Maintenance

I read "Someone Stole My Outhouse," by Cindy Bellinger, last week on a long flight from Los Angeles to Atlanta. Like any good book, this one made many long miles just disappear. At 37,000 feet in the air I looked down and realized I might well be right over the backwoods cabin home of the notorious Cindy Bellinger and her outhouse stealing neighbors.
On the surface this is a book about home improvement, and indeed there is much interesting material here on building footers and tearing down walls and vanishing outhouses. But actually, as I quickly discovered, Cindy Bellinger's writing is certainly always more than just how to fix or build something. I first read a piece of hers in the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper a few years ago, an article about the fire raging across New Mexico, and the impact it was having on peoples' lives. I was immediately impressed and showed the article to friends who were also impressed.
Very interesting here are the stories of the down-home sort of folks who wander in and out of these tales of home improvement. I also love the way Ms Bellinger uses construction as her focal point to discuss what it is like for a single woman doing things her own way. She has an uncanny interest and appreciation of good tools "for a woman." I admit, I was surprised by much in this book, surprised by her depth of know-how at building, at her appreciation of doing things herself, of the way she never let her sex be an excuse for not doing something she wanted to do.
The building and repairing going on in this book are always central but she admits that, "I'm not a finish carpenter, probably because nothing ever gets finished." But really, like any good artist, Bellinger understands well that it is the doing that counts, that the actual process of building may be more important than the end product. I recommend this book to anyone interested in: good writing, in something unusual and different, to anyone who appreciates a salty, no BS kind of a lady, to anyone who values a woman who has the guts to live life on her own terms, and who knows how to write about it. Someone Stole My Outhouse would make an excellent present for any liberated lady, or for any fellow not easily intimidated by strong women. A darn good read. Check it out.

Reading this book made me feel as though I could try what is usually left to professionals, because Cindy captures the personal aspects of home repair and shares it as a woman, who learns as she goes, has successes and some failures. She gives hope and a wonderful sense of humor to every phase of her projects. She expresses her feelings about the tasks she's tackling and that brings in the human aspect which puts it in the realm of possiblilty, even for the beginner. Her organic way of approaching projects, spiced with her tonge-in-cheek sense of humor makes this book a refreshing and delightful read.

Well I had to rate it something, or Amazon's software wouldn't accept the note . . . I guess five stars will have to do.

As of October 9, 2001, this book is again immediately available directly from our stock, and usually ships in 24 hours.

I appreciate your patience in waiting for the reprint, but here it is, available right now, and at no price increase.

Thank You!

Mike Arman

Having taken the time to actually read the book and put it to good use on my Sportster. I definately give it a thumbs up attitude.

Having met one of the authors about 10 years ago was the icing on the cake. I used to have his addy, but I lost it. If anyone knows where his bio is, I'd like to see it.

Valkrie

I bought this book as I am a modeller, it sure was a good investment! It has great photos of the actual restoration process as well as a brief history of where these fabulous fighter came from. It also goes into great depth on the history on the spitfire and the differences between the different Mk's. So if you think your just a little bit interested, get this book and it will take the little out!

This is an excellent book for Spitfire enthusiast like me. There are full of dreams such as rebuild and fly this world famous fighter. There are many clear photos to understand structure and detail of this elegant style plane. The explanation of rebuilding process and history of the plane is quite clear. Appendix of living Spitfire and Seafire is also usefull for your visit. If you like Spitfire, you certainly enjoy this book.

Written by William T. Close (an American doctor who once served as the personal physician to the President of Congo), Subversion Of Trust is an inhernetly interesting novel about a rural doctor who dares to challenge the corporate greed and steamrolled values of an aggressively for-profit HMO. A human drama of corporate machinery and the human lives it chews up and spits out, as well as heroism, daring, and the will to take a stand, Subversion Of Trust is first-rate reading with very real and disturbing implications for the immediate health-care future of America.

WHO HASN'T BEEN A PATIENT? WHO DOESN'T WANT TO BE TREATED WITH UNCONDITIONAL CARE AND COMPASSION? Dr. Close's book allows you to look inside a small town doctor's life and experience what a true medical practice is and can be.

In this book we get to look at doctors who truly serve and care for their friends. Doctors making a difference in their lives, not only when they have the small aches and pains but when life is on the line or life is coming to an end.

In "Subversion of Trust" we get to see how doctors can make a difference with true compassion and caring for their fellow man. Doctors wanting to do what they have been trained to do, love to do, but sometimes are unable to do because of the "system".

The story is exciting, enjoyable and moves you into a heartfelt connection for Jenny, Old Doc and the other characters as they struggle to find themselves and maintain what they have in the small towns of Montana.

I'm sure you will be moved, as I was, by what can and does take place in remote medical areas by true doctors and nurses that practice what they preach.

John has done an outstanding job at capturing the most important aspects of LAN switching. He effectively communicates complex theory as it relates to the practical issues of networking technology. I'm looking forward to his next publication!

