OTL: Educator.com

Thanks to BzzAgent, I've been able to use Educator.com free for a month.  Educator.com is a great online service that provides video courses in Math, Science, and Computer Science.  These courses are taught by college professors and include both lecture and working through example problems.

My husband and I have both looked at some of these video courses and been very impressed.  I've been taking the HTML course while he has looked at another of the computer science classes and one of the math classes.  It really feels like we are back in the classroom!  The courses include a video of the professor and a whiteboard area where the lecture notes and examples are visible.  I've been watching the presentations in this mode while my husband made the whiteboard full-screen which takes away the visual of the video so he is just listening to the lecture without seeing the professor.

With the HTML course I love that it also includes the history of the Internet and an overview of how the web works instead of being solely focused on the coding.  Having that background knowledge to build on can be a real advantage.

The site itself is very easy to navigate, with drop down menus for each subject.  Within each course, each lecture is broken down into many smaller segments which makes it very easy to find your place after you take a break.  There are sample lectures available so you can get a feel for the service before subscribing.

I would highly recommend Educator.com for high school and college students.  There are many Advanced Placement courses available and I think it would be helpful for students studying for the ACT, SAT, or GRE.  Educator.com covers Math, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, and Computer Science with the possibility of expanding into more areas in the future.

Use code: BUZZFA626 to try Educator.com free for a month. Current pricing is $35/month or $240 for an annual subscription.  This fee gives you online access to all of the videos plus student comments and messaging which allows you to interact with the instructors.

Full Disclosure:  I received a one month free trial of this service from BzzAgent.com.  All opinions provided here are based on my own experiences.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Frostbitten by Kelley Armstrong

Title:  Frostbitten
Author:  Kelley Armstrong
Publisher:  Bantam Books
Publication Date:  July 2010
Format:  Paperback, 414 pages
Age Group:  Adult
Series:  Women of the Otherworld #10

Elena, the only known female werewolf, and her mate, Clay, follow a mutt into the wilds of Alaska.  While they are there they also check on some former Pack mates and look into a series of suspicious deaths.  All of these seemingly unconnected events lead to larger problems, possibly more than Clay and Elena can take on without backup.  Elena is also dealing with some personal issues concerning her past and her future.

It is no secret that I absolutely love Kelley Armstong's Women of the Otherworld series and Frostbitten reinforces that love completely.  Elena Michaels is the female werewolf who started the whole series and it is so nice to return to her as the central character.  Taking Clay and Elena away from the Pack and their children was a great way to keep the focus on how they interact as a couple.  I found out a lot more about Elena's past in this book and that gave great insight into her motives, methods, and pressure points.

There is a lot going on in this book to tie together the many different threads that Clay and Elena must follow.  Armstrong keeps things moving quickly but also provides down time to think things through, talk things over, and plan their next moves.  The dialogue between Clay and Elena easily moves between playful, serious, and sexy.  Elena shows her tough side when dealing with other werewolves but lets her guard down a bit with Clay.  Armstrong writes such full characters along with the great story lines.

One thing that I really enjoy about this series is that the focus shifts to different characters for different books.  This means that it isn't critical to read the books in order as long as you keep the books with the same main characters together.  This was definitely to my advantage because I skipped over Frostbitten to read the hardcover of Waking the Witch because Savannah is one of my favorite characters.  I thought the Savannah books might be my favorites of this series but I think Frostbitten actually beat Waking the Witch for me!  I am looking forward to returning to Savannah in Spell Bound but now I really want more Elena.  I hope we see more of what the Pack looks like in the future.

Frostbitten is in our personal library and no one had any expectation of a review.

My reviews of other books in the series:

• Personal Demon
• Living With The Dead
• Waking the Witch
• Men of the Otherworld (short story collection)

Available for purchase from*:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• internationally from The Book Depository
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Mothers & Daughters by Rae Meadows

Title:  Mothers & Daughters
Author:  Rae Meadows
Publisher:  Henry Holt and Company
Publication Date:  March 29, 2011
Format:  Hardcover, 272 pages
Age Group:  Adult

Mothers & Daughters tells the story of three generations of women.  Samantha is a new mother who no longer has her mother Iris to guide her.  Iris reflects back on her life as cancer ravages her body.  Violet leaves her mother at eleven years old and begins a new life on her own.  Each woman holds secrets that the others will never know.

