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We watched the new Bruce Willis ‘Die Hard’ movie over the weekend.

I loved the first three (well, the first two) and had high hopes for this one.

I wasn’t disappointed.

It’s a non-stop action thriller with the same basic plot line: terrorists find a new way to bring down the country but one man and only one man (Willis, of course) saves the day.

I didn’t see any great life lesson in the movie, but for pure adrenaline rushing entertainment, Live Free or Die Hard is a winner.

My favorite scene in the entire movie is when Bruce Willis destroys a helicopter in the most impossible way and then utters a totally inarticulate self-satisfied grunt of surprised laughter. (You had to be there.) I keep wondering how they wrote such a “line of dialogue” into the script.

Anyway, if you like Bruce Willis and if you liked the first two Die Hards, you should enjoy Live Free or Die Hard.

See trailers at http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808403725/trailer 

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS — I’ll be announcing a “Zero Limits” weekend with me and Dr. Hew Len soon. Stay tuned. 

My name is Joe.

I’m a crackberry.

“Hi, Joe.”

I’m addicted to my Blackberry, so this post won’t be a fair review of the new smart phones: Apple iphone vs Blackberry Curve.

Plus I haven’t actually seen the iphone yet, so this is not a legitimate review at all.

But let’s look at the marketing of both phones.

Steve Jobs has done an excellent job of garnishing publicity. His new baby is being reviewed and talked about in magazines and on television. This is enormous free exposure.

He’s getting so much interest for the iphone, which releases today, that I decided to push back the book launch of Zero Limits until July 10.

I didn’t want my book promotion to drown out the release of Steve’s iphone.

I hear he gets mad easy.

Anyway, the TV commercial for the iphone is excellent. It clearly shows you how it works by demonstrating it right there on the screen, before your eyes.

Whenever you can demonstrate your product or service, quickly and directly, so people can see the benefits to them without much thought, you are very close to making a sale.

From what I can tell from the TV spot, I doubt typing on the iphone will be very easy. A few early reviewers have already complained that the on-screen keyboard is clumsy and slow to respond. In fact one reviewer said that if you do mostly email and text messaging (which is me) you had best stick to your Blackberry for now.

As for the new Blackberry Curve smart phone www.blackberrycurve.com, which went on the market last week, I love it.

It’s small, light, easy to use, now has a camera, can play music as well as video, and the battery seems to last for days.

I bet it’s better than the iphone www.apple.com/iphone/ but again I won’t know until I wander into an Apple store (the only place to get it) and examine the smart phones side by side.

But back to the marketing of these phones.

The Blackberry Curve has gotten a lot of free press, too. Reviewers are calling it the long-awaited hit from the people at RIM, who make the smart phone.

I don’t think the TV ads for the Curve are as good as the ones for the iphone. The Curve ads are more brand and image oriented, where the iphone ones are more practical and direct.

In the end, you’ll have to look at both phones, try them out, consider what you want them for, and then roll the dice on one of them.

For me, even though the iphone has a better commerical, I’m sticking with my Blackberry Curve.

At least for now.

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS – Launch date for Zero Limits is now July 10. Expect fireworks! Get your camera phones ready! Tell Steve Jobs! And Oprah! Heck, tell EVERYONE!

I’m having to swim upstream to read the book HERD, which I mentioned a week or so ago.

It’s a fascinating marketing book but so thick with ideas, theories and psychologies that I feel like I’m mentally drudging through quicksand.

So I was delighted to receive Steve Chandler’s new book, 100 Ways to Create Wealth.

As you know by now, I’m a fan of Steve’s writing. This new book is just as breezy, entertaining and enlightening as his others.

The book doesn’t so much reveal 100 “ways” to wealth as it offers 100 mind openers so you can spot and then receive wealth. 

Truth is, money is all over the place and the most unlikely people are finding it. (Watch Donny Deutsch’s TV show The Big Idea to get a real sense of this). Steve’s book, written with Sam Beckford, helps open your eyes.

One of my favorite parts of the book is right at the beginning, where Steve and Sam explain that they are writing this book so you can have wealth so you can help yourself and others.

I put that phrase in bold because I want you to get it.

Many people say money is evil and push it away. What they don’t seem to understand is the wealthier you are, the more good you can do in the world.

Money is a just a tool. When you have it, you can use it to build a lot of good things — for yourself, your family, and your world.

Get this book, 100 Ways to Create Wealth, and start expanding your mind about what is possible.

You deserve it.

So does your family.

So does the world.

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS – Steve’s site is at www.stevechandler.com Get all of his books.

PPS – Zero Limits is climbing the Amazon bestseller list — again! — yet I haven’t begun the promotion for it. The big day will be July 10. Stay tuned.

I had a food sensitivities test done and was shocked by the results.

Food sensitivities are different than food allergies.

Allergic reactions to food are usually immediate and obvious. You eat peanuts and end up (if you’re allergic to them) in ER.