I strongly recommend this book. It is very easy to ready it is not just a bunch facts but real practical information depicted with illustrations throughout. There are many important, some simple, concepts explained and different ways to use these concepts. Good job.

It says Upgrading Your PC, but actually it is a lot more than that. I have bought this and PC Hardware in a Nutshell and you can right away tell the difference. Both books are great but this one would be more helpful for beginners like me. If you are just starting to get interested on how that little machine of yours work, then this is the book for you.

It teaches you the fundamentals, as well as showing you around inside the PC itself with its labeled photographs. You learn a lot more than Upgrading your PC; you will get familiarized with how each component inside your PC works without getting confused with PC language jargon. Actually, when you encounter jargon in a section of the book, they will explain what it means exactly in words you can understand.

The book is very simple so I don't think people that are familiar with their PC's would find this helpful. For beginners, this would prevent you from getting frustated with those hard-bound, 5" thick PC books. You can get those later after you get the main idea of how your pc works, how you get around your pc, how you upgrade it, and perhaps how to build one; which is what this book will help you know.

If you want to know more than what this book covers, get PC Hardware in a Nutshell. Great stuff!

This is just the same as any older edition of Que Publishing's Upgrading Your PC just with Norton as a contribuiter and the TechTV logo on it.

This book blew me away when I read it. In fact, I read it again as soon as I finished it. This book is thoroughly documented to support the author's point. Whereas John Stephens focused more on total spending on welfare state programs, Esping-Andersen pointed to the crucial role that ideology plays in the structure of the welfare state. The structure of the programs often being more important than the total amount of money spent. Anyway, I don't need to recount the details of his argument. This book was a paradigm shifting, enlightening experience. I understand the world better because of this book. I think you will too.

As a policy analysis grad-student, I couldn`t help but like this book. In a field where so many authors stick slavishly to what they can PROVE empirically, Esping-Andersen dares to ask big questions and think big thoughts. Interpreting the welfare state from a nineteenth centuryesque political economy perspective, he provides real insight, and defends his Marxist-inspired interpretation with flair and not a little bit of style. Not only that, but his exposition is clear and (dare I say?) kind of fun to read. If you want to understand why all rich western societies spend a BIG chunk of GDP on the welfare state, this is a great place to start

This book isn't a detailed step by step guide in the specifics of restoring an old T-bird but it does give the new Bird owner a good idea not only of what he or she has, but what it is worth. There is a lot of very good info on the history of the 58-66 T-birds as well as an excellent section on the rare M-Code T-birds of 62-63.

Great reading for the T-bird fan or just for any car nut

This is THE book if you are in the process of restoring a 1958 - 1966 Thunderbird. This book goes into every detail. I mean, they even give the specifications of the M 390 engine, right down to the cam lift and duration! This book goes into more fine details about the classic 4 seat Tbirds then any other book I have ever read. This is a must have if you are even thinking about buying or restoring one of these classics. It has chapters for every year from 58 - 66, and talks about every model for every year. Such cars as the 62 and 63 Sports Roadster, the Princess Monaco Landau, the 65 "Special Landau", and the 1960 sun roof are even included. This has to be the most complete restoration guide for these classic 4 seat Thunderbirds I have ever seen. Even if you think you know all about Thunderbirds, read this book! I can assure you that you will find things you never knew about these timeless classics.

I found this booklet a nicely put together manual for some of the key areas that need attention for repairing postwar Lionel Trains. It does not of course cover all accessories but in giving suggestions for reairs of the 21 items covered, many of the tips can be used for other accessories. A nice reference for those that repair Lionel items.

In Toy Train Repair Made Easy, Ray Plummer takes the reader through an informative collection of articles from Classic Toy Trains Magazine and shows the toy train enthusiast and collector how to tune up Lionel motors, repair e-units, smoke units, whistles, switches, and couples. He clearly and cogently explains the tune-up and repair procedures for many of postwar Lionel's most popular accessories. With the principles and techniques reveals in 21 different projects, the reader will be able to repair almost any Lionel locomotive, operating car or accessory. An invaluable addition to any dedicated toy train collector and operator's reference shelf, Toy Train Repair Made Easy offers easy-to-follow diagrams, step-by-step instructions, trouble-shooting tips, and instructional photographs.

Excellent layout and organization making it easy to quickly find topics of interest. Loaded with many useful pictures and tables. Excellent book for all maintenance tasks. This book is also very useful for moderate repairs like brake pad/shoe replacement. For major repairs this book is not a substitute for the dealer shop manuals. Modern vehicle malfunctions often require OBDII scan tools and while this topic is covered in the book the details required for serious malfunction identification are lacking. A good book if you do not intend to do major malfunction trouble shooting or major overhauls. A very good book for the price!

Chiltons and Haynes are both decent books for repairs, but the primary thing that impressed me about Haynes books over Chiltons is the great wiring diagrams and better pictures.