Cesar Millan's Short Guide to a Happy Dog by Cesar Millan

Cesar Millan's Short Guide to a Happy Dog: 98 Essential Tips and Techniques, Cesar Millan. Washington D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2013. e-book, 145 pps.

Short Guide to a Happy Dog gives you the basics in digestible chapters. Cesar Millan covers dog psychology, natural dog laws, balanced dogs, pack leadership, and choosing the right dog for your household along with other stuff. 

A dog whose people refuse to or don't know how to be pack leaders will seek to fill the void. We blame our dogs for not doing what we want them to do, yet we do not create the proper environment for them to be able to respond to us. This is serious stuff. A large percentage of dogs who lose their homes find themselves in shelters, purebred rescue societies, or abandoned on the streets because of the improper actions of people. This alone ought to make caring dog owners everywhere want to learn how to be pack leaders and provide proper exercise, discipline, and affection for their dogs. But sadly, it does not.

Of the few dog owners that I was able to provide some direction to, two signed up for group obedience lessons, one took her dog to the vet where a long-term digestive condition was uncovered, one got through her puppy's teething stage successfully, and one hired me to exercise their dog. The rest of them continued to live with their "problem" dogs dominating their lives and the lives of their families. 

One "problem" dog was found dead by his dog house. He was four years old. He spent his life tied up there twenty-four/seven save for the times when he escaped and ran wildly around the neighborhood. Our animal control laws are such that as long as his humans gave his access to fresh water and food twice a day, what they did to him was legal. 

I salute everyone who have carefully chosen not to have a dog for whatever reasons. I did not know the four year old dog well. He was a beautiful Irish Setter that came to a bad end. He wasn't allowed inside the home due to allergies. He received hardly any attention, no exercise and no discipline. That dog would have been far better off had he never met that particular family.

sapphoq reviews says: Being a fan of all things Cesar Millan, Short Guide is no exception. Highly recommended to those who have committed to or are considering committing to a dog.

Living With Yorkies by Pruitt Farm Publishing

Living With Yorkies: Things You Should Know, Emily Pruitt of Pruitt Farm Publishing. self-published via Pruitt Farm Publishing, 2011. e-book, 62 pps.

There was a family yorkie that was sent to me when she was eight years old. I spent the first two weeks correcting her for biting me. She bit me whenever I put her in the car and bit me whenever I took her out of the car. After the first two weeks, she did settle down some but she remained a bit cantankerous for the rest of her life. She was a cute dog though, and smart too. She got the same obedience training that all of my dogs get and was subject to the same rules. She got to have a lot of fun with me and my dogified household. 

We went on numerous hikes and back-packing trips. I'd carry her when she got tired. She would sleep in the tent with me either on top of my sleeping bag or inside. The other dogs usually preferred to sleep right outside the tent and I had to drag them inside when storms were hitting. She swam some too. When I groomed her, she would pick out her own barrette for her hair. She would walk in my footprints or ski marks in the snow but refused anything that resembled dog booties. She was a determined dog for sure. She died of old age.

Living With Yorkies was written by Emily Pruitt, the daughter of yorkie breeders. She points out the good and the not so good about yorkies and also what to watch out for. My yorkie had chronic pancreatitis-- diagnosed before I got her but not treated until my vet discovered this fact in an old vet record-- but never did get any signs of hypoglycemia.

sapphoq reviews says: Anyone who is considering getting a yorkshire terrier for the first time ought to read Living With Yorkies first, along with doing other research. Highly recommended.

Learn Scrivener Fast Webinar

N.B.: Scrivener is a complete writing studio developed by the wonderful and talented folks over at https://literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php. It is a word processor, research tool, organizer, e-book formatter and much more. It is not free but it is much less expensive than other word processors sold by larger companies. 

     

     On Wednesday October 29, 2014, I took a free webinar from the folks at: https://learnscrivenerfast.com/ . I found out about it from https://twitter.com/ScrivenerCoach Joseph Michael. Joe does not work for Scrivener. What he did was make videos about how to use Scrivener and start his own company.

     The webinar was designed to help NaNoWriMo participants use Scrivener in the quest to write 50,000 words or more of a novel during the month of November. This is my second year doing so but my first using a writing application. [Last year, I wrote my whole novel on a Windows Notepad].

     The sign-up process was easy. Directions were specific as to what url to go to before the start of the webinar and how to get admitted into the chatroom going on at the same time. I was relieved to find that I did not have to sign in through Facebook since I absolutely refuse to FB anything in my life. I signed in via a Twitter account. 

