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Unplugged: My Journey into the Dark World of Video Game Addiction
by Dr. Ryan G. Van CleaveWARNING: This video game may impair your judgment. It may cause sleep deprivation, alienation of friends and family, weight loss or gain, neglect of one's basic needs as well as the needs of loved ones and/or dependents, and decreased performance on the job. The distinction between fantasy and reality may become blurred. Play at your own risk. Not responsible for suicide attempts, whether failed or successful. No such warning was included on the latest and greatest release from the Warcraft series of massive multiplayer on-line role-playing games (MMORPGs)—World of Warcraft (WoW). So when Ryan Van Cleave—a college professor, husband, father, and one of the 11.5 million Warcraft subscribers worldwide—found himself teetering on the edge of the Arlington Memorial Bridge, he had no one to blame but himself. He had neglected his wife and children and had jeopardized his livelihood, all for the rush of living a life of high adventure in a virtual world. Ultimately, Ryan decided to live, but not for the sake of his family or for a newly found love of life: he had to get back home for his evening session of Warcraft. A fabulously written and gripping tale, Unplugged takes us on a journey through Ryan's semi-reclusive life with video games at the center of his experiences. Even when he was sexually molested by a young school teacher at age eleven, it was the promise of a new video game that lured him to her house. As Ryan's life progresses, we witness the evolution of videogames—from simple two-button consoles to today's complicated multi-key technology, brilliantly designed to keep the user actively participating. As is the case with most recovering addicts, Ryan eventually hits rock bottom and shares with the reader his ongoing battle to control his impulses to play, providing prescriptive advice and resources for those caught in the grip of this very real addiction.
The Medium Next Door: Adventures of a Real-Life Ghost Whisperer
by Maureen HancockThe Medium Next Door is the amazing life story of spirit medium Maureen Hancock, who discovered her psychic abilities to see, hear, and speak with the dead when she was just five years old. Descended from a long line of legendary Irish mystics, Maureen was no stranger to the spiritual realm, but she still kept the messages from the departed to herself all throughout her childhood and teen years, eventually suppressing them almost completely.Maureen wouldn't open herself up to communicating with spirits again until she was in a near-fatal car crash. Soon after, she had hundreds of voices in her head, many of them helping her crack cases and expose fraud in her role as a litigation paralegal at a large Boston law firm. Accepting her gift but still keeping it to herself, she married and had two children.It wasn't until tragedy struck on 9/11 and Maureen was bombarded with messages from the spirits that she realized she had to stop hiding her ability and put it to good use. She left her job at the law firm and opened the holistic healing center Pathways to Healing and launched the cancer foundation Manifest a Miracle. Today, she goes by the title Medium Mom and strives to balance raising children, raising the dead, assisting the dying, searching for missing children, and teaching about life after death.
Autobiography of a Freedom Rider: My Life as a Foot Soldier for Civil Rights
by Thomas Armstrong Natalie BellIn the segregated Deep South when lynching and Klansmen and Jim Crow laws ruled, there stood a line of foot soldiers ready to sacrifice their lives for the right to vote, to enter rooms marked "White Only," and to live with simple dignity. They were called Freedom Riders and Thomas M. Armstrong was one of them. This is his story as well as a look ahead at the work still to be done. June, 1961. Thomas M. Armstrong, determined to challenge segregated interstate bus travel in Mississippi, courageously walks into a Trailways bus station waiting room in Jackson. He is promptly arrested for his part in a strategic plan to gain national attention. The crime? Daring to share breathing space marked "Whites Only." Being of African-American descent in the Mississippi Deep South was literally a crime if you overstepped legal or even unspoken cultural bounds in 1961. The consequences of defying entrenched societal codes could result in brutal beatings, displacement, even murder with no recourse for justice in a corrupt political machine, thick with the grease of racial bias. The Freedom Rides were carefully orchestrated and included both black-and-white patriots devoted to the cause of de-segregation. Autobiography of a Freedom Rider details the strategies employed behind the scenes that resulted in a national spectacle of violence so stunning in Alabama and Mississippi that Robert Kennedy called in Federal marshals. Armstrong's burning need to create social change for his fellow black citizens provides the backdrop of this richly woven memoir that traces back to his great-grandparents as freed slaves, examines the history of the Civil Rights Movement, the devastating personal repercussions Armstrong endured for being a champion of those rights, the sweet taste of progressive advancement in the past 50 years, and a look ahead at the work still to be done. Hundreds were arrested for their part in the Freedom Rides, Thomas M. Armstrong amongst them. But it is the authors' quest to give homage to "the true heroes of the civil rights movement . . . the everyday black Southerners who confronted the laws of segregation under which they lived . . . the tens of thousands of us who took a chance with our lives when we decided that no longer would we accept the legacy of exclusion that had robbed our ancestors of hope and faith in a just society."