Sensitivities are sneaky. You eat some innocent food and three days later wonder why you have a headache. Or are feeling depressed. Or lethargic. Etc.

Sometimes called hidden food allergies, food sensitivities may cause nasal allergies, asthma, arthritis, stomach problems, inability to lose weight, fatigue, migraine headaches, and oh so much more.

I was a skeptic about this until Nerissa had her test done a month or more back. We were surprised to see neutral foods like spinach, or spices like pepper, were obvious problems for her.

Who would have guessed it?

I still wasn’t convinced. But after seeing her carefully examine all the foods she ate, and eliminate all the known sensitivity suspects, and then seeing her feel better, I decided I better do the blood test, too.

I did.

What an eyeopener.

For example, I was stunned to see the king of antioxidants — blueberries — to be a red alert food for me.

Blueberries?

I’ve been eating blueberries every day for years.

Those innocent berries are a problem for me.

Same with green peppers, though I was looking for an excuse not to eat them anyway.

Same with eggplant.

Same with grapes. (No wine for me.)

All bad guys to my body.

There are numerous things I can safely eat, of course.

All forms of meat are fine for me, though chicken is nudging the suspect line and turkey is hands down good for me.

I knew cheeses were a problem for me, but I didn’t know blue cheese, Swiss cheese and goat’s cheese were all safe. (I love goat cheese.)

None of this means you can gorge on the safe foods. Calories still count. Moderation still counts. But, in general, eating a lot of safe foods will be better for you health-wise in the long run.

If you’ve never had a food sensitivities test, I encourage you to get one. They draw some blood, send it to a lab, and you get the results in a week.

There are at least four kinds of respected food sensitivities tests. Nerissa took the IgG ELISA. I took the MRT. We both agreed the MRT was more comprehensive and easier to understand, though it was four times as expensive to do.

Keep in mind that the results you get aren’t all bad news. You don’t have to give up the food villans forever. You can correct food sensitivities by eliminating the suspect foods for a couple of months, and then reintroducing them to your body. Your body will then be reset. The result is a happier, healthier you.

Ask your medical doctor about it.

Better yet, since your doc may not know about these tests, ask an alternative care practitioner about them.

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS – I was hoping garlic and scallops were OK for me. They are. I’m addicted to both. Had the results shown them as bad news for me, I would have done the test again, but with someone else’s blood.

Note: The MRT food sensitivities test that I took is done by the Signet Diagnostic Corporation. You can get information by completing their online form at www.nowleap.com/complimentary_prescreening.html (I don’t know the company or anyone working there. Again, consult with your physician.)

TIP: I currently have someone making my food for me once a week. This makes my life easier. I just reach in the frig and pull out the next meal. It’s weighed, balanced, and only consists of safe foods for me. If you’re in the Austin or Wimberley, Texas area, let me know and I’ll tell you who he is. If you aren’t near by, you might look for a nutritionist that makes house calls.

Last night we watched the Hilary Swank movie, Freedom Writers.

It’s in the same category of Gridiron Gang, starring The Rock, which I mentioned last week.

Freedom Writers is the true story of a beginning teacher named Erin Gruwell who makes a difference in the lives of teenage gang members forced to integrate in her classroom in Long Beach, California in 1994.

The movie is inspiring on many levels, but to me personally because the teacher uses writing and reading to help transform these “unteachable, at-risk” youths.

When Gruwell discovers that the teenagers have no idea what the Holocaust was, she works three jobs to raise the money to buy the kids copies of Anne Frank’s famous diary, The Diary of a Young Girl.

The youths read it, transfixed by the story, and enraged by the ending of it.

In one hypnotic scene, the kids get excited about bringing to their class Miep Gies, the woman who hid Anne Frank.

They manage to raise the money and actually bring her to class, to speak to them. Miep tells them, “You are the real heroes today.”

Freedom Writers is a powerful movie with an inspiring message. It’s on DVD. I suggest you get it and watch it.

For information on the foundation Erin Gruwell and the Freedom Writers started, including how to contribute to their efforts to create change in the school system, see www.freedomwritersfoundation.org/

If you want to know how you can help troubled teenagers when you see movies like Freedom Writers and Gridiron Gang, consider that peace begins with you. 

Scientific research has defined a powerful new ”technology of peace” that can help you here. You can take world peace into your own hands with it. There is a lot of free information (including a downloadable mini-book) that explains the scientific studies behind this method.

I think you’ll find it’s one of the most amazing sites on the Web. It gives you a tool to help create peace. To see it, just click here: www.CreatePermanentPeace.com

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS — As I watched the Freedom Writers movie, I kept “cleaning”, ala the ho’oponopono method described in the book, Zero Limits. There were some tough scenes to watch, but clearing helped. Keep in mind that all change happens within first, and then appears on the outside later. It all begins with you.