Here's a list of the seven most profitable products in the U.S., based on profit margin, revenue, and market share.  Odds are at LEAST one of them has a deep, unbreakable hold on you.

1.  The iPhone, 40% profit margin.

2.  Marlboro cigarettes, 30%.

3.  Monster energy drinks, 26.7%.

4.  Coke products, 25%.

5.  Enfamil infant formula, 24%.

6.  Folgers coffee, 23.6%.

7.  Garmin GPS devices, 15% profit margin. 

I love, Love, LOVE this letter!!  As a mother with 3 daughters, I could not agree more.  Unfortunately, many girls never hear this from their father.  They should.

A Daddy's Letter To His Little Girl

Dear Cutie-Pie,

Recently, your mother and I were searching for an answer on Google. Halfway through entering the question, Google returned a list of the most popular searches in the world. Perched at the top of the list was "How to keep him interested."

It startled me. I scanned several of the countless articles about how to be sexy and sexual, when to bring him a beer versus a sandwich, and the ways to make him feel smart and superior.

And I got angry.

Little One, it is not, has never been, and never will be your job to "keep him interested."

Little One, your only task is to know deeply in your soul -- in that unshakeable place that isn't rattled by rejection and loss and ego -- that you are worthy of interest. (If you can remember that everyone else is worthy of interest also, the battle of your life will be mostly won. But that is a letter for another day.)

If you can trust your worth in this way, you will be attractive in the most important sense of the word: you will attract a boy who is both capable of interest and who wants to spend his one life investing all of his interest in you.

Little One, I want to tell you about the boy who doesn't need to be kept interested, because he knows you are interesting:

I don't care if he puts his elbows on the dinner table -- as long as he puts his eyes on the way your nose scrunches when you smile. And then can't stop looking.

I don't care if he can't play a bit of golf with me -- as long as he can play with the children you give him and revel in all the glorious and frustrating ways they are just like you.

I don't care if he doesn't follow his wallet -- as long as he follows his heart and it always leads him back to you.

I don't care if he is strong -- as long as he gives you the space to exercise the strength that is in your heart.

I couldn't care less how he votes -- as long as he wakes up every morning and daily elects you to a place of honor in your home and a place of reverence in his heart.

I don't care about the color of his skin -- as long as he paints the canvas of your lives with brushstrokes of patience, and sacrifice, and vulnerability, and tenderness.

I don't care if he was raised in this religion or that religion or no religion -- as long as he was raised to value the sacred and to know every moment of life, and every moment of life with you, is deeply sacred.

In the end, Little One, if you stumble across a man like that and he and I have nothing else in common, we will have the most important thing in common:

You.

Because in the end, Little One, the only thing you should have to do to "keep him interested" is to be you.

Your eternally interested guy,

Daddy

------

This post is, of course, dedicated to my daughter, my Cutie-Pie. But I also want to dedicate it beyond her.

I wrote it for my wife, who has courageously held on to her sense of worth and has always held me accountable to being that kind of "boy."

I wrote it for every grown woman I have met inside and outside of my therapy office -- the women who have never known this voice of a Daddy.

And I wrote it for the generation of boys-becoming-men who need to be reminded of what is really important -- my little girl finding a loving, lifelong companion is dependent upon at least one of you figuring this out. I'm praying for you.

This post originally appeared on DrKellyFlanagan.com

My husband and I were at the Cardinals' game last night -- April 30th -- and they were passing around All Star Ballots.  Seriously?  We're only a few weeks into the season and we're supposed to choose the best players at each position?

Obviously, the voting has nothing to do with putting the best of the best on the field.  It's about promoting MLB and its advertisers.  We refuse to vote, but I did take home a ballot, just to prove they're out there.

I'd love to hear what you think about All Star Voting.  Leave comments below!

A new survey in USA Today asked drivers their favorite excuse for trying to get out of a ticket.   

Here are the 10 most common excuses.  

1.  I couldn't see the sign telling me not to do it . . . like a speed limit sign, or a no U-turn sign.

2.  I'm lost and don't know the roads around here.

3.  I didn't know it was broken . . . like a broken brake light or turn signal.

4.  Everyone else was doing it.

5.  I'm having an emergency . . . like spilling a hot drink on your lap.

6.  I missed my turn or exit.

7.  I had to go to the bathroom.

8.  I didn't do anything dangerous.

9.  I was on my way to an emergency . . . like to help someone who was sick or injured.

10.  My GPS told me to do it.

The survey did NOT ask how often they work.

Following the Monkees' string of tour dates with Michael Nesmith last fall, the group has announced a 24-show summer run, with surviving members Nesmith, Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork at the helm.

July 15: Port Chester, NY (The Capitol Theatre)
July 16: Boston, MA (Citi Performing Arts Center)
July 17: Red Bank, NJ (Count Basie Theatre)
July 19: Westbury, NY (NYCB Theatre At Westbury)
July 20: Philadelphia, PA (The Mann Center)
July 21: Washington, DC (The Warner Theatre)
July 23: Raleigh, NC (Memorial Auditorium)
July 24: Nashville, TN (Ryman Auditorium)
July 26: St. Augustine, FL (St. Augustine Amphitheatre)
July 27: Boca Raton, FL (Mizner Park Amphitheatre)
July 28: Clearwater, FL (Ruth Eckerd Hall)
July 31: Austin, TX (The Long Center)
Aug. 1: Houston, TX (Arena Theatre)
Aug. 2: Grand Prairie, TX (Verizon Theatre)
Aug. 3: Tulsa, OK (Brady Theater)
Aug. 5: Denver, CO (Paramount Theatre)  
Aug. 9: Mesa, AZ (Mesa Arts Center)
Aug. 10: Henderson, NV (Green Valley Events Center)
Aug. 11: San Diego, CA (Humphreys)
Aug. 12: Long Beach, CA (Terrace Theatre)
Aug. 14: Saratoga, CA (Mountain Winery)
Aug. 15: Napa, CA (Uptown Theatre)  
Aug. 17: Seattle, WA (Benaroya Hall)
Aug. 18: Portland, OR (Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall)

I could tell you all about it, but I'll let Elton handle the details....

A new survey asked hiring managers the WORST things candidates can do during an interview.  And the number one answer was . . . saying "I'm nervous."  Here are the top five results . . .

1.  Saying "I'm nervous."

2.  Wearing inappropriate clothes.

3.  Not making eye contact.

4.  Checking your phone.

5.  Fidgeting and bad posture.

The survey also found the BEST thing you can do is be engaged in the interview and ask questions.  They also want to see your personality . . . and get the feeling you're being authentic.

(LiveScience)

Earlier this month, there was a story flying around online about how Saudi Arabia had DEPORTED three men who were visiting from the United Arab Emirates . . . because the men were TOO HANDSOME.  Apparently, the Islamic police were worried that if the men stuck around, women, quote, "could fall for them."

Well . . . photos of one of the men just surfaced.  His name is Omar Borkan Al Gala, and he's a photographer-slash-actor-slash-poet.  And, yes, he's a handsome dude.  Handsome enough to be deported?  That I can't say.

What do you think?