The Dead Celebrity Cookbook: A Resurrection of Recipes by More Than 145 Stars of Stage and Screen
by Frank DeCaroIf you've ever fantasized about feasting on Frank Sinatra's Barbecued Lamb, lunching on Lucille Ball's "Chinese-y Thing," diving ever-so-neatly into Joan Crawford's Poached Salmon, or wrapping your lips around Rock Hudson's cannoli – and really, who hasn't? – hold on to your oven mitts! In The Dead Celebrity Cookbook: A Resurrection of Recipes by 150 Stars of Stage and Screen, Frank DeCaro—the flamboyantly funny Sirius XM radio personality best known for his six-and-a-half-year stint as the movie critic on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart—collects hundreds of recipes passed on from legendary stars of stage and screen, proving that before there were celebrity chefs, there were celebrities who fancied themselves chefs. Their all-but-forgotten recipes—rescued from out-of-print cookbooks, musty biographies, vintage magazines, and dusty pamphlets—suggest a style of home entertaining ripe for reexamination if not revival, while reminding intrepid gourmands that, for better or worse, Hollywood doesn't make celebrities (or cooks) like it used to.StarringFarrah Fawcett's Sausage and PeppersLiberace's Sticky Buns Bette Davis's Red Flannel Hash Bea Arthur's Good Morning Mushroom Tomato Toast Dudley Moore's Crème BrûléeGypsy Rose Lee's Portuguese Fish ChowderJohn Ritter's Famous Fudge Andy Warhol's Ghoulish Goulash Vincent Price's Pepper SteakJohnny Cash's Old Iron Pot Family-Style Chili Vivian Vance's Chicken Kiev Sebastian Cabot's Avocado Surprise Lawrence Welk's Vegetable Croquettes Ann Miller's Cheese SouffléJerry Orbach's TrifleTotie Fields's Fruit MellowIrene Ryan's Tipsy Basingstoke Klaus Nomi's Key Lime TartRichard Deacon's Bitter and BoozeAnd many other meals from breakfast to dessert.
Heidi Across America: One Woman's Journey on a Bicycle Through the Heartland
by Heidi BeierleA memoir of homecoming – Heidi Across America is a gritty story of how opening our hearts to others enables us to open our hearts to ourselves and love what we find there.In the summer of 2010, Heidi Beierle had just finished her first year of graduate studies in community and regional planning and decided to pedal her bicycle solo from her home on the west coast across rural America to the Preserving the Historic Road conference in Washington, D.C. What started as a research trip turned into an intimately physical and psychological encounter with self and nationhood. Heidi was 35 at the time and didn&’t love much about herself except her ability to endure grueling physical undertakings. She viewed her journey as an opportunity to fix her failures and insufficiencies. There were also some research questions she wanted to explore: Why do people live in small towns and what do they like about it? Did a bicyclist like herself bring economic benefit to the small towns she visited? What could communities do to support or invite cyclists to stay in their towns? What could cyclists do to support the communities? Along the way, she was surprised by the kindness of strangers and the emotional pinch of traveling through Wyoming where she grew up. Her journey led her through the Plains and into the Ozarks where the heat climbed to agonizing temperatures and every pedal stroke in the heat felt one closer to death. By the time she completed the trip, Heidi discovered a newfound compassion for herself and a growing love for her country. Strangers opened their hearts to her and in turn, she opened her heart to herself. And her questions began to change and mirror things many Americans are asking themselves today: How can I be okay in my own skin? What does it mean to be enough? How do I satisfy my desire to travel without harming the planet? What does it mean to love America? For many young people, it is a rite of passage to light out on an adventure to see the world and expose themselves to new experiences, but we don&’t often talk about how Americans seeing America can open us to the diversity, awe, and wonder available right here in our nation. Heidi Across America offers a journey to self-love, empathy, consideration for others, and respect for the spirit of place as pathways to find connection and home.
Up the Down Escalator: Medicine, Motherhood, and Multiple Sclerosis
by Lisa DoggettA memoir of triumph in the face of a terrifying diagnosis, Up the Down Escalator recounts Dr. Lisa Doggett&’s startling shift from doctor to patient, as she learns to live with multiple sclerosis while running a clinic for uninsured patients in central Austin. Recounting before and after the discovery of her MS, she chronicles vexing symptoms while trying to be an attentive mother, wife, and a caring family doctor.Facing the prospect of a career-ending disability as she adjusts to life with multiple sclerosis, Dr. Lisa Doggett is forced to deal with a new level of uncertainty and vulnerability, and the everyday fear that something new will go wrong. Taking off her white coat—becoming a patient herself—she confronts unimaginable fears, copes with her limitations, and sidesteps her skepticism of alternative medicine to seek help from unlikely sources. Drawing on riveting patient stories, Doggett reveals the dark realities of the dysfunctional U.S. healthcare system, made all the more stark when she becomes the one seeking care. MS pushes Doggett—a perfectionist at heart—to soften her inner drill sergeant and embrace self-compassion. As a patient, she learns to advocate for herself to ensure on-time medication deliveries and satisfactory treatment plans; to navigate chronic dizziness, relapses, and parenting frustrations; and to push her physical limits as a runner to go farther than ever before. As the director of a health clinic for the uninsured, Doggett&’s MS inspires an even deeper empathy as she confronts challenging cases, prompting her to work harder on behalf of those in her care, many of whom struggle with illnesses more serious than her own. This hopeful and uplifting book will encourage those living with chronic disease, and those supporting them, to power forward with courage and grace. It will spark conversations to redefine perfect parenting and trigger uncomfortable discussions and outrage about the vicious inequalities of health care in the U.S. Most of all, it will inspire readers to embrace the gifts of an imperfect life and look for silver linings, despite life&’s detours that sabotage plans and take them off their expected paths.
