We only think we have problems.

I’m sure you’ve followed the horrifying story surrounding Laura Ling and Euna Lee.   These American journalists have been detained in Korea, away from home and loved ones, for over 100 days.  The thought makes every inch of my body cold and ill.

A web site has been set up for these two women who now find themselves on the inside of the news – looking out rather than outside looking in. On the site you can learn more about the ladies behind the names.  For example, you’ll learn that Laura Ling is the younger sister of Lisa Ling.  She’s married and lives in Los Angeles.  You’ll also learn that Euna Lee has a 4 year old little girl and, in August, she and her husband will celebrate their 10th anniversary.

I urge you to visit the site and find out what you can do to help.  When compassionate, reasonable, humane people stand together – the uncompassionate, unreasonable, and inhumane don’t stand a chance.  Sign the petition, spread the word, and most importantly pray for Laura Ling, Euna Lee, their families, and, yes, even the ones who are detaining them.

Here’s the link:  Free Laura Ling and Euna Lee

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

Laura Ling and Euna Lee

Related Articles:

1. Motivation Can Come from the Most Unlikely Places I’ve decided to act upon one of my New Year’s...

“You must learn day by day, year by year, to broaden your horizon. The more things you love, the more you are interested in, the more you enjoy, the more you are indignant about, the more you have left when anything happens.” – Ethel Barrymore

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

Inspirational Quote of the Day by Ethel Barrymore

Related Articles:

1. Sunday’s Quote of the Day “It’s only through listening that you learn.” - Drew Barrymore...
2. Saturday’s Quote of the Day “I am not interested in the past. I am interested...
3. A Great Quote About Habits by a Self Help Daily Favorite, Grenville Kleiser “New habits make new horizons. Silently and imperceptibly you...
4. A Favorite Inspirational Mark Twain Quote “Sing like no one’s listening, love like you’ve never...
5. Inspirational Quote of the Day I hope that my achievements in life shall be...
6. Monday’s Inspirational Quote of the Day    ”If there’s something in your life that you want...

Below is the link to a fantastic post that I know you’ll:

1. Enjoy
2. Benefit from

That’s a one/two punch that you can’t pass up, right?  After you’ve read it, do something super cool and pass the link along to others – through e-mail, twitter, whatevs.  We’ll all be working together to cast a great big Chillax over the world.

Awwww, I feel better already.  Here’s the link:   How To Stop Having Problems or The Eighty-Fourth Problem

Thanks to Michael for sharing the link with me.

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

A Story That’ll Send Your Problems Packing

Related Articles:

1. A Story with a Lesson It’s a beautiful day out, so a man decides to go...
2. A Story About Commitment and Determination True story.  Once there was a skinny, awkward kid from...
3. A Pit Bull Dog’s PR Problems After my encounter last night, I wanted to read up...
4. A Quote About Courage and a Story About Courage in Action “The difference between a hero and a coward is...
5. Technology Problems Fixed, Headaches Alleviated, and I’m Heading for Starbucks I have no idea what I ever did to the...

Beautiful. Beautiful. Beautiful. That’s exactly the first three words that came out of my mouth after I finished reading Ruth Tuttle Conrad’s book, Designer Women: Made by God.  Well,I guess it’s not exactly three words as much as it is one word three times, but you get the idea.

In this wonderfully written book, Ruth Tuttle Conrad (an ordained minister and teacher) takes us by the hand as she leads us on a joruney to visit with some remarkable women from the Bible:

1. Eve
2. Zelophehad’s daughters
3. Zipporah
4. Hagar
5. Ruth
6. The Crippled Woman  healed by Jesus
7. Anna
8. Elizabeth
9. Mary
10. Dorcas and Priscilla

In reading about these women’s lives, we see that they had the same emotions, frustrations, doubts, and problems we face.  They lived in a different time.  They dressed differently, they ate differently, and they would have thought Starbucks was something in the sky. (I think Lazarus’ sisters Mary and Martha would have been big Starbucks fans.  They were the essence of cool, so it’s pretty much a given.)

