Treasures this way

Whether you’re a seasoned thrift store veteran or a newbie, it’s always a thrill to walk into one of your local thrift shops on a lazy afternoon and discover treasures within.

For deep within the shelves or hiding on one of the many racks of clothes hide potentially amazing finds just waiting to be discovered.

Looking for a pair of jeans?  Look no further than the denim section of your local Goodwill or Salvation Army.  If you’ve got the time and even a tiny bit of patience, chances are you’ll find at least five pairs in your size just waiting to adorn your body.  According to “The Thrifty Chicks,” jeans shopping is one of the more sublime adventures in thrift store land.

Looking for a photograph frame?  Well I guess you could go to a retail store and shell out at least $10 or more for a simple wooden frame, or you could head over to  your local thrift shop or even visit a rummage sale or garage sale and possibly even bring home an instant ancestor or two.  Some of those secondhand frames are better made and have much more attention to detail than the mass-produced ones you will find in a mass merchandiser.

What if you’re needing some new cookware?  You could go to Williams-Sonoma and go into hock for a fine piece of crockery or you may want to venture into Goodwill, like I did, and find a perfectly good pan for your next meal preparation.  Now those clever Thrifty Chicks do mention something I had not also considered,

it made me realize that it’s former owner loved this dish and used it to create wonderful edibles for the people that mattered to her or him. It made me feel like this dish had an inherited knowledge of how to care for the items placed in it once it goes into the oven

How cool is that?  They call this haunted cookware.   I think that’s a fabulous term and really stirs the imagination (even as one stirs a pot of soup!) about the previous owner and the love they imbued into their dishes they served their families.

Now if you’re not the type to venture into a thrift store, there’s even a lady who’ll do that for you.  Just click on Esty.com’s Recessionista Vintage and you can shop to your heart’s content for cool retro clothes without ever having to step into a secondhand shop.

See, the more mass-produced items become, I think more folks are realizing the benefit in turning to the old, the familiar, and the reliable to outfit their homes, bodies, and lives.  It’s truly the ultimate in green, too, to buy second hand, and with a little imagination, thrift store treasures can be unearthed to bring joy and contentment to our lives once again.

Let’s think about what Napoleon Bonaparte once said about treasures:

“Riches do not consist in the possession of treasures, but in the use made of them.”

Domestic Goddess Gear

Ok so now I am an officially published author.  I get it.  Now while I am waiting for the fame and fortune, something continues to plague my existence.

Dust bunnies.

Now with all my newfound “specialness” I should have been able to immediately go out and hire a crew of maids to handle such mundane household tasks.  I mean, honestly, does Sarah Palin REALLY pick up a Swiffer these days? 

However, apparently until I hit that New York Times Bestseller List, I still find myself remanded to the drudgery of the same old housework I battled even as I brought the book to light.  So much so that yesterday while I was vacuuming, I missed a call from a local newspaper reporter asking me about my book.

Fame apparently waits for no one, including those recently published authors still needing to do housework.

And my 11-year-old son also reminds me that regardless of the fact that now my book can be found listed on Amazon.com

I am still expected to pick up his dirty laundry, haul it to the basement, wash it, dry it, haul it back upstairs, fold it, and put it away for him.  He’s not alone.   Even non-author moms find that the old-fashioned views on “women’s work” carries on even a few generations past the burning-bra period of the 1970s. 

According to Lisa Belkin of the New York Times Magazine, in her article Kids See Housework as Women’s Domain, there seems to be a direct correlation between the amount of time dear old dad is away at work and the time spent by kids doing chores.  Not so with mom.  Apparently regardless of mom’s other hats she wears, at home she’s still expected to bear the larger burden of housework.

This simply has to stop! 

But before I get all huffy and naggy, I have found recent solace in a book I picked up the other day.  In To Love, Honor, and Vacuum, author Sheila Wray Gregoire (a fellow Canadian!) discusses the challenges of women she says often, according to the subtitle, “feel more like a maid than a mother.”   