Lost and Broken: My Journey Back from Chronic Pain and Crippling Anxiety
by Congressman Adam SmithAdam Smith, 26-year member of Congress and Chair of the House Armed Services Committee for the last four years, offers a candid memoir about his years-long struggle with anxiety and chronic pain, and the winding path to find the right diagnosis and treatment.&“Early one morning in April of 2016 I woke up and seriously contemplated the possibility that I would never be able to generate the strength, focus, and courage to get out of bed. The combination of crippling anxiety, chronic pain, muscle atrophy, and the fascinating mix of pharmaceuticals coursing through my body had, I feared, finally broken me. My life terrified me. I had been fighting some combination of these battles for just over three years at this point, and I didn&’t think I could do it for one more day.&” Representative Adam Smith was successful by all measures, with a long, distinguished career in Congress and a loving marriage with children. Yet seemingly out of nowhere, his body and mind broke down to the point where every day was a relentless struggle to just keep moving. It&’s a struggle millions of Americans know all too well. Would he be able to meet his responsibilities as a husband and father? Could he still maintain his breakneck professional schedule and continue to do his job well? He soon realized he couldn&’t will himself well—he needed help. Thus began a desperate search for the right diagnosis and treatment for his mental and physical pain that lasted over six years and involved more than a hundred different health care providers. With unflinching honesty, Smith reveals how he got to this lowest point in life, and how he slowly, painfully, and unevenly found his way back to having a calmer mind and being free of chronic pain and medication. Smith discovered the severe limitations of our nation&’s health care system, and brought him face to face with the cost of the stigma our country has against admitting to and dealing with mental health issues. He learned that life isn&’t about finding that quick fix or clear-cut mental and physical program to stop worrying and struggling. It&’s about learning who you are, understanding your body and mind well enough to face those struggles that we will all inevitably face, and then being able to enjoy your life even when those struggles come.
From Junkie to Judge: One Woman's Triumph Over Trauma and Addiction
by Mary Beth O'ConnorFrom a junkie addicted to methamphetamines to a federal judge, Mary Beth O&’Connor&’s memoir shares her inspiring journey from rock bottom to resilience as she forged a personal path to recovery from trauma and addiction. Searing, unsettling, and ultimately triumphant, Judge O'Connor's debut memoir takes readers on a wild ride through the rock-bottom underbelly of intravenous drug addiction to the hallowed halls of justice where she rose to the pinnacle of success as a federal judge. With wit and unabashed honesty, O&’Connor shares her remarkable three-phase journey: the abuse and trauma that drove her to teenage drug use, the chaos that ensued from her addiction; and how she developed a personalized secular recovery plan that led to twenty-nine years of sobriety. Her story proves any addict can recover and anyone can build a productive and happy life, no matter how low the bottom or how deep the pain. Within a week of being born, O&’Connor was dropped off at a convent. When she was brought into her home, her mother focused on her own needs and desires, ignoring her young child. When she was nine, her stepfather kicked her in the stomach for spilling milk, beat her when she didn&’t clean a plate to his satisfaction, and molested her when she was twelve. A few months later, with her first sip of Boone&’s Farm Strawberry Hill wine, her life changed. She felt euphoric and relaxed. So she got drunk as often as possible, adding pot, then pills, then acid. At sixteen, she found her drug of choice--methamphetamine. With her first snort, she experienced true joy for the first time. When this high was no longer sufficient, she turned to the needle and shot up. During the next sixteen years, she descended into a severe meth addiction, working her way down the corporate ladder, destroying relationships, and shattering her physical and emotional well-being. At thirty-two, she entered rehab, where she was ordered to submit to the 12-steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. As an atheist, turning her will and her life over to a higher power was not an option, and she refused to agree she was powerless. Told to comply or fail, she bravely created a new path that combined ideas from multiple programs and even incorporated some AA concepts. Clean and sober now for more nearly three decades, she is proof that anyone can find their sober self, their best self, no matter how far they have fallen. Along with her inspiring story, she offers a comprehensive checklist of questions for readers to ask themselves as they take the brave steps toward recovery, offering a powerful blueprint for personal change.