Not only did I love learning more about these women who God deemed worthy of mentioning in the Bible, I loved the personal glimpses the author gives from her own life.  You feel as though your having a great little visit with an old friend, catching up on one another’s life.  By telling the reader about her own experiences, she  causes the reader to think of similar experiences in his or her own life.

All in all, Designer Women: Made by God isn’t just a beautiful read – it’s a beautiful journey. And it’s one you’ll want to take as soon as possible, so head over to Amazon as soon as possible and order yourself a copy.

Before you do that, though, I thought you’d like to read a great little Q & A that was done with Ruth Tuttle Conrad.

Q & A with Ruth Tuttle Conard
Author of Designer Women: Made by God

This Sunday, a woman somewhere in America will don the literal head covering of 1 Corinthians 11 and depart for church, where she will be expected to remain silent. In another church, a woman will stand before the congregation to deliver the sermon. Most of us will fall somewhere between these two extremes—no head covering required and free to teach children or other women or to accompany the church choir, as long as we remember that some spiritual gifts are off-limits to us. In this climate, many women are spiritually suffocating, unique giftings and God-given callings crushed by a male-dominated church culture determined to keep them in their place—regardless of what God is doing.

For author, ordained minister, and international speaker Ruth Conard, these feelings of rejection and confusion are all too familiar. Despite the contradictions in opinion within the church, Conard believes that God is consistent in His love and His plan for women. In her new book, Designer Women: Made by God, Conard inspires women to rise up and embrace God’s unique design and purpose for them by examining the biblical accounts of women who were mightily used by Him.

Q: Designer Women examines the lives of several women in the Bible, including some who are often overlooked. Why is it important for Christian women today to study these stories?

A: Throughout the Old Testament, God’s initial, redeeming plan continued to emerge through the lives of women who rose above the constraints of custom, the body-centered mania, and the fear of men. These women, as leaders and strong examples in varied facets of life, did not act because there were no good men, but rather because they were good women, created in God’s image, gifted by God, and working in obedience with their Maker. These women of strength were pillars in home, society, and faith communities. These are the foremothers of all the women we celebrate within the pages of the New Testament: Mary, Elizabeth, Anna, Dorcas, Priscilla, and a myriad of others. And they are my foremothers and your foremothers with much to teach us.

Q: What is the biggest question that Designer Women was written to answer?

A: The big question is this: Do we have a consistent God for women? I have been in all kinds of churches, and it seems God is pretty consistent for men. They don’t have to change their clothes, all offices are open to them, they have been redeemed from everything, etc. For women, the verdict on these issues changes from church to church. One issue I struggled with was the head covering of 1 Corinthians 11. In some churches, I had to wear it if I sang or played the piano. In others, no. In some places, I had to wear it if I spoke, even if speaking only to women. In some, I had to wear it even though I was expected to sit quietly, not permitted to say a word. In other churches, what was on a woman’s head had nothing to do with anything at all. Then there were the questions that always plagued me regarding spiritual gifts, as well as the part women could, would, and should play and had played in the church.

Q: How did your treatment as a woman affect your passion and enjoyment of your faith?

A: Over the years, I began to ask ministers and male church leaders these difficult questions. The answers I received, along with divergent church practices, became like huge bars on which I slipped and slid. Eventually, the struggles filled my mind with an enormous, resounding No! No! to the questions. No! to what I sensed were the gifts God had given me. No! to the exuberant joy I had felt in walking with Christ since childhood. And, oh so sad, No! to the missionary spirit God had sewn into my very being. Why, I reasoned, should I invite other intelligent, gifted women into the church only to have their fervent, creative, God-given hopes squelched?

Q: Who was Designer Women written to reach?

A: I wrote this book simply for the woman in the pew. I want her to get a little shaken up. I want her to look into these issues. I know only too well the pain, frustration, and loneliness that come when your God-given gifts are squished out of you simply because you are female. I want women to see that, yes, God is consistent in His love for women. We were designed exactly the way He wanted us to be—no matter what kind of treatment we have received from others in the church. I believe there is hope for us.

Q: Isn’t the Old Testament full of laws against women? With laws like these, doesn’t it seem like God prefers men over women?

