It’s been quite some time since I was tagged with a meme, and since this one is from Jeff Brooks, and he just did a webinar for me last week, I am compelled to cooperate.

Here is what I am supposed to do:

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.

Now, nothing is ever as easy as it seems in my life, or maybe I just prefer to break the rules more often than I should.

The closest book is “Inside Dreamweaver MX” which is three inches thick and therefore under my monitor to raise it to a more ergonomic level on my desk. It’s staying put, for which I’m sure you are eternally grateful.

The second closest book is a hot new marketing book I’m really interested in starting: “Personality Not Included: Why Companies Lose Their Authenticity and How Great Brands Get It Back” by Rohit Bhargava. When I follow the directions above, I get to a passage about Kiva.org! This is great, because it’s about a nonprofit, but as much as I love Kiva, I’m sick of everyone (including me) using them as a great example of seemingly every nonprofit online marketing tactic out there, so I’m moving on to book #3.

It’s a reference book called “Metaphors Dictionary” and the listings on page 123 are about “Difficulties.” Here’s your passage:

“These questions are nuts beyond my ability to crack.” — Robert Louis Stevenson, Dedication letter, Kidnapped, 1886. This is a common metaphor, usually expressed as “a tough nut to crack.”

“Life is thick sown with thorns, and I know no other remedy but to pass quickly through them.” — Voltaire. Voltaire also referred to life as “a war.”

Now, whom to tag next? I’m going with five people who I’ve been following and enjoying on Twitter lately:

Marc Pitman

David Brazeal

Cat Laine

Cara Byington

Social Butterfly

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