Trying to Make It is R. V. Gundur's journey from the US-Mexico border to America's heartland, from America's prisons to its streets, in search of the true story of the drug trade and the people who participate in it. The book begins in the Paso del Norte area, encompassing the sister cities of Ciudad Juárez and El Paso, which has been in the public eye as calls for securing the border persist. From there, it moves on to Phoenix, which was infamously associated with the drug trade through a series of kidnappings. Finally, the book goes on to Chicago, which has been a lightning rod of criticism for its gangs and violence. Gundur highlights the similarities and differences that exist in the American drug trade within the three sites and how they relate to current drug trade narratives in the US. At each stop, the reader is transported to the city's historical and contemporary contexts of the drug trade and introduced to the individuals who have lived them. Drug retailers, street and prison gang members, wholesalers, and the law enforcement personnel who try to stop them offer readers a comprehensive look at how various illicit enterprises work together to supply the drugs that American users demand. Most importantly, through a combination of macro- and microlevel vantage points, and comparative analysis of three key sites in illicit drug operations, the stories in Trying to Make It remind us that the people involved in the drug trade, for the most part, do not deserve vilification. Far from being a seemingly uniform, widespread threat or an unlimited array of bogeymen and women, they are ordinary people, living ordinary lives, just trying to make it.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • At last, a book that shows you how to build—design—a life you can thrive in, at any age or stage • “Life has questions. They have answers.” —The New York Times Designers create worlds and solve problems using design thinking. Look around your office or home—at the tablet or smartphone you may be holding or the chair you are sitting in. Everything in our lives was designed by someone. And every design starts with a problem that a designer or team of designers seeks to solve. In this book, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans show us how design thinking can help us create a life that is both meaningful and fulfilling, regardless of who or where we are, what we do or have done for a living, or how young or old we are. The same design thinking responsible for amazing technology, products, and spaces can be used to design and build your career and your life, a life of fulfillment and joy, constantly creative and productive, one that always holds the possibility of surprise.

How would you like to have your funeral at any place you wanted? Well, in this book, you will see what my uncle did. He was a major coach. What is a major coach? Well, that is where you coach literally everything: basketball, baseball, track, football, martial arts, swimming, golf, and dancing lessons. He tutored adults and children and worked a regular job. Lazy wasn't a word he knew. What better way than to go out the way you lived your life? I personally thought it was very cool. My uncle's funeral was on the track and football field where over three hundred people attended to celebrate and paid their respects. It made my father feel like he was putting on a gospel celebrity concert that he waited for all his life. Lord Jesus help us. If only Erica from Mary Mary would have just given my father a solo at their church. My beautiful great-aunt had us join a procession at the funeral as if it was a wedding. We sat in white chairs on the football field as if we were holding a presidential election. He was just that special. My uncle's only daughter's wedding colors were purple and white. And she wanted to honor him by the family wearing those colors since he would not be here to walk her down the aisle. My father felt like this was his time to shine. He didn't have to shine that much to make us go viral. We were embarrassed. We had just seen Kobe and his daughter buried the day before. I was grateful for the tribute they gave to all nine lives that were lost. Everyone was watching at the airport. We were delayed due to the fog. After watching the funeral, no one complained about the fog again. I flew all the way from St. Louis. I couldn't miss my uncle's funeral. Who would have thought the world would shut down five weeks later? I say God is trying to tell us all something. With me being six months pregnant, and bleeding for five of those six months, I believed it would be a double funeral. God said, "You both shall live," yet the devil was trying to take me out. I believe in my heart that this book will show you that no matter your skin color, we are the same. Even if your faith is paper thin, this book is for you. Religion shouldn't be anyone's cup of tea. Even in the COVID pandemic, Jesus has never left us nor forsaken us. His blood is why we breathe. Now that's love. That should be our cup of tea. Not religion.

