What intrigued me: I picked up this book as a part of a new Planned Preoccupation habit.
What I liked: Nelson does a great job of explaining the diffeWhat intrigued me: I picked up this book as a part of a new Planned Preoccupation habit.
What I liked: Nelson does a great job of explaining the different types of friendships in our lives, and has given me a better understanding for my common friends. Since our move back to CA most of my friendship circles need filling and there are very practical tips in this book to make that happen.
What I didn't like: It was somewhat repetitive, but the fact that each chapter had actionable steps made it less tiresome.
Favorite quote: "How to Host and Interesting People Party” p.101 - I cannot wait to do this!...more
What intrigued me: I choose this book for one of my blog series.
What I liked: I thought the real world examples were well placed and they helped to iWhat intrigued me: I choose this book for one of my blog series.
What I liked: I thought the real world examples were well placed and they helped to illustrate Paul's point. It doesn't have a ton of practical tips, but the general themes are motivating.
What I didn't like: I skimmed over the parts about stay at home moms and baby circles.
Favorite quote: “Conflict is messy, awkward, and usually survivable.”...more
What intrigued me: Sometimes I judge books by their cover and it works out pretty well.
What I liked: This book had an interesting structure. A linearWhat intrigued me: Sometimes I judge books by their cover and it works out pretty well.
What I liked: This book had an interesting structure. A linear story about a specific race day interspersed with memories and musings about rowing. There are a lot of great quotes in this book about motivation, achieving your goals, and mental toughness.
I also appreciated that he shared specific rowing exercises that I am going to try on my rowing machine!
What I didn't like: There are a lot of $10 words in this book. At first, I thought it was me, but then he used the term pas de trois in a baseball analogy and I realized it was Lambert being pretentious.
Favorite quote: "The fatal trap is entertaining our doubts, for then we get stuck inside our own minds, insulated from the steady stream of feedback that reality is continually offering."
What intrigued me: Roz Savage tops just about every list when you look up inspirational rowing books.
What I liked: I really felt connected to Roz andWhat intrigued me: Roz Savage tops just about every list when you look up inspirational rowing books.
What I liked: I really felt connected to Roz and her adventure. Even though it might seem a little hokey I like how she ties her memories the emotions she is feeling while rowing on the ocean.
What I didn't like: I'm not a huge fan of adultery, and when I got to that point in the book I almost put it down. But I realized I don't like adultery in fiction. This is Savage's life, and it is a story worth reading warts and all.
Favorite quote: "...when you stand at the bottom of the mountain and look up at the mountaintop, the path looks hard and stony, and the top is obscured by clouds. But when you reach the top and you look down, you realize that there are a thousand paths that could have brought you to that place."
What intrigued me: When you're learning Scruggs style banjo you should know more about Earl Scruggs.
What I liked: Excellent insight into Scruggs life,What intrigued me: When you're learning Scruggs style banjo you should know more about Earl Scruggs.
What I liked: Excellent insight into Scruggs life, musical path, and the impact he had on bluegrass.
What I didn't like: The last chapter about people influenced by Scruggs was poorly executed.
Favorite quote: "After appearing on the Opry one night in the 1990s, [Charlie] Cushman was pleasantly surprised by a complimentary phone message that awaited him at home:
'I was on there one night with [banjoist and fiddle player] Mike Snider. We had about five minutes left in the show, and he asked me if I had my banjo picks, and I said yes I did. So he took the banjo off, handed it to me, and it was during a commercial break he said, “You play us out of here.” We came back on the air and they introduced Mike and he introduced me and I played “Earl’s Breakdown.” Anyway, I went home that night, it was about midnight, and there was a message on my answering machine. Well, it was Earl saying, “I just watched you on the Nashville Network doing the Opry, and you really played that old tune really well, and I just wanted to let you know I saw that, and we’ll talk to you later.” That was a high point in my career, and if I never played again, I got a compliment from Scruggs. The next day I made sure I didn’t erase that message. I went and got my cassette recorder and I copied it."