With humor, dashed with a peppering of good old Christian values (even useful to me as a non-Christian) Gregoire empowers women to find their strength to recruit help from the other household members, do it gently, with love, and actually get results and reap the rewards of a happier, more peaceful home all around.

I’ve just started reading the book but I’ve already picked up some great tips.   I especially enjoyed the section on asking appropriately; to get the kids or dad to help out more without resorting to what all women seem to be so good at…nagging (or so that’s what it’s called when they’re at the end of their ropes).

So armed with this great book, feather duster in hand, and sporting a new attitude, I plan to balance my burgeoning amazingness as an author with the knowledge that I am more than a scrubber of dirty toilets or sorter of socks. 

I might even have the time to sit down and read a good book  from time to time!

Amen.

Second Hand Roses: The Junktiquing Road

Are you a thrift store junkie? Do you find yourself drawn to all things second hand?  Can you barely pass by an antique store without feeling the urge to stop in for just a moment (or hour) or two? 

Are you intrigued by the backstory of some of life’s castoffs? 

Join me as I venture down the Junktiquing Road and consider the story behind the trinkets I discover and learn valuable life lessons from seemingly nondescript everyday items.

The book, Second Hand Roses: The Junktiquing Road is here!  For anybody having picked up an old mysterious implement, gazed across time into the faces of hundred-year-gone “instant” ancestors, opened the dusty pages of a venerable book, or marvelled at ancient (read: no batteries required) toys, this book is for you.

Consider purchasing the book for yourself or someone you love who is also a “junker,” “picker,” or general all-around second-hand aficionado.

Now available on Amazon!  You can buy it by clicking on this link.

SECOND HAND ROSES

You can also buy it at Barnes and Noble by clicking here:

Dawn Edwards is a 43-year-old writer, medical transcriptionist, blogger, work-at-home mom, and a long time self-professed thrift store “junkie.”

Published in various magazines, books, and on websites, Dawn brings her special literary skills to new heights in her first book. She lives in a tiny town west of Chicago with her husband, Alexander, and her beautiful son, Julius.  An avid second-hand shopper, Dawn is always looking for inspiration.

To listen to her interview on Blog Talk Radio with Michelle Vandepas

Just one of the many victims

Now is not the time to discuss banalities.  People are dying, many unnecessarily, some for the want of such basic life-sustaining requirements of clean water, food, shelter, and medical care.

We all have so much here our society.  Even those of us barely scraping by here in the USA have the chance at least of somewhere to sleep protected from the elements, something to eat, water to sip, and (heavens!) a bandage if we are cut.

This poor country, just 681 miles from Miami, has suffered enough over it’s tumultuous history.  No one should endure a 7.0 magnitude earthquake, but it’s made all that more devastating due to the crushing poverty of these proud, beautiful people.

Remember how we all felt after we saw the towers fall?  After Katrina?  Feel that love for your fellow man now and contribute.  Even $5, the cost of a footlong sub at a famous restaurant, will go farther than you could imagine

RIGHT NOW

Resources:

http://tinyurl.com/unicefhaiti

1-800-UNICEF

http://clintonbushhaitifund.org

http://google.com/relief/haitiearthquake

OR TEXT “HAITI” TO 90999

Thank you and remember what Dr King said not too long ago:

An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.

Now where'd I put that W2?

After the champagne has gone flat in our flutes, the noisemakers have silenced, and Ryan Seacrest has moved onto other TV venues, it’s time for the obligatory ritual carried out this time of year known collectively as…

…getting organized.

Now I know what you’re thinking.  You’re muttering under your breath (I hear you!) something about what does a junktiquing queen know about getting rid of stuff when most of my time is spent on acquiring things?  And I agree…it seems a bit paradoxical, but even the most die-hard of us packrats can at least once a year see the benefit of what the Japanese call “oosouji.”

According to Cynthia Ewer of http://organizedhome.com,

In Japan, clearing dirt, clutter and the disorganization from the old year is an integral part of Japanese New Year tradition. Because each year is seen as separate and distinct, the final week of the old year is devoted to cleaning, decluttering and organizing.