A: We must continually remind ourselves that between the foyer of God’s original plan (Genesis 1-2) and the vast outlay of the Old Testament lies the narrow, dark hallway of Adam and Eve’s sin. Their choice taints all the rest of Scripture’s pages, as well as our own lives today. The results of their choice, described by God in Genesis 3, are carried out within the context of the patriarchal system that formed the parameters of their society. It’s true, the language used in the Old Testament law supposes a patriarchal society. The household belonged to the man. The man initiated a divorce. Property, family name, and children were all owned and given from the father to sons, not to daughters. However, the law does not depersonalize women. Women were held responsible for criminal actions. Mothers, as well as fathers, were supposed to receive honor. In fact, many of the Mosaic laws which may seem ridiculous to modern readers were actually for the protection and health of nomadic women and their families in the severe desert conditions. The main point to remember is that the law was not developed to make a statement about male-female relationships. The patriarchal system and male domination did not exist because God favored one sex over the other. The law was given so that the Israelites would be recognized as God’s people, no longer belonging to Pharaoh.

Q: What are your feelings regarding the ongoing debate about the roles of women in the church?

A: What is extremely fascinating to me is that this continual battle over women in the church does not seem to have caused any problem for God and how He has designed his daughters. The reading of church history shows that in every century since the beginning of time, and in every land where Jehovah God has been acknowledged and the gospel has reached, women have always carried the good news of salvation, have always served God with whatever gifts He has given (whether quieter gifts or more visible gifts), and, alongside their brothers, have died for the cause of Christ. It’s happening today, even as I was in the process of writing Designer Women. And God is still creating baby girls, all over this world, who grow, confess Jesus as Savior, and are given spiritual gifts from the complete list of gifts, as the Spirit wills, even while men and women continue to say that it just isn’t possible!

Q: Why did women choose to follow Jesus during His earthly ministry? What does that mean for us today?

A: Jesus was counter cultural, especially in the area of gender. No off-color jokes, no demeaning attitudes, and no avoidance of women. He never abused them in action, word, or thought. When they raised questions, He never said “not goin’ there!” and then snickered with His male disciples. He respected them and their actions toward Him, even when others in His party scorned them. He listened to women, dialogued with them, and sought them out. He didn’t define the parameters of their lives. He was not afraid to touch them in public, accept their worship, commend their faith, and heal them. He talked straight to them about their sin and how to do right. Nor was He backward in treating them as full-blown, intelligent, competent adults. It’s no wonder women followed this man. This same Jesus walks beside you and me today!

About the Author:
Ruth Tuttle Conard is the pastoral director of Designed To Be Pillars, an inspirational ministry to women around the world. She is an ordained minister, a teacher of Gods Word, and a mentor to many. She and her husband, Bill, served God in South America for twenty years where they also raised their three children. Since 2000, she has ministered to thousands of women in over 20 countries outside of the US. Ruth’s deep love for women is rooted in years of praying, serving, and suffering alongside women in various parts of the world.

So, there you have it. All the information you need to let you know why you should grab a copy of Designer Women: Made by God right away. It’s a book filled with remarkable women which helps us to realize that we’re pretty remarkable ourselves!

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

Designer Women: Made By God Book Review and Interview with Ruth Tuttle Conrad

Related Articles:

1. Oprah’s Wonderful New Book: O’s Big Book of Happiness Every once and again I read a book that...
2. Book Roundup for Book Lovers and Bookworms As I said a few posts back, I recently overloaded...
3. Angel Animals – Book of Inspiration by Allen and Linda Anderson I just finished a book that can only be...
4. Life’s Little Instruction Book – Nothing Little About It! One of the coolest little books I’ve ever come across...
5. Thou Shalt Not Whine by January Jones is a Book That Should Be Required Reading in Every School, Workplace, Home, McDonalds… You can overcome anything if you don’t complain about...
6. Does Your Bag Have Holes by Cameron C. Taylor is A Perfect Book and Comes At a Perfect Time I just finished reading Does Your Bag Have Holes?...

You can either fall in love or fall in hate.  The choice is yours, but you’ll look a lot better with love on your psyche than hate.