What intrigued me: A biography of a musical instrument. What's not to love?
What I liked: There is so much history surrounding this insturment and so mWhat intrigued me: A biography of a musical instrument. What's not to love?
What I liked: There is so much history surrounding this insturment and so much I was ignorant of. It's given me a deeper appreciation for the songs I am learning and the bonjoists who popularized all the different sounds you can make with this one instrument.
What I didn't like: I've had a slight crisis of identity and cultural appropriation while reading this book. While difficult it is an excellent learning experience.
Favorite quote: “When Walt Whitman imagined what an 'American Opera' should sound like, he started with the instrument: "put three banjos (or more?) in the orchestra...' Yet in the racial context of the nineteenth century, those who wished to celebrate the instrument as "American" confronted a cultural conundrum. The banjo's popularity was based on its association with an African-American culture that was both disdained and fetishized.”
My blog will eventually have my full review....more
What intrigued me: Since Clayton and I are focusing on validating our budget I thought this book could help us as we analyzed our spending habits.
WhatWhat intrigued me: Since Clayton and I are focusing on validating our budget I thought this book could help us as we analyzed our spending habits.
What I liked: It is a quick read, and every chapter/day reads like a blog post. There are some tips I found particularly helpful like paying your rental/car insurance in a lump sum to save money; expense trackers; you can get tax breaks for high efficiency appliances; lowering your phone bill by looking into a family plan; mail order pharmacy for prescriptions; and Amazon's Subscribe & Save
What I didn't like: "I'm not a healthcare/tax/medical professional..." and then proceeding to give advice like try homeopathy. That kind of stuff always rubs me the wrong way. The book is pretty superficial so she could have easily left some of that stuff out.
Favorite quote: “FYI: If your plan says Gbps you have blazing fast internet. Unless you are an online gamer (or there is one in your house), you have plenty of room to cut back, and you won't even notice the difference.” - Yeah, Clayton would notice. :)
What intrigued me: I picked this book to support my Good Will Wednesday habit on my blog.
What I liked: I learned so much from this book! I have triedWhat intrigued me: I picked this book to support my Good Will Wednesday habit on my blog.
What I liked: I learned so much from this book! I have tried discussing it with a few people and seem to jump from one intriguing idea to the next without doing a great job of connecting the dots. It is very well laid out, and makes a compelling case for using your donations dollars wisely.
Favorite quote: “We forget there is an emergency happening all the time, because we've grown accustomed to everyday emergencies like disease and poverty and oppression.”
What intrigued me: This book was exactly what I was looking for to progress my Good Will Wednesday habit.
What I liked: The practical application was fWhat intrigued me: This book was exactly what I was looking for to progress my Good Will Wednesday habit.
What I liked: The practical application was fantastic. My favorite find was Gift Card Giver. The section on enough presents really hit home for me. I wish I would have read the Family Gift Solution before our last gift exchange. Take your gift purchase limit, combine your funds, and then choose as a group where to donate the money.
Shinabarger is obviously religious, but for those of us who are not it was not off putting. There was never the "As a Christian..." This book is about connecting with people, and giving from your excess to match a need.
What I didn't like: There could have been more detail around creating your own "Enough Experiment." That section seemed a vague.
Favorite quote: “How can we keep moving forward if we're still doing things that take away from what we are designed to do and be?”
What intrigued me: The first book in my attempt improve my Spanish skills. 1/10
What I liked: This was a very simple book to follow along with as they What intrigued me: The first book in my attempt improve my Spanish skills. 1/10
What I liked: This was a very simple book to follow along with as they provided English translations. I like that each page had a phrase and wasn't just focused on vocabulary.
What I didn't like: The illustrations we're not all that engaging.
What intrigued me: Ginger loaned me this book because "it does for project management what The Goal did for production."
What I liked: The narrative mWhat intrigued me: Ginger loaned me this book because "it does for project management what The Goal did for production."
What I liked: The narrative makes the ideas relateable and easy to follow.