     I used a vertical split screen during the webinar. On the left was the chat room. On the right was Scrivener Coach Joseph Michael along with host Jeff Goins talking us through various tips on using Scrivener. Even I could follow what they were saying.

     The men graciously stayed longer than the hour scheduled. They taught us stuff for ninety minutes and then stuck around the chatroom for more questions.

     At the end unfortunately some folks who wanted to win freebies "right now" began a bitchfest about it. Such is what has happened since our society became one of entitlement. If it's free, it might me for me and I might even take three but I'm certainly not going to whine about it.

sapphoq reviews says: All in all, the webinar was an enjoyable experience for me. I do recommend it highly. While I may not buy into taking the advanced course, I was happy to know about it anyway. I admit to being the sort who wanders around saying to myself, "I wonder what this button does" and then clicking it in order to find out. Consequently, when it comes to many computer programs and apps, I learn best by experimenting. Still, the webinar did answer one question I had that I hadn't been able to puzzle through on my own. So yeah I highly recommend the freebie webinar, and the paid courses for those who are still having difficulty figuring things out on Scrivener. 

   

Coming Out Atheist by Greta Christina

Coming Out Atheist: How to Do It, How to Help Each Other, and Why, Greta Christina. San Francisco: Dirty Heathen Publishing, 2014


     Greta Christina put out a call on the Internet for stories about coming out as an atheist. This book is the result. It is filled with quotes from atheists of various religious backgrounds.

     Greta Christina's involvement with the queer and bi-queer communities in San Francisco also inform her work. The simple question, "What do people want?" [or "What does the community want?"] lends itself to making activities that resonate with people and can lead in directions which are initially unexpected.

     Admitting to atheism-- either casually or formally, in front of a large crowd or a few people-- is not without its risks. Greta Christina covers those risks. In Coming Out Atheist, she reminds readers over and over again that there is no formula. Each person has to evaluate the risks and benefits for his or her self.

sapphoq reviews says: Although repetitive in places, Coming Out Atheist is a pretty good addition to the library of atheists old and new. Some overlap with Hemant Mehta's The Young Atheist's Survival Guide makes this book more valuable for adult atheists in adult situations. [Mehta's book is the best for younger atheists i.m.o.]. Although Greta Christina could have done a better job delineating resources for atheists who are in recovery from addiction, overall a satifying read with emphasis on developing community. The resource guide in the back is especially valuable to those folks who can access the Internet but are unable to or don't care to connect with atheists face to face. Highly recommended.

Format Your eBook the Free and Easy Way by J. Gunnar Grey

Format Your eBook the Free and Easy Way, J. Gunnar Grey. Humble Tx: Dingbat Publishing/ Smashwords edition, 2011. ebook, 49 pps.

     I've been preparing my first e-book for publication and I am quite frankly scared out of my mind. I remember reading that the Midrash says "all beginnings are hard." Ain't that the truth?

     At last, I have found one book that tells me how to format my e-book in simple words using lists and illustrations. That book is Format Your eBook the Free and Easy Way. By using Calibre [https://calibre-ebook.com/download]and Sigil [https://download.cnet.com/Sigil/3000-2351_4-75332057.html], J. Gunnar Grey says I should be able to do this.

sapphoq reviews says: I wrote Up the Rebels last year in thirty days and have been proofreading it so it can be ready to submit as an e-book. November is fast approaching and I am getting reading to write a second novel. Hopefully, my first novel will be ready to hit the digital waves by then. If so, I promise to name a character in the second book Gunnar or Grey. Highly recommended.

Hacking Facebook and Websites-- Be Safe by Techdroids

Hacking Facebook and Websites-- Be Safe, Techdroids. self-published, 2014. e-book, 32 pps.



     Techdroids started out furnishing information about various tech products on the internet while still in high school. His info was solid. He included pictures of the products he discussed on a variety of sites. I figure by now he is well on his way to a college degree or more. [Techdroids reloaded can be found still in some places. I think it is the same young man but I am not 100% sure].

     Hacking Facebook and Websites was very thorough in the subjects addressed. How to compile, how to do an EICAR test, how to create and disable several kinds of viruses, phishing, hidden codes, trojan horses, how to hijack, SQL injections, and IP addys were all included. All of the information in this book was helpful.  

sapphoq reviews says: Techdroids has written a solid introduction to some proof-of-concepts involved with hacking computers and phones. The instructions were clear, easy to follow, and they worked well. There was nothing about this too short book not to like. Highly recommended to those interested in security, pen testing, and other related subjects.

