Benjamin Franklin, self-improvement guru The most extraordinary of them all was Benjamin Franklin, a man who dedicated his life to self-improvement. At the age of 24, Franklin proposed the idea of a public library. "The library afforded me the means of improvement by constant study, for which I set apart an hour or two each day, and thus repaired in some degree the loss of the learned education my father once intended for me," Franklin wrote in his autobiography.Franklin's Library Company of Philadelphia was founded in 1731, more than four decades before the American Revolution. Other libraries sprang up, and Franklin recognized the role they were playing in strengthening the emerging nation. "These libraries have improved t... Reconciling with resolutions from New Years past ... had crept up a pound or two, I resolved to stop making New Year's resolutions that involve weight and concentrate on other forms of self-improvement. ... From the Department of Best of Intentions On the occasion of the New Year, we could all resolve to dedicate ourselves to a little self-improvement. As printed in Friday's On The Town section, ... Monday, January 04, 2010 What are good self-improvement sites or suggestions to help me stick with my New Year's resolutions? There are some simple ways to stay on track. ... 'Living Oprah' She is at the pinnacle of the self-improvement, popular-culture mountain.We were gabbing about Oprah's abundant advice on how to improve our health, relationships, homes, finances, spiritual lives, fashion sense and the list goes on and on. Winfrey inspires masses of women all over the world. And yet, it dawned on me, for every Oprah fan I've come in contact with, there has also been someone who can't hide her vitriol about the media sensation. I wondered why.And more important, why do so many women put an immense amount of pressure on themselves to live up to the Oprah ideal? I was buzzing with excitement (and my fourth extra-large Earl Grey tea) to find out. Could Oprah's gui... Slendertone's New Device Gives Good Face No, you're not looking at the first photo of Apple's new tablet. It's a facial-muscle strengthening device from Slendertone, and here's what it does: The ... Self-Improvement Through Television, Secret Lives of Game Show Hosts and More Chris Harrison names his 10 favorite moments from the 'Bachelor'/'Bachelorette' franchise. Check out the host's picks, then watch the premiere of the new ... Brit Hume, al-Qaeda and secular radicals If Christianity is nothing more than a self-help, self-improvement handle, then - by all means - let's stop talking about it. There's already too much of ... Jude Law's New Year's Resolution But with a New Year comes new pledges of self-improvement and corrections of bad habits. Celeb Relationship Resolutions For 2010 For this ... EudoraNews.com / Water, school funding top resolution list As in the past, the list is not about self-improvement but issues that need to be resolved in the next 12 months. Eudora should see resolution to the city's long legal battle against Douglas County Rural Water District No. 4. Although expensive, the economic slowdown that has brought construction activity to a near standstill here and elsewhere has negated the legal quarrel's actual consequence to the city. With the coming court judgment, the city will get direction in how to pursue its future growth, and be able to do so without the press of development proposals We're also hoping new Eudora City Administrator John Harrenstein's citizen technology committee will pro...