In replying to a recent comment left on an earlier post, Overcoming Hatred and Intolerance with Love and Tolerance, I started thinking about the haters of the world.  As I was reading the comment left  on the post, I have to admit – I felt straight up anger for anyone who would show such hatred toward another person.  The thought of one person treating another with so much hatred that it interfered with their life makes me see red.

Then I stepped back for a minute (out of the red) and realized that anger isn’t the appropriate response.  Pity is.

My husband’s older sister, Mary Catherine, was a hard-working, hilarious, full of life, spirited, fun to be around woman.  She could make some of the best biscuits you ever ate, too!  She loved dogs and ABC soap operas.  She collected elephant figurines and Native American  statues.  She’s also one of the rare people that could hang with me, cup for cup, when drinking coffee.   I respected the heck out of that.

She was also gay.

Sadly, I have to say “was” because she was killed in a mining accident several years back.  The thought of anyone treating her with hatred or intolerance seems unthinkable  to me.  After all, she led her own life and wouldn’t  do anyone any harm -  unless, of course, they harmed one of her dogs.   Then there might have been trouble.   I respected the heck out of that, too.

I just don’t get why people have to involve themselves in what other people do or don’t do.  Come on.  If I can be blunt for a minute:  If you aren’t invited into the bedroom, what does it matter to you what goes on there?!  You can agree or you can disagree with other people’s lifestyles, choices, habits, loves, hates, and so on.  You’ve got that right – just as they can agree or disagree with your’s.

You can like or dislike the way a person looks, dresses, or drinks their tea – just as they can have qualms with your  style or looks.

We’re all different, after all, and we all have our way of doing things.  What’s perfectly beautiful to one person may be a hot mess to another.  Look at the different cultures around the world!  People who expect everyone else to look  just like them bore me to tears.   I’m much more drawn to people who don’t just expect diversity in the world, they insist upon it.

If you experience hatred from others, for whatever reasons, realize that you have two choices:

1. You can be drug down to the hater’s level.  If you aren’t careful, hatred can rub off on you and.  Then, before you even realize what’s happening, you’ll be just as angry.  You’ll become just as intolerant.  And you’ll be filled with just as much hatred as they are.  Believe me, it won’t look any better on you than it does on them.  No one ever wears hatred well.
2. You can rise to a level the hater’s will never know.  If you recognize their hatred for what it is (a crippling weakness), and find it within yourself to feel pity for them, you will have experienced the kind of growth that a hater will never know.  Don’t return their scowls with scowls of your own – smile!  Come on, give them the brightest, sweetest smile you have in your arsenal.

There’s a lady who has to be in her 70’s who works at a local candy store in the mall.  My daughters and I spend a ridiculous amount of time at the mall, so I see this lady in action almost daily.  When there are young people in the vicinity, she’ll come to the front of the store and scowl a nasty, hateful scowl.  She drives me nuts.  One day an  adorable little black girl (about 8 or 9) stopped to look at a beanie baby display.  I  slowed my walking down because I kind of suspected what would come next.  Sure enough, here came “Sunshine” practically running to the front of the store, staring the little girl down the whole way.  She didn’t even smile at the child, let alone speak to her.

I have to admit, I preach and teach tolerance and kindness but I was 2  hearbeats away from taking the lady to the side and giving her a piece of my mind!  Just then the little girl’s mom came up and took her daughter’s hand.  She smiled at “Sunshine” and said, “She’s just looking.“   The worker still didn’t say anything.

The worker caught my eye and I gave her an icy look that I hoped pierced her skin.

I felt nothing but anger for the rest of  the afternoon.  Then, I started thinking – she’s the one that lives with that hatred all day and all night.  The little girl only feels it occasionally.  And the mom?  Well, the mom (with patience and understanding most of us couldn’t muster)  obviously learned long ago to rise above haters.  I felt angry FOR them until I realized that they weren’t the victims.  “Sunshine” is the victim.  She’s the one that has to see one of the ugliest things in the world every time she looks in the mirror – hate.