Return to the River: Reflections on Life Choices During a Pandemic
by Dave PelzerFrom #1 international bestselling author, speaker, and humanitarian Dave Pelzer comes the next chapter in his life—how, after spending decades saving others in the military, as a fire captain, and an internationally acclaimed advocate, he needs to confront a way to save himself. On the surface, Dave Pelzer&’s life seems like an action movie—he&’s walked the red carpet with celebrities and stood shoulder to shoulder with soldiers in Iraq; he&’s flown top-secret missions for the U.S. Air Force, obtaining the rank of chief, and battled wildfires in California as a volunteer fire captain. And now—on the eve of the 50-year anniversary of this rescue from horrific childhood of abuse and into the safety of the foster care system—he reflects on the battles he&’s fighting in his own heart. From a lifetime spent serving and saving others, can he learn how to serve and save himself? Banished to his basement at age five, Dave Pelzer had cried a river of tears before most children learned to tie their shoes. His now classic books, A Child Called &“It&” and The Lost Boy, chronicled how he was brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother: a mother who nearly killed him multiple times. But despite the odds stacked against him, he rose to become a #1 New York Times bestselling author, inspirational speaker, and internationally recognized humanitarian. After fighting for years to vanquish his pain and to channel it into service for others, Pelzer sifts through the psychological rubble of a life that has seemingly crumbled around him. What he shares is deeply transformative and unflinchingly honest. In his struggle to simply survive, he never learned how to just be. Reeling from the loss of a love—and a broken spirit—Pelzer must reconcile his life choices and free himself of blame and shame to find peace and renewed purpose. Amidst the towering redwood trees and the serenity of his childhood utopia of the Russian River, Pelzer reflects on having the courage to move forward in your life, the peace to accept yourself, the vulnerability to strip yourself of facades, and to find the tenacity to carry on when life doesn&’t turn out the way you planned. For anyone who has been hurt, victimized, or feels alone, there is hope and there is always a way to rewrite your own story. Pelzer&’s soulful and inspiring story will remind you to keep your faith, live with gratitude, and find the well of resilience deep within you.
Changing with Aging: Little Stories, Big Lessons
by Don KuhlDon Kuhl, founder of The Change Companies®, shares the 10 big lessons he learned throughout life's little moments.We all have one thing in common. We&’re getting older – and that&’s a good thing. In Changing with Aging, Don Kuhl, founder of The Change Companies, shares 10 big lessons he has learned through a lifetime of love, courage and misadventures. Don Kuhl has brought inspiration and transformation to millions by creating Interactive Journals that help people reflect on where they&’ve been, where they are, and where they wish to go. Now it's Kuhl's turn to share his stories of growing older and the wisdom he has gained along the way. Before he founded The Change Companies, Kuhl managed motel properties, started several sports publications, worked in college and health care administrations, and launched about a dozen corporations. Some of them failed miserably, a few flourished. From his unique perspective, Kuhl touches upon themes of gratitude, taking risks, appreciating the ordinary, and remaining open to all possibilities, giving readers a glimpse of living life to its fullest at every age. During their 30-year history, The Change Companies has served over 10,000 public and private organizations to help over 25 million individuals make wise and healthy life choices through their unique Interactive Journaling products.
El Niño Sin Nombre: La lucha de un niño por sobrevivir
by Dave PelzerThis book chronicles the unforgettable account of one of the most severe child abuse cases in California history. It is the story of Dave Pelzer, who was brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother: a mother who played tortuous, unpredictable games--games that left him nearly dead. He had to learn how to play his mother's games in order to survive because she no longer considered him a son, but a slave; and no longer a boy, but an "it." Dave's bed was an old army cot in the basement, and his clothes were torn and raunchy. When his mother allowed him the luxury of food, it was nothing more than spoiled scraps that even the dogs refused to eat. The outside world knew nothing of his living nightmare. He had nothing or no one to turn to, but his dreams kept him alive--dreams of someone taking care of him, loving him and calling him their son.
Inexplicably Me: A Story of Labels, Worthiness, and Refusing to Be Boxed In
by Chelsea Austin Montgomery-Duban WächterA hilariously moving and inspirational memoir of a girl with two gay dads, navigating her way through life with joy, love, gratitude, and an excellent sense of humor. As the daughter of two gay fathers in the 90s, Chelsea has always had a different outlook than some people. And yet, her message is one of universal importance – love is the most important force in the world. Through her moving and at times hilarious memoir, Chelsea reflects on how we are all much more similar than we are different. Living &“two doors down from normal,&” Chelsea quickly learned that society loves to put people in boxes, but these boxes do not always reflect how we feel about ourselves. Through Inexplicably Me, Chelsea works to bring people together in love and acceptance and to illustrate that, while her story may seem worlds away from others, we all strive for happiness and love. From sharing the stage with President Obama when she was only eighteen years old, to her father spending her senior year of college in federal prison camp, to her biological mother dying of cancer when she was only 56, Chelsea explores her painful and joyful experiences with the hope that readers will find inspiration to face their own challenges and embrace their own joys. Inexplicably Me is a bridge for those who fear what they don&’t understand, as well as a possibility for those who have lacked love in their lives to see how they can start to access their self-worth, begin achieving their dreams, and start loving themselves again. Most of all, it is a reminder that everyone will have an opinion about who you are supposed to be, but you, and only you, get to decide exactly who it is you want to be.