A Hacker's Life Starter by Benjamin James

A Hacker's Life Starter-- Security Penetration Anywhere & Anytime, Benjamin James. self-published, 2014. e-book, 47 pps.

Sigh.

1.  No one in their right mind uses LOIC anymore since an incident involving the contamination of a LOIC download on pastebin which resulted in some arrests of hacktivists.

2.  Malware Bites is recommended as a good anti-viral tool. It is not. In my opinion, it is malware.

3.  This e-book has some formatting problems interspersed within each chapter.

4.  This e-book in my opinion is useless and offers bad advice.


sapphoq reviews says: Twenty five percent of American hackers have been turned by the F.B.I. into informants. If you want to learn how to hack, learn some code first. Read 2600 magazine. Hang out on Twitter [r] with members of Anonymous and also with the ninjas. Beware of egofags. Don't be a script kiddie and don't fall for what Benjamin James is selling. Totally and absolutely not recommended.

Swarm Traps and Bait Hives by McCartney Taylor

Swarm Traps and Bait Hives: The Easy Way to Get Bees for Free, McCartney Taylor. self-published?: Out Of A Blue Sky, 2011. e-book, 53 pps.

Swarm Traps and Bait Hives is for the bee keeper that is wanting to obtain bees at no cost. The author is thorough and has many valid tips and suggestions. Why hives swarm is explained along with some basic history. Lemon Grass Oil and a bit of old comb are suggested as bait to attract the bees into the temporary structure. Once the bees are settled, they can be transferred to your more permanent set-up. Of particular interest to the hesitant bee-keeper is the chapter on safety. It is noted that the use of ladders is not recommended. If the bees get pissed off, retreating from a ladder without injuring oneself is difficult.

sapphoq reviews says: Although my favorite bees are hover bees [also called wood bees or sometimes mason bees] that don't produce honey but do pollinate lots of blooms for me, the information in this book is highly valuable to now and future beekeepers. 

I do plan to keep honey bees a couple of summers from now. My cousins kept bees years ago and I got to see that hive set up. A bee hatched in my hand which was pretty cool. 

Bees are very important to our well-being because without them, flowering plants and flowering fruits and vegetable plants would not get pollinated. 

Keeping bees is another way to say to company or companies wishing to monopolize seeds, crops, fertilizer, and bug sprays "No thanks. You cannot dictate to us what we will do." There is something infinitely satisfying about growing things from seeds that we harvested ourselves. And even better, the knowing that the fresh foods from our gardens have not been genetically engineered.

Get this e-book if you might ever be in a position to do some bee-keeping. Bees are vital.

 N.B.:  http://www.LearningBeekeeping.com is worth investigating for more info.

Making It by Kelly Coyne and Erik Knutzen

Making It: Radical Home Ec for a Post-Consumer World, Kelly Coyne and Erik Knutzen. New York: Rodale, 2011. e-book, 368 pps.

     Making It is written by the same people who brought us The Urban Homestead. This book picks up where The Urban Homestead left off. Projects are divided into five sections. The first four sections involves things that one uses or does daily, weekly, monthly, and seasonally. The fifth section is devoted to planting tips, composting, and beekeeping.

     Each project in Making It lists the approximate preparation time and a list of ingredients. The instructions are well-written and easy to follow. A list of resources and an index is included.

sapphoq reviews says: Those fans of The Urban Homestead are sure to love Making It. Highly recommended.

Arrested by Wes Denham

Arrested: What to Do When Your Loved One's in Jail, Wes Denham. Chicago: Chicago Press Review, 2010. e-book, 266 pps.

Arrested is an ideal book for the family members of someone who is going through legal difficulties. Wes Denham is a business writer who has an excellent grasp on the law; http://folioweekly.com/Hot-Bullets-Cold-Truth,5556 for an example of an article that he wrote. He addresses concerns of those left behind to hold up the fort until the convict becomes an ex-convict.

When a loved one is arrested, there are several pitfalls to watch out for that Denham addresses. One of them is the high cost of phone calls from jail and what that can do to the family's budget. Another is making sure that your own living quarters and car are "clean" should law enforcement want to toss the place because your family member lives with you. And then there are the attorneys.

