Book excerpt: The Get-Over-Yourself Self-Help Book and Other Essays presents a collection of vignettes, narratives, and rants that detail the often absurd business of getting on with life. In an attempt to aspire to a so-called higher life, many of us fear both death and youth, reaching for perfection through the latest technical gadgets that encourage us to cling to preconceived notions of ourselves and to define ourselves through a text message. But is that really any way to truly live? Baby boomer columnist and curmudgeon Sylvia Shawcross believes that satirists have a purpose in this worldto help others to laugh at the absurdity of life. In her second compilation of humorous reflections, Shawcross begins with a hilarious recounting of the frustrating chain of events that occur when she attempts to replace a broken remote at the electronics store and continues with a series of lighthearted essays where she reveals the unconventional and often wacky behavior of those she encounters daily. From the reasons behind rampant consumerism to the forced reprogramming behind ten-digit dialing, Shawcross contemplates issues of global importance while encouraging all of us to wake up and smell the high-priced lattfor sadly, as she says, this is just how it is. The Get-Over-Yourself Self-Help Book and Other Essays provides an eye-opening, amusing glimpse into the mind of a curmudgeon in all her unabashed glory.