She can never escape herself or her hatred.  She eats breakfast with it, she watches tv with it, she has lunch and dinner with it, and she sleeps with it.  She is most definitely the victim, and I began to feel a little bit sorry for her.   I still wished with all my might that I’d asked her, “How does it feel to have been so completely outclassed?” -  but, I’m trying to feel more tolerance.

As for haters, there’s hope for them too.  If you have any hate at all residing in your heart, recognize it for what it is: POISON.  It’s a poison that will cripple you if you don’t find a way to get rid of it. Set the hatred across from you  at your kitchen table and grill it.  What has it ever done for you?  Where has it gotten you?  What friends has it won you?

What has it cost you?  Has it ruined your reputation?  Would people think of you as a hateful person?

Once you recognize the hatred in your heart, you’ll be well on your way to dealing with it.  Another comment that was left on a different post (A Totally and Completely Free Make-Over), hit the nail on the head.  This post was dealing with being kind to others and treating them as good as you possibly can.  The comment left included this wonderful advice, “My rule of thumb is to never say something you wouldn’t say to someone’s face. I try not to even *think* mocking or rude thoughts about someone…”   She hit it square on the head.  Everything begins in the mind – so if you can stop it in its tracks, chances are it’ll never see the light of day (as in coming out of your pie hole!).

When my girls were little, I’d always teach them the importance of positive thoughts – whether they were about one another, schoolwork, chores, or whatever.  Positive thoughts bring about positive actions and positive words.  The same is true of negative thoughts.  So, take the great advice left in the comments and keep a close eye on your thoughts.

You’ll have far less apologies to make if you do.  And far less “Must Save the World” bloggers wanting to get all kinds of sassy with you.

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

Dealing with Hatred and Intolerance the Right Way Rather than the Easy Way

Related Articles:

1. Erase Hate – One Person at a Time In 1998, on a deserted road, 21 year old Matthew...
2. Do You Live Up to Other People’s Highest Impressions of You? What sort of impression do the people closest to...
3. If Hate is a Malignancy, Love Surely Must Be the Cure When you think of a “hateful” person, what do...
4. Martin Luther King’s Example     “Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality...
5. Dealing With Stress Before Stress Deals With You There’s a shockingly disturbing trend I’m seeing in e-mail, on...

“The difference between a hero and a coward is one step sideways”-  Gene Hackman

The photograph above?  It’s a drop dead gorgeous red-head and her hero.  This red Doberman Pinscher is kissing the exhausted fireman who just saved her life.

He had just saved her from a fire, rescuing her by carrying her out of her burning house and into her front yard, while continuing to fight the fire.   Apparently,  the firefighter was afraid of her at first, because he had never been around a Doberman before.  He threw his fear aside, however, and saved her.  When the fire was finally out, he sat down to catch his breath.

A photographer from the Charlotte, North Carolina newspaper, “The Observer,” noticed the rescued Doberman Pinscher in the distance looking at her fireman.  As the photographer watched, she began to walk straight toward the fireman.  The photographer wondered what she had in mind.  As he raised his camera, she came up to the tired fireman who had saved her life and kissed him, just as the (very talented)  photographer snapped this photograph.

Oh, one more thing, she was pregnant.

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

A Quote About Courage and a Story About Courage in Action

Related Articles:

1. Quotes About Courage      Do the thing you fear to do and...
2. A Story with a Lesson It’s a beautiful day out, so a man decides to go...
3. George Patton Quote About Action Always do more than is required of you. – George...
4. Grenville Kleiser Quote About Action The following passage is from one of my favorite authors...
5. A Story About Commitment and Determination True story.  Once there was a skinny, awkward kid from...
6. A Story That’ll Send Your Problems Packing Below is the link to a fantastic post that...

The following is a sponsored post.  This simply means that I will be paid to give an opinion – the opinion, the words, and the thoughts are my own.

How does this sound to you?

• Lower Your Cholesterol 30-40 Points.
• 100% Natural, Clinically Proven, Doctor Recommended supplements.
• Free Two Week Trial

It sounds almost too good to be true, doesn’t it?  I’ve spent the last few days doing my homework and PreLipid is the real deal.  What most people don’t realize, until it’s too late, is that keeping our cholesterol in check is of the utmost importance.  The average person will (understandably) pay a great deal of attention to their blood pressure numbers and will do all within their power to keep the numbers in the healthy range.