Sounds nice, doesn’t it?  So with that spirit of oosouji in mind, let’s consider five simple ways to declutter our lives at the beginning of this new year.

1. Look around your house, focusing on one area at a time. Perhaps spend one day going through your closet.  Take out anything you’ve not worn in at least six months.  Ignore that voice in your head that says, “but I am sure I’ll fit into it if I give up Rocky Road ice cream!”  Instead, grab a large trashbag, toss those items in your wardrobe that have not seen the light of day since the last general election, and take the whole thing to a charity. You can carry on this purging all year; it does not have to be limited to the month of January.  Resolve that for the next item of clothing you bring home, you’ll take out one item.  That way, your look stays fresh and you don’t have to worry about reinforcing your closet hardware.  Do the same thing for everyone else’s closet and I’ll bet you’ll be surprised how many items of clothing you’ll end up carting to Goodwill.
2. Before you stuff all those holiday decorations in their appropriately (and well-marketed this time of year) plastic tubs, take a hard look at them and toss anything that’s chipped, has missing parts, may be duplicated, or is simply silly to keep…such as strings of lights that don’t light anymore (usually they die just before it’s time to put them on the tree and then the replacements die in the bin over the summer).  Take your holiday cards and rather than toss them, send them to the St. Jude Ranch for Children in Nevada (see my previous post).  Do you really need 5000 strings of tinsel or will a mere thousand do?  Holiday stuff tends to pile up and it’s always a garage-sale favorite, so if you end up tossing something you regret later, I’d be willing to bet that you’ll find an adequate stand-in sometime this summer.
3. Purge your paperwork!  Aren’t we supposed to be a paperless society?  Why is it, then, that around this time of year we’re bombarded with cleverly positioned filing materials and office supplies in our local mass-merchandisers, all with the goal of managing MORE paperwork? Think twice before printing out something from the internet.  Do you REALLY need two copies of an obscure chicken recipe or can you scribble down the ingredients on a 3×5 card and put it in a nice recipe container on top of your stove?  If you’re worried about important papers such as tax files, bank statements, receipts, I’d suggest you look at http://pueblo.gsa.gov.  It’s a wonderful resource for such questions and should provide you with great guidelines.
4. Since you’re not likely hanging out a whole lot outside (if you live in a Midwestern climate like me at least) and you’re even one-tenth the bookworm I am, now would be a good time to go through your personal library and purge volumes that have not seen the light of day since Ronald Reagan was in his second term.  Check out http://paperbackswap.com.  Therein you may find a long-lost tome of days gone by and in turn, you can divest yourself of your tattered copy of Carrie.  While you’re at it, take a duster to those shelves, open the windows (for a moment!) and get the dust of ages out of your libary.
5. Ditto for CDs, tapes (remember those?), VHS tapes, DVDs, and video games.  Are you likely to watch another rerun of M*A*S*H?  If not, take out a nice cardboard box, fill it up, and either put the whole kit-and-kaboodle on Freecycle or check out http://swaptree.com.

Now’s the time of year when we take inventory of ourselves and our surroundings; to purge ourselves of old habits and clear out the cobwebs of past years, to emerge anew and face this new (decade?) with a clean slate and an open mind, and maybe even a dust-free shelf or two.

Or we can simplify even more and take the advice of an anonymous someone even cleverer than me…

“My idea of housework is to sweep the room with a glance.”

A little bubbly please!

Well, here we are once again.  A new year with new promises of hoped-for prosperity, peace, abundance, and whatever else positive charms we can sprinkle onto our party hats. 

But this  year, like its predecessor, the infamous “Y2k” ten years ago, I am once again faced with a dilemma. 

Is it really the start of a new decade or do I have to wait until 2011?

Just like ten years ago when I succumbed to the frenzy of all things millennium, I recall gnashing my teeth in needless worry over whether or not the new century and millennium began at the end of 1999 (okay here’s where we start humming that old Prince tune) or if it didn’t truly kick in until one year later.

