Secrets From The Delphi Cafe': Unlocking The Code to Happiness - Softcover

Friedman, Scott; Rich, Bob

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0977881105 ISBN 13: 9780977881109

Publisher: Cameo Publications, LLC, 2006

Synopsis

Unlock the Elusive Code to Happiness   We all want happiness in life, but what exactly is happiness? Is it love, money, respect, health, or something completely different? In Secrets from the Delphi Café, authors Scott Friedman and Bob Rich explore the nature of happiness and the quest to attain it.   But Secrets from the Delphi Café is also the engaging tale of “Socrates” Smith, an ordinary person who is dealing with the everyday challenges of life when he meets a mysterious waitress named Sophie. In the days that follow, Sophie serves up not only good coffee, but also profound wisdom and insight, and leads “Socrates” to discover more about happiness, himself, and his family than he ever thought possible.

About this title

About the Author

Scott E. Friedman is a managing partner with the law firm of Lippes Mathias Wexler Friedman LLP in Buffalo, New York. He is the author of numerous articles and five other books, including The Successful Family Business, How to Run a Family Business, and How To Profit By Forming Your Own Limited Liability Company. Mr. Friedman, a business lawyer, advises businesses around the world.   Bob Rich is President of Rich Products Corporation, one of the largest family-owned food processing companies in the world, headquartered in Buffalo, New York. A member of the South Florida Fishing Hall of Fame, he has authored many articles on the subject and two books, Fish Fights and The Fishing Club.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

It all started with a cup of coffee.
Every morning I go to the D
The coffee is superb.
I always exchange a few words with the waitress, Sophie, before I settle in with my newspaper and my thoughts. Sophie looks a lot like a young Cher. Seems to know everything. She never went to college, and, as far as anyone knows, never ran a business other than the D
And a lot about people.
The D
So there I was, soberly assessing the turns my life had taken recently. The worst situation was Dad. His health had gone south again, dimming the hope we had felt a month ago when his cancer seemed to have gone into remission. All we could do now was keep his hopes – and our own – afloat.
Things weren’t looking good at the office either. After five straight quarters of missed projections, heads were about to roll.
And the kids. I came to believe a long time ago that even "good" kids give their parents gray hairs. I have three
Then there’s Randy, the rock star in waiting. What a character! God, how I love his energy and spirit! But, oh, how I hate his music. Well, maybe not all of it. And maybe "hate" is the wrong word. It’s hard to hate something your kid lives for. Most of the time when I hear his music, all I can do is silently pray that he finishes soon. Yet every once in a while, I will hear a beat or a ballad that makes me realize there’s soul or talent beneath those hypnotic rhythms and blaring bass. Yeah, I’d feel a lot more comfortable if he directed some of that passion toward a career with a future. I am a parent, after all, and worry about the road of dreams he is taking.
Eddie is our youngest. A teenager. Need I say more? He really keeps us on our toes. Watching him and his pals is one revelation after another. I know parents whose kids seem to get nothing lower than an A-. Not Eddie. We’re happy with a steady stream of Bs and Cs because, on occasion, even those grades seem hard to come by. But what a quarterback! Maybe football will be his ticket to college. Only time will tell.
I sipped my coffee. My mind floated back and forth between thoughts of family and friends, Dad, and my job. Who ever knows what strange turns life will take, no matter what road you choose and no matter how well you plan. Lord knows, I’ve sure deviated from my roadmap a time or two, especially after my first wife died. Pain? Disappointment? Loss? You can’t walk through life without bumping into them. But, looking at the big picture, I can’t complain. I have a great family and a lot of friends. I remarried several years ago. My wife Carrie has been a loving – a wonderful – stepmother to the kids.
A familiar voice interrupted my reverie.
"Whose flower is that?" Before I could look up, Sophie had filled my cup.
"It’s yours, Sophie," I said, and she swept up the loose bargain rose I had bought from a gap-toothed guy at the stoplight that morning. I enjoy an opportunity to spread a little cheer.
Sophie broke the stem, and slipped the rose into the sweep of brunette around her right ear.
"Thanks," she said. "Any special occasion this time?"
"Just my appreciation for keeping the mug full," I answered.
She smiled at me and turned to take care of another customer. I watched her glide gracefully through the café. The rose nestled in her hair gave her a gypsy’s air that only added to her mystique.
great kids, but they offer their own brand of challenges. My oldest is Ellen. She will be graduating college with honors this year. I’d rather she were graduating with high hopes. Ellen can’t seem to shake that dark cloud of pessimism and self-doubt. I still hoped that college would teach her how to smile before she graduated. SLPHI Café for a cup o’ joe and some time to think before I hit the office. The lunches are good. The breakfasts are better. SLPHI’s breakfast business. But she appears to know every man and woman on the street, and all the daily news from the headlines to the sports pages.SLPHI is the kind of sanctuary that everyone should have – a friendly, peaceful place where you can get your head together before you get back on the fast track or the slow track or whatever track suits your pace. You can see and feel the grain and scars of the heavy hardwood tables and smell the coffee that George Niketopoulous keeps in ready supply – his special house blend and two exotic flavors every morning. With Sophie working the counter, you never see the bottom of your mug. You can read the paper or a book, work a crossword, plan your day, or just sip and think without a worry and only a rare interruption.

Edition details

• Publisher: Cameo Publications, LLC
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0977881105
• ISBN 13: 9780977881109
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 192