Average Joes Story

Are you an Average Joe or Plain Jane who feels trapped by your current circumstances and in search for more out of life? If you are than Average Joe’s Story is your story. Average Joe’s Story is the real time account of Christopher L. Hedges, aka Average Joe, as he fights his way free from the adversity that has ensnared him. Like you Average Joe’s views were shaped at a young age; but his experiences were uncommon. Average Joe’s real world life experiences are those of Hollywood fantasy, and like any epic story Average Joe is confronted by great adversity. We are all given opportunities in life and the decisions we make determine where we go, how long it takes us to get there, and how painful the journey can be. Sometimes you may need to take monstrous steps backwards in order to have the chance to trek your way up to the summit of success. Average Joe knows from first hand experience that when you peel away enough layers there is little difference between an oil baron and a gas station attendant. Which would you prefer to be? Take a journey with Average Joe from as bad as it gets to where you want to be. If you are looking for directions to something better than this is an Quest you need to experience. Point A is where you currently find yourself. Take the trip with Average Joe to Point B, where you want to be. Average Joe is waiting for you. Do you have the courage to join him at the top?

“What is happening to my life?” Have you ever honestly asked yourself that question? As young boys, we dreamed of being pilots, firefighters, doctors, and cowboys. Now we’re older, with a wonderful wife and kids, as well as a mortgage, a minivan, and a fulfilling but not-so-glamorous job. What happened? All the dreams that once inspired us have evaporated into traffic jams, computer screens, bills, and deadlines. Why is life so ordinary? If you think your life is nothing special, take a look at it through God’s eyes. The revealing truth is that God chooses “ordinary,” faithful men to do His most important work—regular guys like Peter the fisherman, David the shepherd, Stephen the waiter, Gideon the farmer, Paul the tentmaker, and even Jesus the carpenter. In this engaging book, Troy Meeder blends stories about biblical characters and contemporary men to show that an “average-Joe” life, an “ordinary” existence, shapes a man’s integrity, moral stability, resolve, and strength. The world desperately needs an army of “average Joes.” Like you. “Troy Meeder’s heart-felt accounts from both his own personal experience and those of friends and family touch a raw nerve in your soul…. Average Joe reminds us that living a life focused on faith, family, and friends is what makes a man exceptional.” —Rick Wiggers, average Joe and account manager Includes a study guide for use by men’s groups.

Walk into Happy Joe's in Bettendorf, Iowa, for their lunch buffet, and chances are good that you might find me there, sitting down at my favorite round table, enjoying a slice of the taco pizza I created and made famous. I will sit there for hours, talking to customers, telling jokes, and waiting for children to come by. Any child passing me will be rewarded with a wooden nickel, good for a scoop of ice cream or bowl of frozen 'Joegurt, ' and that child will walk away standing a little taller, a little more confident in himself, and know, without a doubt, that they are a pretty special kid. Because Happy Joe said so. I am not only living proof of the American dream but proof that the American dream can become a reality for any one of us. This is my story. And yours. Happy Joe loves people, and it shows. He loves to have a good time and make people laugh, and that's just what his book does. You're sure to love these feel-good stories about one hard-working, good-natured man and his endeavors in business and in the business of making people happy.

On April 23, 1943, the seventy-man crew of the USS Grenadier scrambled to save their submarine—and themselves—after a Japanese aerial torpedo sent it crashing to the ocean floor. Miraculously, the men were able to bring the sub back to the surface, only to be captured by the Japanese. No Ordinary Joes tells the harrowing story of four of the Grenadier’s crew: Bob Palmer of Medford, Oregon; Chuck Vervalin of Dundee, New York; Tim McCoy of Dallas, Texas; and Gordy Cox of Yakima, Washington. All were enlistees from families that struggled through the Great Depression. The lure of service and duty to country were not their primary motivations—they were more compelled by the promise of a job that provided “three hots and a cot” and a steady paycheck. On the day they were captured, all four were still teenagers. Together, the men faced unimaginable brutality at the hands of their captors in a prisoner of war camp. With no training in how to respond in the face of relentless interrogations and with less than a cup of rice per day for sustenance, each man created his own strategy for survival. When the liberation finally came, all four anticipated a triumphant homecoming to waiting families, loved ones, and wives, but instead were forced to find a new kind of strength as they struggled to resume their lives in a world that had given them up for dead, and with the aftershocks of an experience that haunted and colored the rest of their days. Author Larry Colton brings the lives of these four “ordinary” heroes into brilliant focus. Theirs is a story of tragedy and courage, romance and war, loss and endurance, failure and redemption. With a scope both panoramic and disarmingly intimate, No Ordinary Joes is a powerful look at the atrocities of war, the reality of its aftermath, and the restorative power of love.