About Natalie: A Daughter's Addiction. A Mother's Love. Finding Their Way Back to Each Other.
by Christine Pisera NamanA mother traces her daughter's years-long battle with addiction in this compelling memoir that opens a raw and honest dialogue about substance abuse.A mother&’s first, most basic instinct is to protect her child. Christine Naman&’s daughter Natalie was the light of her life. She was a spirited child with sparkling eyes who was growing up and finding her way in the world. But by adolescence, she had ended up on the wrong road, meeting the wrong kind of people. Natalie was a full-blown addict, caught in a self-destructive spiral that was destroying her life and taking her family along for the nightmarish journey. Christine wondered how she could have missed the warning signs. Was there anything she could do to save Natalie from herself? About Natalie tells one woman&’s heartbreaking story, one that is played out in homes across the country, and reveals the rollercoaster of emotions that loving an addict unearths. There is despair and joy; denial and acceptance; rage and tranquility. Christine&’s reflections as she traces her daughter&’s life are interspersed with Natalie&’s compelling poems that tell the unvarnished truth of her side of this struggle: &“I have handcuffs on/And no one can see them/My screams are so loud /Yet no one can hear &‘em&”. By sharing the difficult days of isolation, pain, and humiliation that being the parent of an addict can bring, Naman offers comfort and consolation to others in similar circumstances. Ultimately, About Natalie is a story of loving no matter what, keeping the faith, battling hard, and getting back on the right road.
Fighting Infertility: Finding My Inner Warrior Through Trying to Conceive, IVF, and Miscarriage
by Samantha BuschSamantha Busch uses her voice to break the silence that surrounds the infertility community in this raw and relatable account of her journey with IVF, loss, and faith.Samantha Busch, wife of NASCAR champion Kyle Busch, knows the thrill of the racing circuit, but she also knows the heartache and despair of infertility. She shares both in this honest and relatable account where faith, family, love, and loss intersect. As Samantha&’s and Kyle&’s public lives grew more pronounced, their private life was being torn apart. The frustrations and uncertainty of their fertility problems took a toll on them as individuals and as a couple, creating a cyclone of emotions that threatened everything they had worked so hard for. Through these trials, they learned how to build a stronger relationship, foster a deeper faith, and find humor through the tears. They also discovered a passion for helping other couples gain access to fertility treatments. In this memoir, Samantha uses her voice to break the silence and stigma that surround the infertility community. She details her battle with infertility, including her IVF experience, her miscarriage, a failed cycle, and the overwhelming grief and depression that surrounded these obstacles. By sharing practical advice as well as candid and inspiring stories of her journey, she provides support, validation, community, and education for others experiencing similar tribulations. Fighting Infertility is an opportunity to feel understood, to gain strength through the struggle, and to ignite your inner warrior.
Black Sheep: A Blue-Eyed Negro Speaks of Abandonment, Belonging, Racism, and Redemption
by Ray "BEN" StudeventA captivating memoir of a biracial boy growing up in Washington, D.C., abandoned by his birth parents, and lovingly raised by a woman with deep emotional scars from her upbringing in the segregated South.The unforgettable memoir Black Sheep opens with a middle-aged Ray Studevent returning to Washington, D.C., to his &“momma,&” Lemell Studevent. She didn&’t give birth to him, but she is the woman who raised him. She is the woman who stood by him through thick and thin. She is the woman who saved his life. But now in her late 80s, Lemell is lost to her Alzheimer&’s disease. On most days, she has no idea who she is, no recollection of the remarkable life she has lived. Every once in a while, she remembers small fragments of people, places, and things but she doesn&’t know how all of these pieces fit together. At night, she is often haunted by nightmares of growing up in the segregated South, of evil men with blue eyes peering through slits in their hooded robes. Frightened by Ray, this stranger, this white man with his piercing blue eyes, she threatens to shoot him. Trying not to get swept up in his own buried, decades-old feelings of abandonment, Ray knows he must work to regain her trust as he thinks back to how far they both have come. Ray Studevent grew up between two worlds. Born to a white, heroin-addicted mother and a black, violent, alcoholic father, the odds were stacked against him from day one. When his parents abandoned him at the age of five, after living in a world no child should experience, he was saved from the foster-care system by his father&’s uncle Calvin, who offered him stability and a loving home. When Calvin tragically died two years later, it was up to his widow Lemell to raise Ray. But this was no easy task. Lemell grew up in the brutality of segregated Mississippi, emotionally scarred and justifiably resenting white people. Now, she must confront these demons as she raises a mixed-race child—white on the outside, black on the inside—on the eastern side of the Anacostia River, the blackest part of the blackest city in America. This is a time of heightened racial tension, not long after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the D.C. race riots. There are guidelines if you are black, different rules if you are white, but only mixed messages for mixed-race children who must fight for acceptance as they struggle to find their identity. As Dr. My Haley, the widow of Roots author Alex Haley, wrote in the Foreword for Black Sheep, &“Ray&’s pathway to manhood came not through the people who taught him what to do, but through the woman who taught him how to be, even as she learned for herself how to be.&” At a time when we are all reexamining the complex issues of race, identity, disenfranchisement, and belonging, this compelling true story shows us what is possible when we trust our hearts and follow the path of love.