Denham discusses life as a prisoner and how that can effect the family who is outside the bars. He talks about commissaries, getting religion (while incarcerated), sex, and how to tell if your convict really wants to change. He discusses what to do if you are threatened (flee; and report the threat to the cops) and provides several handy checklists. The appendixes include helpful forms and letters and the most thorough vocabulary list of prison slang that I have ever seen in a book.

sapphoq reviews says: Wes Denham has written a pretty good book to guild families of people who are getting tangled up in the justice system. Arrested leaves nothing out. A valuable aid to thinking clearly in a situation where family members can often go to pieces. There is straight talk about financial concerns, avoiding prison rackets from the outside (don't send money to people when asked to, especially to other prisoners), and having a life. Highly recommended.

Behind Bars by Jeffrey Ian Ross and Stephen C. Richards

Behind Bars: Surviving Prison, Jefrey Ian Ross and Stephen C. Richards. Indianapolis: Alpha Books/Penguin, 2002. e-book, 173 pps.

I read through several books on how to prepare for prison and this was the one that I thought was the most valuable for soon-to-be convicts and their families. Behind Bars was written by two college professors who have had experience with incarceration-- one is an ex-con and the other was on the staff. This book tells it like it is. In spite of cries from some readers that "we need more positive prison literature" [huh?], there is no glossing over the facts about fighting and sex, the gangs and the drugs, giving birth in prison and the high recidivism rate. Because serving time isn't on most peoples' bucket lists. 

Behind Bars starts off with some stats about American prisoners and then walks the reader through the arrest process, the difference between jails and prisons, classification, getting to prison and what to do and not do once you get there, and getting out. There is a rundown on a "typical" day in a fed pen which has controlled movement. All the taxpayers who are screaming about how their/our tax dollars pay for prisoners to go to college can stop now. There are no Pell grants for convicts and haven't been since 1992. Cons (or their families) have to pay for any college courses. Although a meaningful education is a huge help in not returning to the prison system as a con, there are many barriers in the way. Prisoners are subject to almost instantaneous transfers. Wardens are threatened by the educated. Cons work in prisons for what is considered to be slave wages on the outside and then spend that money (added to their accounts) in the commissary where the markup is usually around 125 percent. The food is inedible and many fights break out in the chow hall. Hope that you do not get sick in prison. See a dentist if you can before arriving at prison-- some of the ones on the inside may be dedicated-- because you don't want to take your chances with the local hack surgeon. There is a ton of information in Behind Bars.

sapphoq reviews says: Ross and Richards have written an excellent book for those who are on their way to becoming convicts. Behind Bars should be read by anyone who is about to have a first contact with the legal justice system as a prisoner. The curious and the folks who figure they will never have to serve time behind bars [some innocent people do wind up in prison] will also find this book to be valuable. Highly recommended. 

No Plot? No Problem! by Chris Baty

No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days, Chris Baty. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2004. e-book, 145 pps.


     For those who do not know this, Chris Baty is the founder of NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month. The idea is to write a novel in the month of November without any editing or re-writing. After completing the novel (of at least 50K pages), the writer can then proof-read it, edit it, publish it or search for a publisher.

     The first section of No Plot? No Problem! is the sort of preliminary stuff that some writers will go through before actually writing. Also included are tips on how to get the people around you to become your cheerleaders.

     The second section deals with a week-by-week breakdown of the process of writing the novel and the emotions that are sure to bedevil the NaNoWriMo participants. The author cautions not to read ahead on Section Two but rather to read it week by week.

     I did not decide to write a novel until November 13th. Thus I did not officially sign up on the NaNoWriMo website. Nor did I want to participate in a silent group of people getting together to write. But I did want to write a novel in thirty days. And I did do that. My novel was completed on December 13th, one month after I made my decision to write it. I am currently re-writing, editing, and proof-reading.  I expect to self-publish Up the Rebels! as an e-book by the end of February 2014. After that, I plan to write and self-publish two more novels in the year 2014.


     No Plot? No Problem! was my personal cheerleader. Although I did not manage to convert my housemate into a supporter (he groaned about the computer being hogged during the time that I was writing), I did have a bunch of people on [tm]Twitter known as the #BogBuds and a couple of lawyers cheering me on. sapphoq reviews says: The lack of a plot was the thing that held me up from writing a novel. I've written many poems, short stories and a few essays. I've had my work published in a bunch of zines, lit mags and magazines a bunch of times. But something was lacking. That something was the satisfaction that I derived from writing a novel. With No Plot? No Problem! on my e-reader, I was able to achieve a dream. So yeah, if you are serious about writing a novel and just haven't yet, get this book and challenge yourself with writing 50K or more words in a month. Highly recommended. Infinitely more satisfying than the formula writing how-to tomes abundantly available.