If I were to base my enjoyment of this book simply on the publisher's description I would have been sorely disappointed.  The novel that I read bears little resemblance to the blurb on the back cover.  The back cover states "When a box of Iris's belongings arrives on Sam's doorstep, she discovers things about her mother she never knew -- or could even guess.  But she is puzzled by much of what she finds.  She learns that Violet, the woman she knows as her grandmother, left New York City as an eleven-year-old girl and found a better life in the Midwest.  But what was the real reason behind Violet's journey?  And how could she come that far on her own at such a tender age?"  While it is true that a box of her mother's things does arrive on Sam's doorstep and that she is puzzled by what she finds, she does not find any of the answers hinted at in the description.  As the reader, I learned Violet's story of travel on the orphan train but Samantha does not actually learn for certain that Violet was in New York City.  In fact, Samantha spends very little time looking through the things in the box.

With all that said, I did enjoy the majority of this novel.  Each chapter focused on a different woman which meant that time was very fluid.  For the most part the time shifts were easy to follow, although there were a couple of overlaps between Samantha and Iris that found confusing.  Even within a chapter, time is fluid as the main characters move through their memories as well as current events.

I connected to Samantha instantly as she struggled with being a new mother and leaving her child with someone else for the first time.  So much of what she was feeling was familiar to me.  The struggles of Iris and Violet were much less familiar but no less moving.  As compelling as the stores were, I was unsatisfied when I reached the end.  Violet and Iris's stories reach the expected conclusion but Samantha's story simply ends abruptly.  It is clear that Samantha has some major realization at the end of her story but I am uncertain how it impacts her view of life going forward.

I received an Advance Reader's Edition of Mothers & Daughters from the Early Reviewers program at LibraryThing.

Available to Order From:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• internationally from The Book Depository
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Tales from the Yoga Studio by Rain Mitchell

Title:  Tales from the Yoga Studio
Author:  Rain Mitchell
Publisher:  Plume
Publication Date:  December 2010
Format:  Paperback, 288 pages
Age Group:  Adult

In Los Angeles, yoga brings together people from very different backgrounds as they stretch and breathe through their stress.  Lee uses yoga to help heal her students' physical issues but also to impact their lives in a larger way.  Four women who come into her classes at various times, for various reasons, find themselves drawn together and back to Lee as she faces the potential collapse of her marriage and the loss of the studio.

Tales from the Yoga Studio is the beginning of a series and it feels it.  The book reads like an introduction to all the characters that the reader will interact with later on.  While each of the women is caught up in her own story, and we do need to understand that back story, there was not as much interaction between the women as I was expecting.  I had the impression that deep friendships would form but so much of the interaction felt at a surface level, even with all the emotion rolling around underneath.  Imani, one of the main characters, doesn't even attend the same yoga studio as the others for the majority of the book.  She is with them in the beginning and again near the end but in between she is off doing her own thing.

All of the stories are interesting to a point but they never seem to come together as a whole.  Mitchell does move between the stories easily and there is no confusion about which storyline is which.  Hints are given for stories that might appear in future books, although I have no idea how many books are planned for the series at this point.  While Tales from the Yoga Studio was a quick and enjoyable read, I don't think I'll go out of my way to remember to look for additional books as they come out.

Thank you to FSB Associates for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Available for purchase from*:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• internationally from The Book Depository
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

The Seventeen Second Miracle by Jason F. Wright

Title:  The Seventeen Second Miracle
Author:  Jason F. Wright
Publisher:  Berkley Books
Publication Date:  September 2010
Format:  Paperback, 304 pages
Age Group:  Adult

As a teenager, Rex Conner learned that seventeen seconds is all it takes to change a life.  Eventually, he is able to take the tragedy of that summer and transform it into a positive movement that touches many lives over the years.  Now his son, Cole, continues his legacy teaching the lesson of the Seventeen Second Miracle to high school students.  Will this group of students receive the lesson?  Or will people and events conspire to keep the Discussions from reaching their usual conclusion?

The Seventeen Second Miracle is one book which truly reflects the category of 'inspirational fiction.'  It is a short book and a fast read but upon finishing, I felt such a pull to get up and go do something good for someone.  Every character in the book had a unique story and everyone of them touched me in some way.  I loved that Cole didn't know why these specific students had been selected to participate in the Discussions and that he didn't pretend to have all the answers.  While he had the stories that provided the basis for the discussions, he let the kids draw their own conclusions and get there in their own time.

