The Bush Brothers

I just thought new readers might like to know a little about my reading habits.  It’s mostly non-fiction and to some it’s rather boring.  I’m enthralled.  Currently, I’m finishing up Moby Dick.  That’s written by a man named Herman Melville (of course I’m kidding - as if you’ve never heard of him [unless you haven’t, then I’m serious].  A wild imagination, had he - or did he?  I understand he really did spend some time at sea.  Anyway, last year I picked it up thinking other than my first full novel, Catcher in the Rye, that’s probably a must read.  After Moby Dick, I’m going to finish up Cash Flow Quadrant by Robert Kiyosaki.  There’s a man with a pretty good head on his shoulders (I think).  Then, on to The Richest Man in Babylon.  All of the financial books I’ve read always quote it and praise it.  The other two I just ordered were from a recommended list by a lady named Kim Snider.  She has this investing strategy that she doesn’t share unless you pay her a lot of money.  I’m dying to know what she’s up to without paying it.  She said of The Great Mutual Fund Trap: An Investment Recovery Plan, “If I wrote a book, this is exactly what it would say.”  Fooled by Randomness : The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets appeals to me on many levels.  I’m often astonished by my good fortune of “random” events.  Once I heard that “Success is where preparation meets opportunity” and I wonder if I’m just exceptionally prepared sometimes or if a higher being is at work, here.  That’s a conversation for another day   In the year 2005, I read many books (for me, anyway).  I read The One Minute Millionaire: The Enlightened Way to Wealth by Robert G. Allen and Mark Victor Hansen, the guy that started Chicken Soup for the Soul.  Anyway, that was an outstanding book!  I loved it and most people that take the time to read it should love it as well.  I read Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki.  That was entertaining and helpful to see money in a perspective different from any that I’d learned in the past.  It inspired me to teach my children about money since the public won’t do it for whatever reason.  It even makes me want to teach other children about money.  Credit my brother for his gift of the “Investomatic Piggybank,” whenever my older son gets a gift of money or finds some, he wants to “invest it” and he wants me to “match [his] my contribution.”  I read Start Late Finish Rich by David Bach.  This is meant to inspire one to cut out “the Latte Factor” and quit spending money where you don’t need to - quite fascinating, really.  He doesn’t chastise the late starter for starting late, but he does an outstanding job of helping those in their 20s and 30s to see that the early one starts, the better!  Early in the year, I read Money for Life by Stephen B. Smith.  This is a book that teaches the art of budgeting through the use of a spending plan and shares stories of fictitious people and how they put this practice to work (and some that don’t but should).  They have an accompanying workbook out as well which I bought.  I have to admit that I didn’t fill in the workbook as religiously as I read the book but I can’t emphasize the importance of the book enough - if you’ve ever had trouble with a spending plan or simply don’t have one, please read the book!  I also read a book called The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman.  This book is one that I should read about twice a year, given my propensity to forget how to relate to folks in ANY  Love Language.  I actually bought this book for my wife but come to think of it, I might need my own copy   Of course, I also read countless Family Handyman magazines and articles online…  Anyone that knows me should be impressed by my late-blossoming embrace of written words.  I got a 440 on my Verbal SAT scores and that’s the second time I took it  !  Re-reading this, I’m impressed myself.  That’s a count of five different books in one year!  I might even be forgetting a few.