Lost in Ghost Town: A Memoir of Addiction, Redemption, and Hope in Unlikely Places
by Dr. Carder StoutPsychologist to the Hollywood elite Dr. Carder Stout delivers a page-turning memoir about his fall from grace into the gritty underbelly of crack addiction, running drugs for the Shoreline Crips, surviving homelessness, escaping a murder plot, and finding redemption in the most unlikely of places.Dr. Carder Stout&’s clientele includes Oscar-, Golden Globe-, Emmy-, Tony- and Grammy-winners, bestselling authors, and billionaires. He may not be able to share their dark secrets, but for the first time, everyone will know his. At the age of thirty-four, Carder would have gladly pawned the silver spoon he was born choking on for a rock of crack. His downfall was as swift as his privilege was vast…or had he been falling all along? Raised in a Georgetown mansion and educated at exclusive institutions, Carder ran with a crowd of movers, shakers, and future Oscar-winners in New York City. But words like &“promise&” and &“potential&” are meaningless in the face of serious addiction. Lost years and a stint in rehab later, when Carder was a dirty, broke, soon-to-be-homeless crackhead wandering the streets of Venice, California. His lucky break came thanks to his old Ford Taurus: he lands a job of driving for a philosophical drug czar with whom he finds friendship and self-worth as he helps deliver quality product to LA&’s drug enthusiasts, from trust-fund kids, gang affiliates, trophy wives, hip-hop producers, and Russian pimps. But even his loyalty and protection can&’t save Carder from the peril of the streets--or the eventual contract on his life. From a youth of affluence to the hit the Shoreline Crips put on his life, Carder delves deep into life on the streets. Lost in Ghost Town is a riveting, raw, and heartfelt look at the power of addiction, the beauty of redemption, and finding truth somewhere in between.
The Pleasure Plan: One Woman's Search for Sexual Healing
by Laura ZamBased on popular essays in New York Times&’ Modern Love and Salon, as well as an Off-Broadway one-person play, The Pleasure Plan is a sexual healing odyssey, a manifesto for women to claim pleasure as a priority, and a love story all at once.Fifty percent of adult women have some form of sexual dysfunction at some point of their lives, preventing them from enjoying vibrant, soul-satisfying sex. Such was the case with Laura Zam, who suffered the blame, shame, and embarrassment of feeling bedroom broken. For her, delving between the sheets meant physical pain, zero desire, and emotional scars from being molested in her early years. However, in her late forties, after meeting and marrying the love of her life, Zam was determined to finally fix her sensual self. This is her brave and bawdy plan to triage her flaccid romantic life, stepping into a void where intimacy, self-love, and playfulness could be experienced--the full monty of Eros that had been missing from her existence. The Pleasure Plan is what happened when she decided to challenge her hopelessness. In partnership with her initially reluctant husband, she visited 15 healers and tried 30 pleasure-enhancing methods: from dilators and dildos, to hypnosis and hosting a sex brunch, to cleansing chakras, to making love to her husband in front of a geriatric Tantric goddess. Packed with humor, heart, and a healthy dose of prescriptive advice, this book chronicles Zam&’s insight as she confronts many issues—from mismatched libidos to female erection enlightenment. Throughout this journey, she and her husband grow as individuals and as a couple, both in and out of the bedroom. Fearlessly honest and full of inspiration, Zam peels back the layers—or covers—and exposes her foibles, insecurities, and eventual wisdom as she excavates past traumas, accepts and embraces her worth, and claims her right to be completely alive. Today, Laura works as a sexuality educator, wellness coach, and speaker helping other women who suffer from sexual dysfunction, the effects of trauma, or those who would simply like more pleasure (of all kinds) in their lives. She also consults with health care providers so they may better assist their clients in achieving sexual well-being. While The Pleasure Plan is Zam&’s personal narrative, it demystifies pervasive taboos, encouraging women to make pleasure a priority, while teaching them how to claim (or reclaim) the power of their sexual selves. It also shows men how they can support their partners in this #Metoo era. Healthy, sultry intimacy is a right; it is time for women to learn—through glorious trial and error—how to embrace the sensual side of themselves. . . exuberantly and unabashedly.
Baggage: Confessions of a Globe-Trotting Hypochondriac
by Jeremy HanceAn award-winning journalist&’s eco-adventures across the globe with his three traveling companions: his fiancée, his OCD, and his chronic anxiety—a hilarious, wild jaunt that will inspire travelers, environmentalists, and anyone with mental illness. Most travel narratives are written by superb travelers: people who crave adventure, laugh in the face of danger, and rapidly integrate into foreign cultures. But what about someone who is paranoid about traveler&’s diarrhea, incapable of speaking a foreign tongue, and hates not only flying but driving, cycling, motor-biking, and sometimes walking in the full sun? In Baggage: Confessions of a Globe-Trotting Hypochondriac, award-winning writer Jeremy Hance chronicles his hilarious and inspiring adventures as he reconciles his traveling career as an environmental journalist with his severe OCD and anxiety. At the age of twenty-six—after months of visiting doctors, convinced he was dying from whatever disease his brain dreamed up the night before—Hance was diagnosed with OCD. The good news was that he wasn&’t dying; the bad news was that OCD made him a really bad traveler—sometimes just making it to baggage claim was a win. Yet Hance hauls his baggage from the airport and beyond. He takes readers on an armchair trek to some of the most remote corners of the world, from Kenya, where hippos clip the grass and baboons steal film, to Borneo, where macaques raid balconies and the last male Bornean rhino sings, to Guyana, where bats dive-bomb his head as he eats dinner with his partner and flesh-eating ants hide in their pants and their drunk guide leaves them stranded in the rainforest canopy. As he and his partner soldier through the highs and the lows—of altitudes and their relationship—Hance discovers the importance of resilience, the many ways to manage (or not!) mental illness when in stressful situations, how nature can improve your mental health, and why it is so important to push yourself to live a life packed with experiences, even if you struggle daily with a mental health issue.
