The Fireproof Motel

The Fireproof Motel in Bella Villa, Florida is home to twelve residents, federal undercover agent Mike Nolan among them. These denizens of the Fireproof Motel, a band of misfits, become embroiled with Edwin Tiny Harris a treacherous and psychopathic deputy sheriff when two of them witness him murder a fellow law officer. A host of the countys worst villains are entangled with this corrupt cop. After discovering Agent Nolan is on his track, Tiny targets him as well. Meanwhile, gambling and drug mogul Rooster Babcock plots Tinys assassination. The story wraps up in a blazing double header climax.

Cary Umhau had everything she'd ever wanted -- beautiful children, a healthy bank account, even, she'd been told, a ticket to heaven. Yet something felt desperately wrong. Somewhere on the road to the American Dream, her happy Christian life had become a fireproof fortress - one that kept the world's pain at bay but left her all too safe from God's burning love. And she learned that he would do anything to break her out. Including - it seemed - breaking her. Burning Down the Fireproof Hotel is part memoir, part manifesto for the spacious life that's waiting for all of us beyond our private prisons.

In small cities and towns across the United States, Main Street hotels were iconic institutions. They were usually grand, elegant buildings where families celebrated special occasions, local clubs and organizations honored achievements, and communities came together to commemorate significant events. Often literally at the center of their communities, these hotels sustained and energized their regions and were centers of culture and symbols of civic pride. America's main street hotels catered not only to transients passing through a locality, but also served local residents as an important kind of community center. This new book by John A. Jakle and Keith A. Sculle, two leading experts on the nation_s roadside landscape, examines the crucial role that small- to mid-sized city hotels played in American life during the early decades of the twentieth century, a time when the automobile was fast becoming the primary mode of transportation. Before the advent of the interstate system, such hotels served as commercial and social anchors of developing towns across the country. America's Main Street Hotels provides a thorough survey of the impact these hotels had on their communities and cultures. The authors explore the hotels' origins, their traditional functions, and the many ups and downs they experienced throughout the early twentieth century, along with their potential for reuse now and in the future. The book details building types, layouts, and logistics; how the hotels were financed; hotel management and labor; hotel life and customers; food services; changing fads and designs; and what the hotels are like today. Brimming with photographs, this book looks at hotels from coast to coast. Its exploration of these important local landmarks will intrigue students, scholars, and general readers alike, offering a fascinating look back at that recent period in American history when even the smallest urban places could still look optimistically toward the future. John A. Jakle is emeritus professor of geography at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Keith A. Sculle is the head of research and education for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. He and Professor Jakle have coauthored The Gas Station in America; Motoring: The Highway Experience in America; Fast Food: Roadside Restaurants in the Automobile Age; Signs in America_s Auto Age: Signatures of Landscape and Place; and Lots of Parking: Land Use in a Car Culture. With Jefferson S. Rogers, they are also coauthors of The Motel in America.

On the heels of George Carlin's #1 New York Times bestseller Napalm & Silly Putty comes When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?--infused with Carlin's trademark irreverent humor and biting cultural observations. Here we go again . . . George Carlin's hilarious When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? offers his cutting-edge opinions and observational humor on everything from evasive euphemistic language to politicians to the media to dead people. Nothing and no one is safe! Despite the current climate of political correctness, Carlin is not afraid to take on controversial topics: Carlin on the media: The media comprises equal parts business, politics, advertising, public relations, and show business. Nice combination. Enough bull for Texas to open a chain of branch offices. Carlin on the battle of the sexes: Here's all you have to know about men and women: women are crazy, men are stupid. And the main reason women are crazy is that men are stupid. Carlin on hygiene: When did they pass a law that says the people who make my sandwich have to be wearing gloves? I'm not comfortable with this. I don't want glove residue all over my food; it's not sanitary. Who knows where these gloves have been? Carlin on evasive language: Just to demonstrate how far using euphemisms in language has gone, some psychologists are now actually referring to ugly people as those with "severe appearance deficits." Hey, Doctor. How's that for "denial"? Carlin on politics: No self-respecting politician would ever admit to working in the government. They prefer to think of themselves "serving the nation." To help visualize the service they provide the country, you may wish to picture the things that take place on a stud farm. The thinking person's comic who uses words as weapons, Carlin puts voice to issues that capture the modern imagination. For instance, why are there Ten Commandments? Are UFOs real? What will the future really be like? This brand-new collection tackles all that and more. In When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? Carlin's razor-sharp observations demolish everyday values and leave you laughing out loud--delivering exactly what his countless fans have been waiting for.

Urban conflagrations, such as the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and the Great Boston Fire the following year, terrorized the citizens of nineteenth-century American cities. However, urban rebirth in the aftermath of great fires offered a chance to shape the future. Ultimately residents and planners created sweeping changes in the methods of constructing buildings, planning city streets, engineering water distribution systems, underwriting fire insurance, and firefighting itself. Crucible of Fire describes how the practical knowledge gained from fighting nineteenth-century fires gave form and function to modern fire protection efforts. Changes in materials and building design resulted directly from tragedies such as fires in supposedly fireproof hotels. Thousands of buildings burned, millions of dollars were lost, the fire insurance industry faltered, and the nature of volunteerism changed radically before municipal authorities took the necessary actions. The great fires formed a crucible of learning for firefighters, engineers, architects, underwriters, and citizens. Veteran firefighter Bruce Hensler shows how the modern American fire service today is a direct result of the lessons of history and a rethinking of the efficacy of volunteerism in fighting fires. Crucible of Fire is an eye-opening look at today's fire service and a thorough examination of what firefighters, civic leaders, and ordinary citizens can do to protect their homes and communities from the mistakes of the past.

Red Rock Canyon, the Spring Mountains, Lake Mead, the Valley of Fire, Desert National Wildlife Refuge and Lake Tahoe - just a few of the spectacular places on offer in this interesting state. Join Matt Purdue as he explores everything from plant life and wildlife to the early explorers like Kit Carson and current-day adventures. The natural playground attracts outdoorsfolk with canoeing, hiking, kayaking, mountain biking, lake swimming, horseback riding and boating. Sights, campgrounds, hotels, transportation, restaurants - all the basic travel info - is covered too.

In the late 1800s, men like Jacob Brock and Henry Addison DeLand introduced civilized comforts to the wild interior of West Volusia, which resulted in a tourism boom that is still ongoing. Brock built the Brock House hotel and used his steamboats to bring such notables as DeLand and American presidents Ulysses S. Grant and Rutherford B. Hayes there to vacation. Continued tourism growth brought about the need for more hotels. The Ponce de Leon Hotel was built around the fabled Fountain of Youth, while the bustling town of DeLand offered several more hotels, like the Putnam, Carrollton, College Arms, and DeLand. John Batterson Stetson vacationed in DeLand and then built a home, bought a hotel he renamed College Arms, and extended the railroad to his hotel's doorstep for the convenience of his guests. These and other hotels helped shape the growth and history of West Volusia County.