Forget the 10,000 hour rule— what if it’s possible to learn the basics of any new skill in 20 hours or less? Take a moment to consider how many things you want to learn to do. What’s on your list? What’s holding you back from getting started? Are you worried about the time and effort it takes to acquire new skills—time you don’t have and effort you can’t spare? Research suggests it takes 10,000 hours to develop a new skill. In this nonstop world when will you ever find that much time and energy? To make matters worse, the early hours of prac­ticing something new are always the most frustrating. That’s why it’s difficult to learn how to speak a new language, play an instrument, hit a golf ball, or shoot great photos. It’s so much easier to watch TV or surf the web . . . In The First 20 Hours, Josh Kaufman offers a systematic approach to rapid skill acquisition— how to learn any new skill as quickly as possible. His method shows you how to deconstruct com­plex skills, maximize productive practice, and remove common learning barriers. By complet­ing just 20 hours of focused, deliberate practice you’ll go from knowing absolutely nothing to performing noticeably well. Kaufman personally field-tested the meth­ods in this book. You’ll have a front row seat as he develops a personal yoga practice, writes his own web-based computer programs, teaches himself to touch type on a nonstandard key­board, explores the oldest and most complex board game in history, picks up the ukulele, and learns how to windsurf. Here are a few of the sim­ple techniques he teaches: Define your target performance level: Fig­ure out what your desired level of skill looks like, what you’re trying to achieve, and what you’ll be able to do when you’re done. The more specific, the better. Deconstruct the skill: Most of the things we think of as skills are actually bundles of smaller subskills. If you break down the subcompo­nents, it’s easier to figure out which ones are most important and practice those first. Eliminate barriers to practice: Removing common distractions and unnecessary effort makes it much easier to sit down and focus on deliberate practice. Create fast feedback loops: Getting accu­rate, real-time information about how well you’re performing during practice makes it much easier to improve. Whether you want to paint a portrait, launch a start-up, fly an airplane, or juggle flaming chain­saws, The First 20 Hours will help you pick up the basics of any skill in record time . . . and have more fun along the way.

To all my brothers and sisters who served in Vietnam and to their families, I say, God Forever be with you and take care of you. So many young men and women were lost in Vietnam. So many are still suffering from the Vietnam War, but God makes no mistakes and everything is for a reason. I will never forget any of my comrades that I served with in Nam, they were and still is true warriors. They deserve to be honored and treated with respect. Rest in peace my brothers and sisters who did not make it back home alive and peace and happiness for everyone to all of you who came home alive from Vietnam, but is still trying to find home inside. If anyone should ever ask the Vietnam Vets that knew me or ask my daughters what type of person was Bob Washington, I hope all of them would be able to say that he was a: 1. Good Person 2. Good Father 3. A Brave Person 4. A Godly Person 5. He Tried to Help 6. A Person You Can Trust 7. A Good Soldier 8. Faithful to All Others

When a child hears a noise in the night he gets up to investigate. He calls his father to help him and they work through all the things that the 'noise' could be, eventually realising that it is nothing to be scared of. An empowering book about over coming ones fears handled with brilliant originality by John Irving and Tatjana Hauptmann.

A deeply original exploration of the power of spontaneity—an ancient Chinese ideal that cognitive scientists are only now beginning to understand—and why it is so essential to our well-being Why is it always hard to fall asleep the night before an important meeting? Or be charming and relaxed on a first date? What is it about a politician who seems wooden or a comedian whose jokes fall flat or an athlete who chokes? In all of these cases, striving seems to backfire. In Trying Not To Try, Edward Slingerland explains why we find spontaneity so elusive, and shows how early Chinese thought points the way to happier, more authentic lives. We’ve long been told that the way to achieve our goals is through careful reasoning and conscious effort. But recent research suggests that many aspects of a satisfying life, like happiness and spontaneity, are best pursued indirectly. The early Chinese philosophers knew this, and they wrote extensively about an effortless way of being in the world, which they called wu-wei (ooo-way). They believed it was the source of all success in life, and they developed various strategies for getting it and hanging on to it. With clarity and wit, Slingerland introduces us to these thinkers and the marvelous characters in their texts, from the butcher whose blade glides effortlessly through an ox to the wood carver who sees his sculpture simply emerge from a solid block. Slingerland uncovers a direct line from wu-wei to the Force in Star Wars, explains why wu-wei is more powerful than flow, and tells us what it all means for getting a date. He also shows how new research reveals what’s happening in the brain when we’re in a state of wu-wei—why it makes us happy and effective and trustworthy, and how it might have even made civilization possible. Through stories of mythical creatures and drunken cart riders, jazz musicians and Japanese motorcycle gangs, Slingerland effortlessly blends Eastern thought and cutting-edge science to show us how we can live more fulfilling lives. Trying Not To Try is mind-expanding and deeply pleasurable, the perfect antidote to our striving modern culture.

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Two clinical experts offer a straightfoward approach to behavior modification in children, creating a seven-level program designed to empower parents to motivate and strengthen children through measured discipline. Reprint. 30,000 first printing.