Book Reviews

There's a moment in most people's lives when a parent, a grandparent, or a beloved aunt passes away, and the family is left standing in a house full of things. Decades of birthday cards. Mismatched china. A drawer of cables for devices no one remembers owning. Someone has to decide what happens to all of it, usually while still raw with grief, usually in a hurry, usually feeling like every choice is a small betrayal. The Swedes have a word for the practice designed to prevent exactly this: döstädning. Literally, "death cleaning." It sounds bleak. It isn't. It might be one of the warmest ideas to come out of minimalism culture in years. Not About Dying — About Living Well The term entered the global conversation in 2017 with Margareta Magnusson's slim, wise little book, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning. Magnusson, who described herself as somewhere between 80 and 100, wrote with the dry humor of someone who has moved house many times and buried more than one spouse. Her thesis was simple: don't leave your mess for someone else to clean up. But peel back the memento-mori branding and what you find is really a philosophy about presence. Death cleaning isn't a morbid countdown. It's a way of asking, continuously: does this object still deserve a place in my life? Swedish death cleaning treats your belongings the way a good editor treats a manuscript — not everything that was once worth keeping is worth keeping forever. How It Actually Works Unlike the ruthless, weekend-blitz energy of some decluttering trends, döstädning is unhurried by design. Here's the general shape of the practice: Start big, start impersonal. Clothes you haven't worn in years. Extra

Keep in mind, Crazy needs an opponent. They thrive on it and are better at operating in the chaos it creates because it is their way of life. I recently got this book from the free online library. It was very interesting and I really enjoyed it. https://dcl.overdrive.com/media/152401 It follows this book researched and written on flow. https://dcl.overdrive.com/media/171077 I loved both of these books and strongly recommend them. They can teach you how to be content with your role in the universe, how to find flow, or being present in most any activities or thoughts. Best takeaways from the books: Choose to be happy every day, as 40% of happiness lies in everyday activities and very little is derived from what you would think, which is your situation and material successes, which we become habituated to, for better or worse, and which provides little happiness by even radical improvements or downturns in our luck. Happiness is found in flow. Flow is activities between a challenge and something we are skilled at. Flow is between boredom and anxiety, and flow causes intrinsic rewards. We continue to challenge our skills, striving, growing learning. We cannot rely on extrinsic events to be happy. Meaning provides happiness. Be open to new experiences and learning. Savoring life’s experiences, past, present and future brought into the present moment. People who strive for a project or goal, which vary across time. Reflect, relish and share with others through writing but don’t savor through writing. Live more in the moment. Approach goals are better than avoidance goals, and are not negatively biased. Regard happiness as a surprise activity. Diversify. Social support is important. And, for even more information read the book or

The secret behind France's astonishingly well-behaved children. By Pamela Druckerman We found this book a great read and very accurate to our experiences with both American parents and French ones.  It has been criticized as the French version of "Tiger Mother" which I think is a great analogy and while they are both perhaps a bit overgeneralizing, they are for the most part, right on!  I never realized how much the French way is a part of our parenting methods, nor why our daughter always picks the blue cheese from the others on the platter or in the refrigerator! The introduction to the book on Amazon reads: When American journalist Pamela Druckerman has a baby in Paris, she doesn't aspire to become a "French parent." French parenting isn't a known thing, like French fashion or French cheese. Even French parents themselves insist they aren't doing anything special. Yet, the French children Druckerman knows sleep through the night at two or three months old while those of her American friends take a year or more. French kids eat well-rounded meals that are more likely to include braised leeks than chicken nuggets. And while her American friends spend their visits resolving spats between their kids, her French friends sip coffee while the kids play. Motherhood itself is a whole different experience in France. There's no role model, as there is in America, for the harried new mom with no life of her own. French mothers assume that even good parents aren't at the constant service of their children and that there's no need to feel guilty about this. They have an easy, calm authority with their kids that Druckerman can only envy. Of course, French parenting wouldn't

Are You Ready to Become a Side by Side Wingshooting Predator?  If so, order Buz Fawcett's Instinctive Shooting book today.  For many decades, Buz taught over 500 graduates to shoot side by side shotguns and he guaranteed to get you shooting 75-99% accuracy or your money back.  This is the method to up your side by side game, in a way that is purely instinctive shooting, and which follows in the long shooting traditions of many before him such as Robert Churchill, although they never knew of one another's works in the field of shotgunning. https://smile.amazon.com/Instinctive-Shooting-Making-Fawcett-Hardcover/dp/B011MC485M/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1537998830&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=Instinctive+Shooting+-+Trade+Cloth

This was an excellent book for anyone who wishes to improve their ability to communicate in person with real people, an essential skill in life that many are lacking. Maxims – Hold solid eye contact with everyone as much as possible. – Speak with sincerity and passion Notes The way you move is your autobiography. Part 1: How to intrigue everyone without saying a word You only have 10 seconds to show your somebody First nine techniques–come across as a special person without saying anything Smile big at the right time. Women who were slower to smile in the corporate world are perceived as more credible. The flooding smile: when meeting someone, don’t smile right away. Pause for a moment, then let a big flooding smile go over your mouth and eyes. This will give them the impression that the smile is more genuine Use your eyes–strong eye contact gives the impression of respect and affection. It also gives the impression of being an abstract thinker. The sticky eyes technique: hold your gaze as much as possible. When talking about personal matters with another men, hold your gaze a little less. The epoxy see eyes technique: hold gaze on the subject even when another party is speaking. Conveys intense confidence and interest in the subject. Use with caution. Watch your posture whenever you walk through a doorway. Hold your head high, your shoulders back, and your torso out. This will convey confidence and command respect. the big baby pit it-turn your full body toward a new acquaintance and smile Hello old friend-pretend that the person you are meeting is an old friend When you act as though you like someone, you actually like the more.