Lead Like Walt: Discover Walt Disney's Magical Approach to Building Successful Organizations
by Pat Williams Jim DenneyWhether you are building a small business from the ground up or managing a multinational company, you can learn the 7 key traits for leadership success from one of the greatest business innovators and creative thinkers of the 20th century: Walt Disney. Whether you know him as the first to produce cartoons in Technicolor, the mastermind behind the theme park Disneyland, or the founder of the largest entertainment conglomerate, Walt's story of creativity, perseverance in spite of obstacles, and achieving goals resonates and inspires as much today as it ever has. Author Pat Williams began studying the life and leadership example of Walt Disney as he struggled to build an NBA franchise, the Orlando Magic. Since he was trying to accomplish a goal similar to so many of Walt's—starting with nothing and building a dream from the ground up—he realized that Walt could teach him what he needed to know. And indeed he did. Through Walt Disney's leadership example, Pat found 7 key leadership traits that all great leaders must possess: Vision, Communication, People Skills, Character, Competence, Boldness, and A Serving Heart. Through never-before-heard Walt stories and pragmatic principles for exceeding business goals, you'll learn how to build those skills and implement them to be effective in any leadership arena. As you discover the life of this great leader, you'll realize that no goal is too great and no dream too daring for anyone who leads like Walt.
Shifting into High Gear: One Man's Grave Diagnosis and the Epic Bike Ride That Taught Him What Matters
by Kyle BryantShifting Into High Gear charts the course of Kyle Bryant's transformation as he journeys on a recumbent tricycle across the United States in the throes of Friedreich's ataxia, a life-shortening and disabling disease. Full of humor and reflection, it's a heroic journey of a man driven to reframe the language of disease through action and service. As you travel with Kyle during two cross-country bike rides through the American West, Texas, the Southern States, and finally to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, the grueling rides become a compelling backdrop for a series of lessons and ruminations which embrace an alternative worldview and provide practical solutions to everyday problems. A thrilling adventure story, yes, Shifting Into High Gear is also ultimately about helping readers reinterpret the conditions of their lives and learning how positive thinking, purposeful connection, and deliberate actions can help anyone reach beyond their limits and live a bolder and bigger life no matter what the circumstance. Deeply passionate and compassionate, Kyle uses his amazing story to teach readers how to replace the handicapping language of "disability" with the agency to build a thriving and hopeful life. He bravely exposes the shadow-side of using disabling language and asks us to commit to a collective goal of understanding disease and its emotional impact and embrace the disabled population as equal individuals. In telling his story, Kyle's desire is that instead of viewing disease as a deficit, we would see it as another state of being—simply as a life which strikes out on a different path.
Namaste the Hard Way: A Daughter's Journey to Find Her Mother on the Yoga Mat
by Sasha Brown-WorshamMy mother used to chant in Sanskrit in her study before sunrise every morning. Though she died when I was 16—22 years ago—I always hear her voice that way. Off-key, but strangely hypnotic, the language both complicated and pure, reverberating around our house. For a kid growing up in Southern Ohio — Bible belt country — the sound was both alluring and repellent. "What's your mother doing?" my friends would ask. "Being a weirdo," I told them. And so encapsulates the coming of age story of Sasha Brown, a transplanted tween plunked in the middle of the Bible Belt with a macrobiotic hippy mom and a ribs-eating dad. A writer whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Redbook, and Cosmopolitan, Brown's prose is heartfelt and hilarious, revealing her quest to find her way as two worlds collide. While other moms were at Bible study, her mom was studying Sanskrit; while other were finding friendship at Tupperware parties, her mom was finding enlightenment at the ashram. And when her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, she chose a healthy diet and yoga over aggressive chemo. When her mother died, Brown ran as far away from yoga as she could until a running injury left her needing the very thing she was running from. It was there—on the mat—that she processed her grief and found her mother again. As she went deeper into the poses, she discovered she was more like her mother than she thought. Through it all, she found a deeper understanding of the practice, of the breath, and of the life her mother lost too young. The practice that once seemed easy and slow compared to pounding the pavement in a new pair of Asics became the biggest challenge of her life. She learned that yoga is so much more than asana. So much more than breath. So much more than perfect poses. The "union" of yoga became one of heart and mind, and finally, with that maternal energy Sasha had been missing for so many years. In the space that she focused her mind and pushed her body to its breaking point was where she would see her mother. In the space of her yoga mat, she and her mother connect across time. Namaste the Hard Way is an ode to the timeless bond between mothers and daughters. Plucky and poignant, Namaste the Hard Way is for anyone who didn't want to walk in their mother's shoes (or sandals).