Even as the champagne warms up in our flutes this time, the debate rages on yet again. There are countless websites today, on January 1, chock full of different opinions regarding this seemingly unanswerable question. 

But as I see it, does it really matter?  Whether we ascribe to the more logical case posed that says the decade won’t start officially until 2011 or if we are happy enough to call it the new decade of the (what…”teens?”) and can finally close the door on what most of us now reflect on a mostly disastrous ten years commonly referred to in my house as the “aughts,” it’s still a new year and time for self-inventory, new promises, and fervent hope all around that by this time next year we as a people and nation and world will be able to say “whew…that was a LOT better than last year!”

So new decade or not, in a set of years to be called the ‘teens (?), let’s set forth on a new path of focusing on more important matters than semantics and vowing to do one thing better than perhaps we did not do yesterday, last month, last year, last decade, or (if we’re old enough), last millennium. 

As Oprah Winfrey reminds us,

“Cheers to a new year and another chance to get it right.”

Here’s to 2010!

Merry Christmas to You

Christmas postcards were popular starting when, according to the website, http://oldpostcards.com, the “Pioneer Era” of postcards first was sold by vendors and exhibitors at the Colombian Exposition in Chicago, May 1893. The popularity caught on and soon these cards were sent all over the world.   Cards from this era (1893-1898), according to the site, are a rare find these days.  Collectors of these pay upwards of $20 and more for a snapshot of life over a hundred years ago.

I see these kinds of postcards all the time in my Fair City in the local antiques shops.  This time of year, they’re usually strategically placed next to the mid-century modern tinsel trees and Shiny Brite™ ornaments, the shopkeepers betting on nostalgia to make a sale.  Their sweet images and often-faded sentiments have the power to, if just for a moment, transport us to a simpler time, when faxes, iPhones™, webcams, and email were not even on the horizon.

It got me thinking about my own Christmas cards I send each year.  My annual tradition of purchasing (usually at 50% off on the days after Christmas and hopefully stowed safely away enough to be located easily later), addressing, attaching holiday stamps, and writing unique messages to my far-flung friends and relations continues, perhaps as an homage to my mother’s insistence on doing things the “old fashioned way.”  And not too many years ago, this was not an “old fashioned” thing to do.  In many ways, we still see the boxes of festive holiday cards displayed next to the cool LED lights and racks of candy canes, hot cocoa, and other accoutrements of the season.  It appears that there’s still a market for real paper cards, as evidenced by the fact that the Post Office last year handled over 203 billion pieces of correspondence.  Now while a lot of that may be bills and junk mail, I’d hazard a guess that a goodly percentage still includes “real” mail.  You know what I mean.  It’s still nice to receive something addressed to ourselves personally, in real handwriting, with our names spelled correctly, and hinting of a connection unattainable by a generic “Dear occupant” in the address window.

Call me an old-timer, a relic, a has-been, but I am one who remembers with great affection the excitement of receiving a note from my grandparents in England, sometimes even accompanied by a £5 note and instruction from my Nana to “have a Macdonalds on us!”  No doll house, no trinket, no stack of blocks, or even a shiny new bicycle could match the cache of that love that arrived within that handwritten envelope with the mysterious international stamps.

I know my time’s limited.  Every year, with the advent of more ancient relatives’ deaths, my list grows smaller and smaller.  My shelves, in the past covered with at least 20-30 beautiful cards this  year look most pathetic, with only three “real” cards to celebrate this season.  I send out my usual complement of greetings to the same folks in my dog-eared address book (yes a real paper one complete with erasures and marked-over addresses), and hope for a card in reply.  This time I only got two, and of the two, one was just a photograph with a photo-kiosk –generated wish of good cheer.  No handwriting there.  Don’t get me wrong; I am happy to get any cards in the mail but again the old-timer in me longs for that real ink on the page wishing me and my family well and conveying hopes for a prosperous, healthy, happy, or whatever New Year. 

I’m not alone in my observation that the old ways are changing.  Check out this article from the Omaha World Herald: http://tinyurl.com/noxmascards.