While that is extremely important, neglecting our cholesterol numbers could be a very costly mistake. We’ll only achieve optimum heart health when we approach our cholesterol numbers in the same way we do our blood pressure numbers. Sadly, I’d be willing to bet that most people don’t even know what their cholesterol levels are.

One of the reasons people may be hesitant to face cholesterol problems is a fear of prescription drugs.  They’ve heard about side effects, and aren’t so sure they want to take a chance with any of them.

PreLipid and PreLipid+ have been used by 100’s of Doctors in tens and thousands of patients in America

That’s where PreLipid comes in. Here are the facts:

1. PreLipid is made with 100 percent natural ingredients.
2. You can lower your cholesterol, on average, as much as 30-40 points.
3. No. Known. Side-Effects. That’s huge!
4. PreLipid has been used by tens and thousands of patients in America.
5. You take PreLipd just twice a day.
6. Completely affordable.
7. Immediate AND long-term results.
8. Physiological combination, which works with your body to treat the root causes.
9. Powerful antioxidants reduce inflammation in coronary arteries
10. 100 percent money back guarantee.

I urge you to visit PreLipid.com and read every single page. Read the testimonials, the FAQs, and learn what the media has to say about PreLipid with a video that’s available on the front page.   Be proactive when it comes to your health – your future counts on it!

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

Will PreLipid Control Your Cholesterol? Naturally!

Related Articles:

1. Lower Your Cholesterol in 30 Days Cholesterol is one of those things you never pay any...
2. 100 Ways to Live to Be 100 – Part 7 An ounce of Prevention.... 56. Keep an eye on your...
3. Take an Aspirin and Go to Bed According to Everyday Health.com, taking an aspirin at bedtime can...
4. The Top Five Tips For Lowering Blood Pressure If you’re one of the many people who need...
5. The New Power Foods My beloved Google and I were doing a little research...
6. Relax Your Way to Better Health and Happiness I don’t have to tell you the benefits of relaxation...

I’ll be honest with you, there are many, many, many things I’m unable to do.  There are plenty of things that I can do, but would LOVE to have the talent and ability to do better.  Photography is one of those things. I think I get too caught up in watching everything at once (cats, squirrels, birds, butterflies, shiny things…), instead of focusing in on the subject.

Story. Of. My. Life.

I am completely fascinated with the art of photography, though, and would love nothing more than to take the sort of pictures that take people’s breath away.

The lady who is doing a guest post for us today doesn’t just take people’s breath away with her photography, she refuses to give it back.  She has such an amazing and artistic eye – I could look at her photography all day.  Sadly, if I went out and tried to emulate anything she does, I’d have such a mess that even the robins would laugh at me.

Her name is Mindy Friddle and she’s as gifted with the pen as she is the camera.  I’m thrilled to have her as a guest blogger today and know you’ll love her words, as well as her photography which is included in the post.

Mindy Friddle’s first novel, The Garden Angel (St. Martin’s Press/Picador) was selected for Barnes and Noble’s Discover Great New Writers program in 2004, and was a National Public Radio (NPR) Morning Edition summer reading pick.  Secret Keepers, her second novel, was published by St. Martin’s Press in May.

Mindy lives, writes, and gardens in Greenville, South Carolina where she directs the Writing Room, a community-based nonprofit program she founded in 2006. She often posts photographs of her garden on her blog Novel Thoughts: Musings on Reading, Writing & the Earth.

Secret Keepers by Mindy Friddle

When I’m at my laptop working, when an impending deadline is breathing down my neck, the best way for me to get some focus–pardon the pun– is to take a few minutes and step outside with my camera. Although I don’t consider myself a photographer–have had absolutely no training– I love capturing images in the outdoors with my digital camera and sharing them on my blog.

