Easily Offended? Don't click!

I am often amused at life's peculiar twists and turns. The way seemingly unrelated events transpire to create mischief at a later date often makes me smile when I look back. I had no idea what was in store for me today when I woke up. I'm glad it turned out the way it did. Also, I have never considered myself the easily offended type. I feel that I have a fairly realist view of the world. I also believe the power of words lies not in the words themselves, but rather how they are used, or misused. I hope you feel the same.

Today started like any usual Sunday. Church. Home for lunch. Put the boys down for nap time. Put the wife down for nap time. Circumstances dictated that I would need to take an unexpected road trip about two hours up the road to a meeting spot in South Carolina. I considered my options, and decided that rather than take out the T-tops and blast the stereo, I would purchase my first audio book.

Hi. My name is Itsthemitchell, and until today, I had never purchased an audio book.

I looked at several of the popular audio book apps on the Google Play store, and ended up just using Google Play Books. Here's a tip... before you take off on a road trip through two lane roads where cell phone service is not a given, download your book. There were a few silent miles on the trip. Other than that, the experience was great. The audiobook gave me something to focus on and think about while driving that did not require my eyes to come off the road. I do have Android Auto in my car, so the GPS and all the controls for for book playback were at my fingertips (or even voice control.) One other feature I liked was the ability to slightly speed up the read speed of the book. I found that a 1.1x setting on the speed was exactly the ticket to not let my mind wander, and also make sure the book was finished before I made it home.

All that being said, the book I selected for the journey was UNFU*K YOURSELF - Get out of your head and into your life by Gary John Bishop. If you've been thinking about getting the book, I'd recommend it... unless you're easily offended.

First, consider the title. If you're put off by having the F word in the title... don't buy it. There are tons of other books that convey similar messages that will be more to your liking. Yes there are other instances of fowl language in the book. "But Itsthemitchell, isn't fowl language just a substitute for a poor vocabulary? Couldn't he have found a way to say the same thing without resulting to curse words?" Probably, probably, and if you're that bothered by it, don't buy the book.

If you're still with me, you must be at least willing to hear what he has to say. Good for you. I do recommend this book. Spoiler alert - it's a self-help book. If you have read things like this before, he may say things you have already heard, but sometimes hearing them in a different way will spark a more intense reaction to what you are hearing. Bishop offers nine chapters in the book. It basically starts with an introduction, and ends with a wrap-up. Each of the seven chapters in the middle offer an affirmation with plenty of anecdotal evidence, some psychological research, and plenty of quotes to support his ideas. His seven affirmations include things like "I am willing" "I am relentless" and my favorite "I am not my thoughts, I am what I do."

I'd love to tell you more, but being relatively new to this whole blogging thing, I'm not sure just how much I can tell you before I start to hear from Mr. Bishop (or his lawyers.) Just so you know, also on my reading list are Teaching AI by Michelle Zimmerman (nearly finished) The Good Psychopath's Guide to Success by Dutton and McNab (also nearly finished) and when I finish that, I'll be reading The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson.

Let me know if you have any specific questions about any of the books I've been reading in the comments, and remember...

Take time to make the world better every day.