library, I purchased Almost Isn’t Good Enough from Amazon, and I was sent a free copy of Branding Yourself, because I bugged Erik to death, and because I will be reviewing it for our local Business journal.  The Links to each book are in fact affiliate links to my Amazon account, where if you click that link and purchase the book I am suppose to receive a small percent. (Big deal. Google it, order it from your local book seller, who cares as long as you invest in one or all of these books to enrich yourself.)