Along with writing and gardening, photography is a way to lose my sense of self. And I mean that in a good way. There’s no pressure about how a picture will “turn out”– no ends to a means. I just focus on what’s in front of me–usually in the front-yard garden: a pitcher plant, a bed of sunflowers, a bluebird at the feeder. There’s always a lot going on out there– the St. John’s Wort is covered in bees, the swallowtail’s wings fanning back and forth on the yarrow, a black snake sunning itself. Last week, as I stood snapping a few photos of the bee balm in full bloom, a hummingbird zipped right up to me, RIGHT up to me– hovering there for the longest time, as if she were posing.

Behind the camera, you have to be still and alert. Your mind quiets. You witness the world through a lens that isn’t you– it’s more than you. And for me there’s an element of surprise in how the photographs differ from how I thought they’d look. The crowd of sunflowers look like they’re laughing once I see them on my computer screen. Who would have thought? I take it as a reminder of perspective, of the many, many ways of looking at the world.

When the publisher of my second novel, SECRET KEEPERS, requested some ideas about the book cover, I sent them a few photographs from my garden, pictures I thought captured the mischievous “ruined finery” of the novel. I was shocked when I opened up the image of the new book cover to find my publisher had selected a photograph I’d sent them. Those boot “planters” on the cover of SECRET KEEPERS are still on my front porch. I like to think they keep me down to earth.

———-
SECRET KEEPERS: strong storytelling, comic touches, prickly family dynamics, and the magical power of nature.
St. Martin’s Press
Read an excerpt at www.mindyfriddle.com

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

Mindy Friddle, Author of The Garden Angel and Secret Keepers

Related Articles:

1. Angel Animals – Book of Inspiration by Allen and Linda Anderson I just finished a book that can only be...
2. Ann Nixon Cooper’s Secret to Longevity This beautiful face belongs to Ann Nixon Cooper.  She is...
3. The Secret’s Out and It’s not Worth Repeating Newsweek’s Jerry Adler put into writing all the thoughts swirling...
4. Book Roundup for Book Lovers and Bookworms As I said a few posts back, I recently overloaded...
5. Meet Your Truest Self Author Janice Lynne Lundy Janice Lynne Lundy has written a beautiful new book, Your...
6. A Couple of Things to Think About from the Pages of Sound Health, Sound Wealth by Luanne Oakes, PH.D. Sound Health, Sound Wealth: The Biology of Hope and...

We all want to present ourselves in the best possible way. We want people to realize how smart we are – heck, we want them to think we’re even smarter than we actually are. If they walk away thinking they’ve just been in the presence of a frigging genius? Sweet.

Increase Brain Power.com has a great article, Get Smarter or Appear Smarter, that you’ll want to read. There’s some fantastic advice within these 10 tips.  Below are a few of my favorites, click the link above for the rest.

#7. Specialize in some obscure area. If you know even a little bit about the history of the Inuit people or the origin of gold mining, you’ll likely be the only one in the room who does. Not only does this set you apart, but any errors you make will go undetected. Of course, while talking a bit about your “specialty” may impress, you might also bore your audience with too much, so take it easy.

#1. Talk about what you know. You will always appear smarter if you stick to topics you know something about. In fact, if there are areas in which you are very knowledgeable, try to steer the conversation in that direction.

So, how about it?  Do you have any words of wisdom you’d like to share?  What do you do to present yourself in the brightest light?  Leave your advice in the comments!

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

How to Put Your Best Brain Cell Forward

Related Articles:

1. Re-Energize Your Brain Keeping in the spirit of kicking our brain cells up...
2. When’s the Last Time You Gave Your Brain a Workout?! I spend a great deal of time on my Mental...
3. Folic Acid For Brain Health Research was presented at the Alzheimer's Association meeting last year...
4. Relax, For the Love of Your Brain Cells, Relax! “If you’re wound up too tight all the time,...
5. Brain Tickling Geography Challenge On the other side of the link below is a...

“Beauty isn’t worth thinking about; what’s important is your mind. You don’t want a fifty-dollar haircut on a fifty-cent head.” - Garrison Keillor

Ever stop to think about the emphasis that looks are given in our society? Young people give their appearance more attention than ever. In fact, a lot of them spend hours primping and preparing for their self-directed photoshoot, then take tons of pictures of themselves for social websites.