What I didn't like: Judith and a real world sense of how people and teams would react to the change in management. I can't imagine what my team would think of my cutting their estimates in half, and how one would implement this in an agile environment.
Favorite quote: "All I want to see is we are working on it as fast and as prudently as we can."
Additional Notes: (view spoiler)[- TOC/ what to focus on: 1: Identify system constraints 2: Exploit system constraints 3: Subordinate everything else 4: Elevate system constraints 5: Rinse & Repeat
- Added safety: 1: Time estimates based on pessimistic experience 2: Each level of management adds safety 3: Estimates also protect from global cuts
- Waste safety: 1: Student syndrome 2: Multitasking 3: Delays accumulate while advances do not (early finishes not reported)
Tips: - Don't waste time allotted for the critical path - Cut padded estimates by 1/3 or 1/2 and move the buffer to the end - Remove milestones and have people finish as quickly as possible - Give people adequate notice of when you want them to start something (weeks) - Only measure progress on the critical path - Critical chain will be the critical path with dependencies on shared resources taken into account - Money should be measured in dollar and investment in dollar-days (hide spoiler)]...more
What intrigued me: This book was the basis for my most recent habit building exercise.Read Harder Challenge 2016:
10. Read a book over 500 pages long.
What intrigued me: This book was the basis for my most recent habit building exercise.
What I liked: There is a ton of great content, and it certainly delivers a body of knowledge. I learned a number of new concepts and also improved my project management vocabulary. I feel much more prepared for the PMP training events I plan on attending this year.
What I didn't like: It's quite dry, so you really should pace yourself. I did 8 pages a day to finish before a training event in April, and that was about a section at a time.
Favorite quote: "Overlooking negative stakeholder interests can result in an increased likelihood of failures, delays, or other negative consequences to the project."
Additional Notes:
This book seems daunting, but it is only 369 pages of actual content. And in those pages there are a number of graphs and workflows that support the concepts presented. This is my quick breakdown:
Start-46: Intro - background information 47-416: Body of Knowledge 417-462: Standard - recap of material 463-End: Changes from previous edition and reference material...more
What intrigued me: Picked this up while browsing the books at Urban Outfitters.
What I liked: The problem solver and recipe for Mango Brulee!
What I didWhat intrigued me: Picked this up while browsing the books at Urban Outfitters.
What I liked: The problem solver and recipe for Mango Brulee!
What I didn't like: n/a
Favorite quote:
Mango Brulee:
2 large, ripe mangoes - peeled/stoned/sliced 2 teaspoons rum OR vanilla extract 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt 6 teaspoons brown sugar
Divide sliced mangoes between 4 small ramekins filling them half way, then drizzle rum or vanilla and sprinkle cinnamon. Spoon yogurt on top and level. Sprinkle the brown sugar on top. Low broil for 5 minutes until sugar browns and bubbles....more
What intrigued me: Looking for more inspiration for my green smoothie habit.
What I liked: I likes the breakdown of each of the greens and how to utiliWhat intrigued me: Looking for more inspiration for my green smoothie habit.
What I liked: I likes the breakdown of each of the greens and how to utilize them in the smoothies. I had been cutting out the ribs, and there isn't a noticeable difference in taste if you leave them in. I also never thought to leave the strawberry green tops on.
What I didn't like: Anecdotes and unsubstantiated claims abound.
Favorite quote: My favorite quote is actually my own. Clayton was surprised that I finished the book so quickly and I said, "yeah, these green smoothie books don't have a lot of meat to them." I crack me up. :)...more
What intrigued me: This was a selection that fit really well with my smoothie building habit.
What I liked: If anything the book is short.
What I didn'What intrigued me: This was a selection that fit really well with my smoothie building habit.
What I liked: If anything the book is short.
What I didn't like: There were a lot of dubious claims. In appendix 2 Clent Manich lists out 18 benefits he has experienced from drinking green smoothies including whiter teeth and sweeter breath.
What intrigued me: It's on every list of books that will help improve your writing.
What I liked: There are some excellent and practical tips on writinWhat intrigued me: It's on every list of books that will help improve your writing.
