Entrepreneur Magazine

Recently, I've been on a magazine-buying and reading phase. Yes, instead of cutting back on miscellaneous expenses, I've actually added to it. But this time, my magazines are actually investments. I buy only two magazines now, the Digital Photographer Philippines, and Entrepreneur. 

For DPP, I haven't actually read them yet, except for the one I was able to read through while on vacation. The boyfriend and I bought the May issue, along with a couple of back issues. At the same time, we bought FHM back issues too. Clearly, those are for him. Sometimes I like perusing them too, but I haven't found time lately. And then, we also bought the current issue of the Entrepreneur magazine, along with a couple back issues, including some from last year. 


How are they investments? For the photography mag, there are plenty of tips for newbie photographers like us. Kaya lang syempre, you need to actually be able to practice them in order to learn from them. 


As for Entrepreneur (cover photo courtesy of their website), you also get to learn from budding and successful entrepreneurs. They share their experiences and there is always valuable advise from each story. There are also useful tips for when you want to start your own business. I find the materials inspiring. I can't finish one issue in one sitting because I read it with all intensity, as in serious! :) 


The June issue appealed to me because its about home business and how they're thriving. You guessed it right, I have hopes of one day being able to work at home too. A common thread from the success stories featured in the magazine is that they all had the courage to go for it. They also had specific skills that were marketable. As for myself, I guess I just haven't found those yet. 


Even if you're not thinking about venturing into business, Entrepreneur magazine has something for you too. There are features about how to increase productivity in the workplace, and others, that will enrich you as an employee, supervisor or a manager. 


Some articles have even inspired some blog posts in the past, and I hope to write more of those soon. :)


I also have a small collection of Yummy and Foodie magazines but I get frustrated when we don't actually try out the recipes. So I won't be buying those for awhile, not until I get to make anything from the issues I currently have.


What about you, what are your favorite magazines?

Bergdorf Blondes - Plum Sykes

This novel is yet another of the chick lit genre that allows me to picture a life completely removed from my own. Being far from the reality in which I belong to, it isn't that hard to imagine inhabiting that world because you see it in the movies, and it reeks so much of pop culture that you can't help but recognize stuff. 


Bergdorf Blondes comes handy with its built-in glossary (well there were several in various parts of the book). It's a good thing because it allowed the author to get away with not defining each and every term (jargon) she used. Doing so would have taken away from the flow of the narrative. The story is told from Moi's perspective. A magazine writer who moves around in New York's It crowd. 


Reading it, I was thinking of Janie (from Trading Up and Four Blondes), who I imagined moved around in the same social circles as Moi and Julie do. The only difference was, Moi was younger and was employed. 


The plot was a bit predictable. From the moment she met Charlie it was obvious that there was something more to him. I truly thought though that the main character had more sense than most of the Park Avenue Princesses she hung out with. But when she just kept finding herself in the company of the wrong guys, it got harder to keep faith in her character. Plus she obviously can make a life away from the glitz and glamor, but she doesn't want to, even when she's already drowning she insists in swimming in the same waters.


But then I also realized that living the high life is something almost everyone wishes they could do. Even for myself. If I could swap places with Moi, I would. I want a taste of the glitz and glamor too! Plus I'm pretty sure I'd be available to survive it :) 


Anyhoo, this was another easy read. Perfect for when you just need to clear your mind for a few hours and read something funny and entertaining. :)

Thank you for visiting! Sorry for the dust...

Thank you for checking out Between the Covers. I hope you don't mind the dust. :)

I just launched the site yesterday, and unfortunately I just noticed now that the images were not properly imported from my personal site (http://verabear.net) as I thought they were. The images were loading yesterday, but it seems they really weren't linked properly. I don't have time just now to fix all broken images/links, but they will be fixed soon enough.

Thanks for your patience. And if there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I LOVE COMMENTS :)

EDIT!!

Problem fixed! Photos that were hot-linked from my main blog are now showing. I didn't have to download and upload them, then change image links all over again! Yay. I deserve a break. Lol :)

How did I do it? I edited my personal blog's htaccess file. And I found the file itself thanks to a quick search in Bing. Thanks Bing! :) This gave me the answer: http://c540f21f.qvvo.com

The Year of Secret Assignments

Have you ever wondered how the ladies of Lipstick Jungle must have been like as kids or teenagers? Probably just like Em, Lyd and Cass from Jaclyn Moriarty's The Year of Secret Assignments. Or not.

This book was again one of those books I picked up at my favorite second-hand store. That's what I love about those places, they just get me to be so open about books that I would normally have snubbed at full price. Haha :) In the past, I would only buy books by authors I've read before and liked. Or I'll stay safe and go for those referred by a friend. When I started frequenting second-hand bookshops, I was more daring so to speak. The good thing is that I have only ever regretted buying one book. I picked it up (a novel that  a tear-jerker of a movie was based on), tried to read it, couldn't continue. It was soooo slow. Anyway, it wasn't this book.

I enjoyed reading this book. A lot. It's for kids/young adults as the characters are in high school. There's no magic here, or mythical creatures. Rather, you'd read about kids who cut classes, pick locks, and play pranks. Very nice, haha. :)

The girls in the book go to Ashbury, a private school for girls. Their parents were all friends, and lawyers. I could imagine them with their book bags, binders, maybe even with their blazers/jackets, hair bows, or beaded lanyards, walking the corridors of their school just talking about the boys they're exchanging letters with. I also imagined them on their sleep overs, talking about their hopes and dreams :)

They had a penpal project for their English class and their pen friends were to be from another English class from the rival school (seems to be a public co-ed highschool). The story is told through the letters exchanged by the girls and their pen friends Matthew, Seb and Charlie. Lyd's special notebook and Cass' diary also come into play. It was interesting to see how their relationship developed through the letters, until they all met in person. It was also interesting to see how their characters developed as they continued corresponding with each other.

Friendship and loyalty was, not surprisingly, the central theme in the novel. It also showed how friends help one cope with the death of a parent.

I've laughed a couple of times while reading this book. These kids are cool! Haha. And I might just pass this one on to my niece for a bit of reading. :)

*This is a repost from my personal blog http://verabear.net