The reflections that Cole shared about his past and his relationship with his father helped balance out the book.  Seeing the father through the son's eyes gave a perspective that someone outside of the family wouldn't have been able to see.  Although Rex spent much of his life preforming seventeen second miracles for people, sometimes his own family got neglected along the way.  Even with that, Cole was still able to see enough value in his father's lessons to continue them when his father was unable to.

Sometimes it takes as little as seventeen seconds to change a life.  What will you use those seventeen seconds for today?

Thank you to Newman Communications for sending me a copy of The Seventeen Second Miracle in exchange for my honest review.

Available for purchase from*:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• Internationally from The Book Depository 
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Now on Twitter

Well, I finally did it.  I signed up for Twitter.  Granted, I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing over there yet but I'm hoping I'll get the hang of it eventually.  I think I have the Twitter account connected correctly to the blog so new posts will show up there.  I also connected it to my Goodreads account and my GetGlue account.  Other than that, it will probably be retweets until I get things like hashtags figured out!

So follow me at LibraryGirlRead and help me figure it out ;-)

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

The Pilgrim Glass by Julie K. Rose

Title:  The Pilgrim Glass
Author:  Julie K. Rose
Publisher:  lulu.com
Publication Date:  December 2010
Format:  Paperback, 354 pages
Age Group:  Adult

When Jonas Flycatcher travels to Vezelay, France to repair a stained glass found in the cathedral of Mary Magdalene, he has no idea that he will be forced to face his own past and to help others face theirs as well.  Meredith and Abbot Dubay share a past they are unwilling to face yet the stained glass pulls them together as it reveals its mysteries.

The Pilgrim Glass is a book filled with beautiful scenic descriptions and with damaged people.  Each of the main characters carries with them wounds from their pasts which refuse to heal.  In examining the story of the stained glass and wondering about its creator, they also take a journey in examining their own histories and perhaps starting on a path of healing.  I really enjoyed all the characters because they were so flawed.  I was interested in why they were the way they were.  If anything, I wish Rose had given us more of their history so that their pain in the present could be understood even more deeply.  While the creator of the glass is somewhat of a background character, I would have enjoyed knowing more of her story as well.

Rose provides a very authentic setting for her story with the description of the village and the conversations in French sprinkled throughout the book.  Most of the French was understandable in context but there were a few times that I was wishing for my French dictionary from high school.

Overall, I found The Pilgrim Glass to be an enjoyable book.

Thank you to Julie K. Rose for sending me a copy in return for my honest review.

Available for purchase from*:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• Internationally from The Book Depository
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

TSS: Being Sick

This past week was a very quiet one here on the blog. My daughter and I both came down with a terrible cold early in the week and it just did us in. I found myself crawling into bed while she was napping because I didn't have much energy for anything else.

The only good thing about being sick was that I got a lot of reading done.  Among the long list of bad things about being sick was that nothing else got done and I'm now very behind in my reviewing.  I'm hoping that means that I'll have plenty scheduled for the next couple of weeks if I can get up the energy to actually write the posts.  So here are a few things to look forward to:

Books I Read and Need to Review:

• The Pilgrim Glass by Julie K. Rose
• The Seventeen Second Miracle by Jason F. Wright
• Tales from the Yoga Studio by Rain Mitchell

Next Up To Read:  Mothers and Daughters by Rae Meadows

Outside the Library Reviews:

• Educator.com
• Spring cleaning products from SC Johnson

and on Thursday, we will be celebrating St. Patrick's Day with the Lucky Leprechaun Giveaway Hop!


Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

absolutely, positively by Heather Webber

Title:  absolutely, postively
Author:  Heather Webber
Publisher:  St. Martin's Paperbacks
Publication Date:  February 2011
Format:  Paperback, 320 pages
Age Group:  Adult
Series:  Lucy Valentine #3

After Lucy's psychic ability to find lost objects is exposed in the Boston Herald, her division of Valentine, Inc. -- Lost Loves -- is busier than ever.  Add in the work she does with the local police department, some family drama, pushing two friends to move beyond friendship, and the curse on her own love life and Lucy is one very busy lady!  When her latest Lost Loves case crosses paths with an FBI investigation, Lucy must sort through the evidence and decide if this love really deserves a second chance.

The first two books in this series were wonderful and I'm happy to say that absolutely, positively is the same.  Lucy retains her faith in love even in the face of impossible odds.  Well, love for everyone except herself that is.  Despite having a nearly perfect boyfriend, Lucy can't let go of her fear of Cupid's Curse.  I think Lucy has grown in her relationship though and she can at least be happy in most of the moments even when she fears the future.  Lucy has also grown as an investigator after working with both Sean and the local police.  She still stumbles on to clues in unexpected ways at times and doesn't always know what things mean when she sees them but I think she has a better sense of what is important and when to take the investigation further than she did in the first book.  To me it is really important to see that kind of growth in a character.