What I liked: There are some excellent and practical tips on writing. I enjoyed the sections on how he became a writer tremendously. I also love the way he writes about his wife.
What I didn't like: If I'm being nit picky, he does give away key plot points to some of novels.
Favorite quote: "We are talking about tools and carpentry, about words and style... but as we move along, you'd do well to remember that we are also talking about magic."
Additional Notes: (view spoiler)[- Good writing consists of mastering the fundamentals of vocabulary, grammar, and style - Read a lot/ write a lot - 1st draft shouldn't take more than a season - write while it is fresh - Have a daily writing goal (10 pages/ 2,000 words) - Write whatever you like and make it unique by adding what you know about life/relationships/friendships/sex/work - Situation then characters - Begin with the story and progress to theme and highlight symbolism if it presents - After your first draft let your story sit for 6 weeks - will make revisions easier - Big questions: is it coherent/ what will turn it into a song/ recurring elements/ theme? - "Omit needless words" - 2nd Draft = 1st Draft - 10% - Writer's Market (hide spoiler)]...more
14. Read a book that is by an author from Southeast Asia (Thich Nhat Hanh is Vietnamese)
What intrigued me: Recommended by Read Harder Challenge 2016:
14. Read a book that is by an author from Southeast Asia (Thich Nhat Hanh is Vietnamese)
What intrigued me: Recommended by Amy to help support my meditation habit.
What I liked: This book reads like a meditative experience, and I found it very calming to read in the evenings after work. I especially liked his early focus on breathing and smiling, and I found myself smiling more throughout the day and becoming more present.
What I didn't like: Some of the sections we harder to follow where the logic didn't seem to track.
Favorite quote: "Put a reminder by your bed to smile when you wake up."...more
What intrigued me: I was researching (googling) the best book on writing, and this book was on every list I skimmed. One of the articles had a quote fWhat intrigued me: I was researching (googling) the best book on writing, and this book was on every list I skimmed. One of the articles had a quote from the book, "Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor..." and I knew I had to read it!
What I liked: The anecdotes peppered throughout the story made me laugh and cry. I took 3 pages of notes while reading through the book. After reading it I feel better informed and inspired. I don't know what else you could want out of a book. I loved all of the practical advice.
What I didn't like: I found the flowery imagery on the painstaking writing process somewhat tedious. That is really reaching though, because overall I loved this book.
Favorite quote: “But baseball, if we love it, gives us back our place in the crowd. It restores us.” ...more
What intrigued me: This book was written from the teachings from S.N. Goenka who was referenced in Never Eat Alone, and seemed like a worthwhile starWhat intrigued me: This book was written from the teachings from S.N. Goenka who was referenced in Never Eat Alone, and seemed like a worthwhile starting point.
What I liked: The structure of the book worked for me, lesson - Q&A - story.
The Immediate Cause was my favorite chapter and very inspiring. It talked about a bunch of cliches that never made sense to me that all of a sudden clicked for me. The "real kamma" is mental action and I have been vary wary of sowing neem seeds since reading this book.
What I didn't like: This book was really hard for me to read. It was only 168 pages and it took me 18 days to read it. That is a really long time for me. I think it was because the vocabulary was all new to me (I still don't know if I am saying vipassana correctly) and some of the messages take a while to decipher.
Favorite quote: “If you start crying over the suffering of others, you make only yourself unhappy...If you have true compassion, then with all love you try and help others to the best of your ability. If you fail, you smile and try another way to help.” ...more
What intrigued me: This book popped up on Patty's to-read list, and it seemed perfect for my blogging habit.
What I liked: The section on immersion. IWhat intrigued me: This book popped up on Patty's to-read list, and it seemed perfect for my blogging habit.
What I liked: The section on immersion. I also really liked the breakdown of the creative non-fiction dance.
What I didn't like: The exercises were not as helpful as I thought they would be. I also do not think that this style of writing is great for my blog, but it was certainly worth the read.
Favorite quote: “There are facts in all stories that cannot be blurred or changed by perception.” ...more
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