One day I too will succumb to the electronic lure of an E-card for the holidays.  The website http://123greetings.com will most likely add me to their ever-growing list of virtual correspondents.  And I like millions before me will click a mouse rather than lick (remember that) a stamp and send my sentiments scurrying along electronic highways to be either hopefully read or unfortunately flagged as spam by the recipient’s antivirus software. 

And the cards in my mailbox will eventually, I am sure, stop coming entirely, as my older relatives pass on and the younger generation turns to the web for their greetings.  In the meantime, I’ll keep dashing to the door when I hear the mail carrier’s boots on my porch, eager to find just one more Christmas card in the midst of the sale flyers and bills.

The cards I do receive, up to now formerly either saved for sentimental reasons or recycled in the trash, can do a little bit more good before the whole trend goes by the way of the dodo.

I’ve set up a collection for Christmas (and all other) cards in two local businesses in my Fair City.  These cards will ultimately find their way to the St. Jude’s Ranch for Children.  St. Jude’s has a 40-year history of healing for abused, abandoned and neglected children. Their Recycled Cards Program (now over 30 years old) enables the children living at St. Jude’s to make new cards by removing the front and attaching a new back, resulting in a beautiful new card. They then resell the cards online to help fund their programs.

For now, however, I will enjoy the funny penguins sliding in glittery snow lamenting their consumption of “too much Christmas pudding,” a joke only someone with relations in the UK would most likely understand, and reflect on my good fortune to have somebody thousands of miles away to think enough of me to bring holiday cheer on a wing and a stamp.

If you’d like to participate in the Recycled Cards Program, you can contact St. Jude’s at:  www.stjudesranch.org

Their mailing address is: St. Jude’s Ranch for Children, 100 St. Jude’s St, Boulder City, NV 89005

 Let’s keep the love flowing, now and at all times of the year.

Dress for Success

It’s tough out there.  Whether you’re unemployed, underemployed, employed-but-overworked, disabled but wanting to work, or know someone in one of these categories, this economy has hit virtually all of us. 

I met a lady the other day in the wee hours of Black Friday, as she sat behind me in line in the shoe aisle in Wal-Mart, waiting for the opportunity to save a buck or two on a digital camera for her son this Christmas.  As we got to chatting, as is the nature of such a ridiculous situation; the camaraderie of a shared objective linking lives, albeit briefly, and stories began to unfold.

Her husband, in the construction industry, had been laid off.  For over a year.  Her weary eyes told me more than her words; the challenge of meeting the bills, the lingering worry over every small expense, the stress of trying to provide some modicum of a normal Christmas, and the resignation to a life previously unimagined.  She sighed, “I don’t have a choice here.  If I don’t come now, there will be no Christmas for my kids.”

How many others in our line, I wondered, were facing similar hardships?  Why did the folks on Main Street have to pay for the foibles of Wall Street?  When was this situation ever going to end? 

“There’s no work,” the woman told me.  “It used to be great only a short time ago.”  Now with the collapse of the housing market, the credit market, long lines for not-enough jobs, and rising prices, we’re all being stretched to the limit.

There’s news that the unemployment rate has slowed a bit and is now hovering around 10 percent, according to the Labor Department.  According to Reuters.com, President Obama, during a recent visit to Pennsylvania, said:

“We still have a long way to go. I still consider one job lost, one job too many. The journey from here will not be without setbacks or struggle. There will be more bumps in the road. But the direction is clear.” 

It’s encouraging but offers little comfort to those like my friend in line at Wal-Mart.  And we were in a nice western suburb of Chicago. 

What about in the inner cities, where poverty is the norm in the “good” times, when double-digit unemployment is the scourge of the neighborhood and there’s few options out there to scrape by?  How, for instance, can somebody in Harlem afford to dress nicely for an interview, should they be so lucky to land one?  Seems an untenable situation, save for one bright light.