During the years when they should be cultivating their relationships, their mind, their conversational skills, their education, and so forth, they’re spending the most time finding their most flattering angles and poses.  Then, of course, they have to take the pictures to photoshop to make them all the more flattering. When all else fails, make that picture black and white.

Then, it’s to the presses! They publish the pics on their favorite social websites with a pleading “Say something about me!”

Of course they have to caption the picture themselves – which usually brings gems such as, “I’m just so silly.” or “Wow. I look drunk LOL!”

What a LOOK AT ME world!

Ever stop to wonder what the future will be like for the MySpace generation if they don’t start giving their “insides” as much attention as they give their “outsides?”  THAT picture isn’t quite as pretty.

If you’re blessed enough to have young people in your life, you know darn well that you can’t just talk to them about this. You have to outsmart them. Fortunately, if you catch them in photoshop, they’ll be so distracted, your odds will be extraordinary.

Your main goal is to get the young person away from the shallow end of the ME pool and coax her or him into deeper waters.

• Talk to her about what she wants to do with her life. Feed her interest, whether or not it’s YOUR first choice or not.  Whatever interests her should interest you – buy her books, cut out newspaper articles for her (and of course, read them yourself), talk with her, find websites and television documentaries that focus on her interest, etc.  Tell her that you’re proud of her for having goals and aspirations.
• Don’t criticize and condemn. Kids need their parents approval more than anything. Just because your son  seems like a cocky little devil doesn’t mean he doesn’t absolutely crave your approval.
• Compliment your daughter or son’s personality and sense of humor. Let them know that they crack you up and that you love their company. Let them know that there is so much more to them than how they look.
• Make your child feel smart. Don’t ridicule and make fun of things they say and do.  Whether or not you realize it, this makes them feel dumb.  If they feel like they aren’t “smart enough,” they’ll only look for ways to get the approval they crave.  If they don’t get attention and approval from you, rest assured they’ll get it somewhere else.
• Show your child the different “needs” in the world. Hand them a copy of  “One Can Make a Difference” and challenge them to find a way to make their  own difference.  Get them away from themselves – for their own good.

Finally, realize that a certain amount of social networking is perfectly normal.  Young people (and even not so young people) are having a blast with it.  It’s downright invigorating to talk to people from around the country and even around the world.   Sharing interests, learning about  different cultures, and so forth – great stuff.  But, come on, when all you have to offer them is,  “My eyes look kind of green in this picture, don’t they?  Well, they’re really brown.  Deep, dark brown… ” – you’d be better off sitting alone admiring your own eyes.

Wow.  What a life well-spent that’d be.

Naturally, we adults aren’t immune to this sort of thing either.  We’d do well to follow our own advice, wouldn’t we?  When we find ourselves on social sites with the attitude of “Look at me!” or “Listen to me!” – we’d do the world a huge favor if we examined our intent and our motivations.  Are they purely selfish, to the tune of simply wanting people to hear us because they happen to have something you want (as in money) or because we want desperately to climb a social ladder and each follower or “convert” represents another step on the ladder?

Or are we genuinely trying to help other people – whether it’s teaching them things we happen to know or motivating and inspiring them to bring out the best in themselves.  Everyone has certain gifts and talents – and if you spend your days using yours to help others I’ve got two words for you:  You’re cool.

We should all frequently step away from ourselves and see the needs in the world. If we can help anyone or anything, even in the smallest way, wouldn’t it be selfish not to? I have no more interest in Fifty Dollar Jackets Covering Fifty Cent Hearts than I do Fifty Dollar Haircuts on Fifty Cent Heads.

Follow me on Twitter! http://twitter.com/JoiTaniaSigers

Fifty Dollar Haircuts on Fifty Cent Heads

Related Articles:

1. Fifty is the New Forty and Madge is Living Out Loud Proof Loathe her, like her, or love her – you can’t...
2. Free and Clear and Clearly Free I subscribe to about 12 different CNN alerts, and I...
3. Quote About Commitment There’s a difference between interest and commitment.  When you’re interested...