Ready, set, go! Joeas Story is a wonderful romp through life. Relive the hijinks of youth, adolescence and adulthood; friendships, disappointments, overcoming the hurdles of everyday life; and relish the rich experience of simply being alive in a land of freedom. You will run the gauntlet of emotions from laughter to tears. Joeas sense of adventure is infectious. Heartbreak, fatherhood and discouragement bring maturity at an early age. Real friends and family values encourage change. An unplanned trip, an armed robber and encounters with the opposite sex help develop survival skills. Never quite comfortable with romance, eventually Joe fumbles his way through in a memorable and endearing way. Marriage, children and work bring more than he ever dreamed. Tragedy strikes! No one saw it coming. No one was prepared. Life as head known it was gone. Who was this stranger? Terrible, frightening and beautiful, youall be there.

This first book of the Holding Their Own series, A Story of Survival, is set in the year 2015, when the world is burdened by the second Great Depression. The United States, already weakened by internal strife, becomes the target of an international terror plot. A series of attacks results in thousands of casualties and disables the country's core infrastructure. The combination of economic hardship and the staggering blow of the terror attacks results in a collapse of the government. This is a realistic story of how an average, middle class couple survives the cascading events brought on by international politics, high tech military actions and the eventual downfall of society. All of their survival skills are tested during the action packed expedition in a world that resembles the American West of 200 years past.& ;& ;As previewed in the Epilogue of book one, "Holding Their Own II: The Independents" is scheduled for publication Spring of 2012.

Do Winning the Lottery and the 2008 Presidential Election seem like strange bedfellows? For the typical middle America public, the odds of having a winning lottery ticket are miniscule while the rewards can be life changing. This year's presidential election has the potential to be a life changing event for millions upon millions of American citizens. That change hangs in the balance of how we as an electorate vote. What does it take to cause voters to focus on this year's election? What issue or issues are motivating each and every "Average Joes" across America to pay attention to candidates and the November Election? What does it take to cause American's to care? This is a story of how one American approached these questions on the way to an extraordinary double win.

Build an iconic shopping experience that your customers love—and a work environment that your employees love being a part of—using this blueprint from Trader Joe’s visionary founder, Joe Coulombe. Infuse your organization with a distinct personality and culture that draws customers in a way that simply competing on price cannot. Joe Coulombe founded what would become Trader Joe’s in the late 1960s and helped shape it into the beloved, quirky food chain it is today. Realizing early on that he could not compete and win by playing the same game his bigger competitors were playing, he decided to build a store for educated people of somewhat modest means. He brought in unusual products from around the world and promoted them in the Fearless Flyer, providing customers with background on how they were sourced and their nutritional value. He also gave the stores a tiki theme to reinforce the exotic trader ship concept with employees wearing Hawaiian shirts. In this way, Joe laid down a blueprint for other business owners to follow to build their own unique shopping experience that customers love, and a work environment that employees love being a part of. In Becoming Trader Joe, Joe shares the lessons he learned by challenging the status quo and rethinking the way a business operates. He shows readers of all types: How moving from a pure analytical approach to a more creative, problem-solving approach can drive innovation. How finding an affluent niche of passionate customers can be a better strategy than competing on price and volume. How questioning all aspects of the way you do business leads to powerful results. How to build a business around your values and identity.

Joe wishes with all of his heart to be an average boy. Little does he know that something very unexpected is about to happen that will change his life forever. Join Joe as he discovers (with the help of his Fairy Godmother) that dreams really can come true!