TOP DRAWER INK NEWSLETTER

 

Here's the latest issue of Top Drawer Ink, the newsletter written by author HL Carpenter that's chock full of humor and common sense information.

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December 4, 2004
Volume 2, Number 23
ISSN 1554-6330

In this issue:

1. Carpenter Country Essay

2. Top Drawer Article

3. Top Drawer Tips

4. Top Drawer Book Review

5. Top Drawer Satire

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CARPENTER COUNTRY

What's Happening in Our Neck of the Human Experience

Here in Carpenter Country, red and green Christmas decorations go up on city lampposts while the shouts of trick or treat still echo in the air. Even before the Thanksgiving turkey is served, stores fill their windows with fancy frills, twinkly lights and gift-giving ideas.

While we like to shop as much as anyone, we think merchants are starting the season a little too early. So we’ve come up with a suggestion that we’re sending their way.

Please, let us enjoy Halloween and Thanksgiving before we begin to think about Christmas or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa. If you allow us to eat our candy and turkey, we’ll be better able to get into the spirit of charity and good will. Dedication and remembrance. Family, community and culture.

May we suggest the first day of December as the time to swing into the holiday season? By then our lists will be made and we’ll be ready to spend money.

And here’s another idea. Invent a Peace on Earth gift card. If you do, holiday lights may go on all over the world and people of all faiths might be happy to ‘shop ‘til they drop’ every day, the whole year through.

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TOP DRAWER ARTICLE

Making a Savvy Career Choice

by
HL Carpenter

Many people find themselves stuck in professions they no longer enjoy. A Conference Board survey of 5,000 households indicated that approximately half were dissatisfied with their work.

Others switch careers almost as fast as they change socks. In 2000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said changing jobs nine times before age 34 is about average.

And then there are the fortunate ones who find work fun. Those statistics are harder to come by, though you might have first hand knowledge of a few who fit into this category.

Read the entire article here

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TOP DRAWER TIPS
Topics and Tidbits

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TOP DRAWER BOOK REVIEW

by
HL Carpenter

Positively Outrageous Service
by T. Scott Gross
211 pages; softcover; $18.95
Dearborn Trade Publishing, Chicago, 2004

Several years ago, books about angels were everywhere. No matter how diligently you tried to avoid them, uplifting parables featuring winsome cherubs assaulted you from every direction.

Guess what? They’re baaaack ... this time in the guise of a business book about angels.

Read the entire review here

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TOP DRAWER SATIRE

Rudolph on Steroids

by
HL Carpenter

In a twist that could further dampen the already meager holiday sales outlook, the investigation into illegal steroid distribution has expanded to the North Pole.

A remark by an officer of the laboratory under investigation led prosecutors to consider the possibility of performance enhancing drug use by members of the reindeer team.

Read the rest here