Standing Strong: An Unlikely Sisterhood and the Court Case that Made History
by Diane ReeveDiane Reeve thought she had found everything in handsome Frenchman Philippe Padieu. Believing him to be her last great love, she spent every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday with him for four years, and they were about to buy a house together. When Diane learned he had Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday women, too, she was devastated. But the pain was just beginning. A week after their breakup, during a routine exam, she tested positive for an STD. After calling every woman she found in Philippe's phone records, she was told to get tested for something much worse: HIV. The sick reality was that Philippe was deliberately infecting multiple women—women in their 20s through 60s, with little in common except their vulnerability. It was a sisterhood none of them wanted to belong to, but it became their lifeline as they struggled with anger, the specter and stigma of an HIV diagnosis, and failing health. Despite plummeting t-cell numbers and declining health, Diane vowed to stop Philippe from victimizing anyone else. In a race against time, she tracked down as many of his conquests as possible. Against all odds, this unlikely group made legal history, successfully prosecuting Padieu and sending him to prison for assault with a deadly weapon. This fascinating case—won only through the help of new DNA science—is Diane's story of victory and her mission to bring awareness and empowerment to others. As she explains, "Courage is doing what's right, even when you're afraid."
Life Could Be Verse: Reflections on Love, Loss, and What Really Matters
by Kirk DouglasDiscover the life and lines of Spartacus. . . He is Spartacus. And a whole lot more. That rugged chin. Those broad shoulders. A swag epitomized in epic films such as Spartacus and The Bad and the Beautiful. Crowned one of greatest actors of all time, Kirk Douglas, whose son Michael continues to build on his Hollywood legacy, is more than legendary. He's a husband. A father. A philanthropist. A Renaissance man. At 97 years old, Kirk Douglas has embraced many roles. But poet? Playing on his Yiddish roots, Life Could Be Verse--not worse--gives readers the best seat in the house to the intimate world of an acclaimed actor who has turned the silver screen gold. But his poems transcend pentameters--they are nostalgic celebrations of old Hollywood, of timeless lessons in life and love, reflecting an era when people had few coins in their pockets but an abundance of hope in the promise of the American dream. Through poems, prose, and photographs, Douglas candidly shares it all as he chaperones us through the stages of his life, including the untimely death of his youngest son and the stroke that left him unable to speak. Still, Douglas doesn't dwell in the sadness. Instead, he tantalizes us with his words, his perspective on life, and some never-before-seen photographs and stories of Marlene Dietrich, Lauren Bacall, Brigitte Bardot and his most cherished leading lady of all, his wife of sixty years, Anne Buydens.Life Could Be Verse is uncomplicated yet revealing, poignant yet playful. It's the life and the lines of Spartacus-an uplifting reminder that many times the story of our lives is the most entertaining script of all. (The following is an original poem Kirk wrote about his famous son Michael Douglas): Fathers and Sons"Am I a good father?'" I asked my son He took a pause, too long for meI waited and waited for him to answer And finally he said, "Ultimately." But the pause was all I heard The silence was so loudI was waiting for some kind wordSomething that would make me proud.How could I have been so dumb?And I never heardThe answer in the pause,When he spoke not a word.I became a "good father,"It took me too long to see,When I needed himMore than he needed me.
An Unimaginable Act: Overcoming and Preventing Child Abuse Through Erin's Law
by Erin MerrynBy sharing her personal journey through the pain she has suffered at the hands of her perpetrators, author Erin Merryn proves that one person can make a difference in the lives of others. Simply by speaking out and bringing the subject of child sexual abuse to the forefront, she has created a wave of change—change not only in legislature, but also in the hearts of those around her and the world. In this thought-provoking book, readers will discover an in-depth, personal account of Erin's story and how—through using positive outlets—she was able to rebuild her life and heal from a childhood filled with sexual abuse. Part memoir, part resource guide, Erin shares with readers key organizations that provide essential support for victims and caregivers, warning signs that a child who is being abused might display, and why Erin's Law is so essential.
The Dead Celebrity Cookbook Presents Christmas in Tinseltown: Celebrity Recipes and Hollywood Memories from Six Feet Under the Mistletoe
by Frank DeCaroThe toast of Christmas past is back and not a moment too soon! In The Dead Celebrity Christmas Cookbook, Frank DeCaro serves up culinary delights from Edmund Gwenn's Christmas Cup to Bing Crosby's Sugar Cookies and celebrates the best of the season's movies, TV specials, and music. Recipes from such late luminaries as Natalie Wood, Judy Garland, Burl Ives, Dinah Shore, and even Boris Karloff are featured in chapters saluting fabulous amusements like Miracle on 34th Street, Meet Me in St. Louis, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Plus recipes from singers like Eartha Kitt ("Santa Baby"), Elvis Presley ("Blue Christmas"), and John Lennon ("Happy Xmas (War is Over)") celebrate the best holiday platters.