According to the New York Times, Goodwill Industries of Greater New York and Northern New Jersey did an amazing thing.  They offered a free outfit to anybody needing proper interview clothes, with a limit of $50.  Well, as author Clyde Haberman notes, “…$50 stretches far in a Goodwill store. For all intents and purposes, the outfits were free.”

This is a charity, where they usually take in donations, not give them away. But, according to Haberman, even Goodwill sees where folks really are hurting. 

 “Maybe the bleeding has stopped, but the patient is still ill,” said William J. Forrester, the president and chief executive of Goodwill Industries of Greater New York and Northern New Jersey. “Actual hiring has got to take place.”

They didn’t check to see if the person had a real interview lined up. They took the people at their word.  For the folks at Goodwill have realized that without dignity, through work, many will never emerge from their plight.  How many jobs actually are created through this program remains to be determined, but it’s a good bet that the outlook will be dramatically improved with this small gesture. 

So the next time you’re cleaning out your closet, thinking you really don’t need that old suit, dress shirt, or slightly scuffed wingtips, think of Goodwill.  You might just help someone get a job.

As US industrialist, Henry Kaiser, said, “Trouble is only opportunity in work clothes.”

To find a local Goodwill donation center: http://goodwill.org

To read the full article: http://tinyurl.com/gwsuit

Cinderella would be proud

I have a confession to make. I am a closet fashionista. Especially this time of year.  My holiday fantasies involve me decked out in a flowing gown, strapless heels, and a glittery bag as I sashay into some fabulous party, wowing the men and sending the women into jealous tizzies.  Like some Bond girl, I flit mysteriously into the throng, sipping bubbly from a crystal flute, heavily made-up eyes surveying the scene as I amaze one and all. 

I finally accept the seat of a vacating tuxedo-clad stud muffin, whispering some breathless words of holiday cheer, scan the crowd, and revel in the well-deserved attention as it seems nobody can take their eyes off me and my fabulousness.

Finally, a smoky-eyed Brad Pitt lookalike approaches.  Bending to pick up my outstretched hand, he plants a gentle kiss upon my fingers and asks the question that all are secretly wondering.

“Where did you get that ensemble, mon cheri?”

And rather than Cinderella beating the streets at the stroke of midnight, leaving only a glass slipper and hundreds of unanswered questions I proudly reply….

“A thrift store, baby!”

The stuff of dreams, never to be realized?

Not so fast, my romance-starved friends!  Seems this scenario (at least the clothes part) could come true if you were brave enough to venture into your local thrift stores this holiday season.  How many of us have longed to slip into something satiny, silky, beaded, bejeweled, and just a bit over-the-top but were afraid to part with the hundreds of dollars a chi-chi boutique would command for such a getup?

In many a shopping trip to my local Goodwill, I have found some lovely evening dresses, and not all circa 1970.  It’s been my experience that some other poor party gal has paid an exorbitant fee for a prom, wedding, or other formal dress only to wear it once and find it sitting collecting dust in a closet corner, destined for obsolescence before the light of day catches on its sequins once again.  If she’s got any trace of altruism in her, she’s then run into this dress once again, probably in a frenzy of spring cleaning, and either it’s too small or she’s too unwilling to be seen in it again, and then off it goes in the donation box to the local thrift shop.

And it’s in those hallowed walls that glamour shines again.

So next time you’ve been invited to a holiday party, wedding, prom, or other special occasion, take the time to visit your local thrift store.  You may walk out with enough satin in your bag to merit your own catwalk on the runway.

And you might just get a mistletoe smooch from a stud muffin!

Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all!

If you don’t believe me, check this article out in the Orange County Register.  Seems I’m not the only one vamping on the cheap.

http://tinyurl.com/thriftcoral

This is an incredible book.  If you read nothing else this winter, check this one out.  It’s well worth your time.  If you’re in a cold climate, fix yourself a nice hot cocoa, bundle up in your snuggly blanket, sit in your favorite bookreading chair, watch the snow gently fall outside, and grab your laptop. 

Those of you on the beach, just remember to keep the sand out of the keys!