The secondary characters continue to add a lot of color to the book too.  Lucy's best friends are fun and her family is a complicated riot.  They add just the right amount of stress and humor to Lucy's life.

The story lines are easy to follow and weave in and out of each other with ease.  I like how they sometimes seem to connect but then pull away only to reconnect again later.  We have all the clues we need, it is just getting them all to fit together in the right puzzle.

In my review of deeply, desperately I asked if anyone knew if there would be more than three Lucy Valentine books.  The only clue I've found to an answer is on Heather Webber's blog (which seems to be more up to date than her website) where she says she doesn't know if there will be a fourth Lucy Valentine novel or if she will take the series in another direction.  I really, really, really hope she doesn't stop writing about Lucy!  There was a big hint in this book of more things to come and there are story lines that don't seem completely finished to me.  I really want to know if Lucy and Sean get their happily ever after or if Cupid's Curse does strike.  I'm just not done reading about this crazy, fun family yet!

I borrowed absolutely, positively from my local library and there was no expectation from anyone of a review.

My reviews of previous books in the series:

• truly, madly
• deeply, desperately

Available for purchase from*:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• Internationally from The Book Depository
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Book Blogger Hop 3/4

Each weekend, Jennifer at Crazy-for-Books hosts the Book Blogger Hop.  It is a great way for book lovers and book bloggers to find new book blogs and get to know each other.

This week's question comes from Girl About Books:  Who's your all-time favorite book villain?

I think the cold has frozen my brain because I am completely blanking on my villains!  The only one I keep thinking of is Lord Voldemort from Harry Potter but I know I should be able to come up with more than that.  I think part of it may be that while I consider the 'good guys' in the books to have their adversary in the 'bad guys' I don't actually tend to think of them as villains.

Thanks for hopping by.  If you are new here, I hope you take some time to look around and see what I have to offer.

Recent Reviews Include:

• Traitor to the Blood by Barb & J. C. Hendee
• Qigong Illustrated by Christina J. Barea

Upcoming Reviews Include:

• Absolutely, Positively by Heather Webber
• The Pilgrim Glass by Julie K. Rose

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

OTL: Mega Swagbucks Friday

The first Friday of each month, I post about Swagbucks.  That is because every Friday means Mega Swagbucks for searching (but I don't want to overwhelm people with reminders every Friday)!  Haven't tried Swagbucks yet?  It is super easy - simply use the Swagbucks search engine to do your normal Internet searching and sometimes you will be rewarded with Swagbucks which can then be redeemed for some great prizes. My theory is that if I'm going to be searching the Internet anyway, I may as well get rewarded for doing it.

My favorite prize is the Amazon.com gift card.  I earned almost $200 in Amazon.com gift cards through Swagbucks last year.  There are also tons of other gift cards available plus you can redeem for various merchandise as well.

On Fridays, Swagbucks gives out more Mega Swagbucks (anything over 10) than usual which means you can earn your desired prizes even faster.  The most I've gotten from one search so far is 59 Swagbucks.  I'd love to hear if one of my readers finds a high value one today or any other day!

Don't forget to check out the Special Offers section and keep an eye out for Swag Codes as well.  Both of those can help those bucks add up!  Daily Polls get you 1 Swagbuck each day and they recently added other trusted survey sites for another option to earn.  You can also earn Swagbucks by watching videos with Swagbucks TV.  You can randomly get rewarded or let your meter fill up for a guaranteed win.  Swagbucks has also added a games section where you can enter tournaments for a chance to win big buck or play for free and get a smaller amount of winnings.  Now there are tasks that can be completed to earn some bucks as well but I haven't had the time to sit down and explore those yet.

With all of these great ways to earn Swagbucks and get gift cards or other items that you really want, what are you waiting for?!  Sign up and start searching :-)

Swagbucks links contained within this post are referral links and I will earn some Swagbucks if you sign up using those links.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Traitor to the Blood by Barb & J. C. Hendee

Title:  Traitor to the Blood
Authors:  Barb & J. C. Hendee
Publisher:  Roc
Publication Date:  January 2006
Format:  Hardcover, 368 pages
Age Group:  Adult
Series:  Noble Dead Series 1, Book 4

After finding out some of the secrets of Magiere's past in Sister of the Dead, it is now time for the companions to try to determine what happened to Leesil's parents after he fled his life as an assassin for the warlord Darmouth.  The journey is more dangerous than the group had anticipated as they find themselves caught in the middle of a scheme to murder Darmouth which would leave the land in a state of civil unrest.  They are also still being tracked by two from Magiere's past who seek to use them for their own purposes.