Author Priscilla McIntire has a veritable smorgasbord of posts, gathered from all the most wonderful personal growth authors online and has put them in one concise collection for easy perusal.

It’s going to inspire you to look beyond yourself and within yourself. 

I’ve been lucky enough to be picked to participate, and in turn here are some of my own favorites.  Some you may know, some you may not, but all offer valuable life lessons.

Check them out!

Abu Aremu        Positive Self Talk Guide

Adam Kayce       Monk at Work

Adebola Oni      Naija Motivation

Al Ramsey         7pproductions.com

Alex Shalman     Practical Personal Development

Cheryl Ragsdale That Girl Is Funny

Chris Marshall     Martial Development

CK Reyes           Divine Purpose Unleashed

Cinderella S Kelley Kroh The Krohs Nest

Cindie Wilding   Answers From Within

Corinne Edwards  Personal Growth with Corinne Edwards

Craig Harper     Motivational Speaker – Craig Harper

Daniel Sitter       Idea Sellers

David Rogers     How to Have Great Self Confidence

Dawn Edwards Second Hand Roses

Dawna Jones      Management-Issues

Diane Brandon     Diane Brandon.com and Diane Brandon.net

Dr. Susan R. Meyer, Ed. D.   Life Work Cafe

Dr. Venerina Conti    VenerinaConti.com

Frank Butterfield     Life Unfolding Beautifully and 68 Second Videos and Re/Transformation

Gamy Rachel     Mind Think Success

Gleb Reyes        Personal Development Ideas

Gregory Allen Butler     holistic-personal-development.com

Isabella Mori      MoriTherapy

Jacklyn Ker     Inspiring and Empowing Lives

Jeanette Maw     Good Vibe Coaching

Jeanne May        Goals and Aspirations

Jennifer Mannion   Heal Pain Naturally

Jonathan Fields – Awake At the Wheel

Jonathan Wells  Advanced Life Skills

John Sadler      Bitesize Marketing NLP

Judy Kinney      Dream and Flourish

Judy Martin       The Work/Life Monitor

Justin Wolsey Riggs     Easier Method

Kaya Singer     Awakening Business

Karen Putz     A Deaf Mom Shares Her World

Liz Strauss     Successful Blog

Lorraine Cohen     Powerfull Living

Lyman Reed     Free Personal Development Material

Lynn Solarczyk    Livingloa

Luciano Passuello     Litemind.com

Marelisa Fábrega  Abundance Blog at Marelisa Online

M. Farouk Radwan     2knowmyself

Mel Kaye     Monday Morning Power

Melissa Goerke    Melissa Thinks Out Loud

Meryl K. Evans     Meryl.net

Michele Woodward     Lifeframeworks.com

Michelle Vandepas     Conscious Destiny

Mohammad Shafi’e     Ultimate Secrets of Success

Neil Sattin     NeilSattin.com and Natural Dog Blog

Patricia Singleton     Spiritual Journey of a Lightworker

Phil Gerbyshak     PhilGerbyshak.com

Priscilla McIntire at    Personal Development Demands Success

Rahul Bhambhani    Take-20.com

Robert Higginson    Robert Higginson

Robin Skeen     Robin?s Reflections

Rod Smith Difficult Relationships

Sam Kotadia     MindSportLive.com

Scott Ginsberg     Hello, My Name Is Blog

Scott H Young    http://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/

Sharani Robins     Sharani Girl on a Road

Shauna Arthurs     Follow Your Path and Breathing Prosperity

Sherri Joubert  Being The Change I Wish To see

Slade Roberson     Shift Your Spirits

Sonia Simone  Remarkable Communication

Steven Aitchison    Change Your Thoughts

Sugandi Iyer     Life Business Creations

Thea Westra     MyForwardsteps.com and TimeForMyLife.com

Tina Su     Think Simple Now

Todd Goldfarb     We The Change

Vivienne Quek      Versa Creations

Zorka Hereford     Essential Life Skills

Zubli Zainordin     Your Wisdom of Total Happiness

TREAT YOURSELF.

YOU CAN BUY THE BOOK HERE!