Each book in the Noble Dead saga pulls the reader deeper and deeper into darkness and secrets.  Leesil and Magiere know so little of their pasts and each thing they discover only seems to lead to more questions.  Details uncovered along the journey reveal that they have been guided and used for far longer than they suspected and they still do not understand why.  There is some larger purpose to their journey that remains a mystery.

My comments about the characters, emotions, and action in reviews of previous books in this series continue to hold true for Traitor to the Blood.  The characters are complex and full of conflicting emotions.  They hide things from themselves and each other which only leads to more conflict.  Their concern for each other sometimes leads to action without thought with the inevitable consequences.

The Hendees have created a dark world full of conflict and pain.  But the bond Magiere and Leesil share provides some hope that together they can find the answers they seek and perhaps do some good along the way.

I borrowed Traitor to the Blood from my local library and there was no expectation of a review.

My reviews of previous books in this series (in order):

• Dhamphir
• Thief of Lives
• Sister of the Dead

Available for purchase from*:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• Internationally from The Book Depository
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.

Qigong Illustrated by Christina J. Barea

Title:  Qigong Illustrated
Author:  Christina J. Barea
Publisher:  Human Kinetics
Publication Date:  2011
Format:  Paperback, 168 pages
Age Group:  Adult, non-fiction

Description from back cover:

Strengthen your body.  Strengthen your mind.  Each year, millions of people worldwide discover qigong and the incredible healing power of qi.  Now, with Qigong Illustrated, you can too.
Qigong Illustrated is a step-by-step guide complete with detailed instructions and full-color photo sequences of the most effective movements, exercises, and traditional routines, including Daoist Five, Eight Silk Brocade, and Turning and Winding the Belt Vessel.
Centered on the three essential componentes of qigong (body, mind, and breath), Qigong Illustrated's straightforward, highly visual approach is the quickest and most effective way to experience the physical and mental benefits of each routine, such as improving your posture, strengthening your body, and reducing tension. You will also learn to put together an effective qigong flow and combine routines to address your heath and fitness needs.
Whether you are completely new to qigong or have practiced for years, Qigong Illustrated will accompany you step by step on the path to better health and self-awareness. This is the exercise guide that you will turn to time and time again.

I think exercise books in general tend to be difficult to read.  I have a hard time picturing the movements and do much better when I have someone right in front of me showing me what to do.  The photo illustrations in Qigong Illustrated were very helpful in getting past this difficulty.  When I found the text instruction confusing I could look at the photo and usually figure out the movement.

Barea does a great job at simplifying the Chinese terms used in qigong while retaining the importance of the ideas behind them.  I love that she acknowledged what a complex system qigong is while encouraging the reader to not get so caught up in the complexity that you never actually start moving.  Her encouragement to just start without worrying about doing everything perfectly is exactly what I needed to hear because I tend to not try something unless I know I can do it the 'right' way.

I really like the way this book is laid out with the initial chapters working through the ideas inherant in qigong, moving through the elements of a qigong routine, and then finally going through a few sets of exercises focusing on different conditions.  The exercise routines were well written with the written description of the movement accompanied by a picture and then a picture sequence at the end of each routine which demonstrates the overall flow.

Visually the book is also very well laid out.  The text is easy to read with good use of headers and bold font for directions.  Various colored boxes are also used to set apart tables and other important text blocks.  The photographs are clean without a distracting background so the position of the model can be seen clearly.

Overall, I believe Qigong Illustrated will be a great reference book and I am looking forward to starting my own qigong practice.

I received Qigong Illustrated from the Early Reviewers program at LibraryThing in exchange for my honest review.

Available for Purchase from*:

• your local independent bookstore via IndieBound
• Internationally from The Book Depository
• Amazon.com

* All bookstore links are affiliate links and I will earn a small percentage for each item purchased.

Note: All opinions provided on this blog are my own. If a product was given to me for review, the source of that product is noted in the post. Bookstore links are generally affiliate links and I do earn a small amount for each purchase. Other affiliate links will be noted in the post.