disoriented

A Year in Provence, Peter Mayle

The dis-oriented author is a Francophile. I made my first trip to France in 1978 with my high school French teacher. I was hooked. So it was a no-brainer that I would buy Peter Mayle's A Year in Provence. Mayle's is a British ex-pat and his book chronicles his first year in a rehabbed farmhouse in Provence.

Mayle makes the people and the culture of the region come alive.

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Generation Kill, Evan Wright

The dis-oriented author has two boys serving on active duty in the US military. I am also a student of military history. I picked up Evan Wright's Generation Kill because while I have read a great deal about the American Revolution and the two World Wars, I have not really read anything about the modern military. Nothing about the types of experiences that my own sons could encounter.

This current generation of soldiers is not Brokaw's Greatest Generation — they are still a great generation.

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Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 by Steve Coll

The dis-oriented author has been reading about the conflict in Iraq. I recently read George Crile's Charlie Wilson's War. Steve Coll's Ghost Wars covers US involvement in Afghanistan from the time of the Soviet invasion to 9-11. This book addresses not only the war but its consequences leading up to the rise of Osama bin Ladin.

After winning World War II we rebuilt Japan and instituted the Marshall Plan in Europe. After winning the Cold War we created Al Qaeda.

It did not have to be this way.

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Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times, by George Crile

The dis-oriented author grew up during the Cold War. I remember Viet Nam and Afghanistan. I remember when the United States sided with Islamic militias to fight the Soviets. I remember Charlie Wilson's War. George Criles book, Charlie Wilson's War is a look at the Afghan war and how the United States came to side with people like Osama bin Ladin against the Soviet Union.

I remember these events as they unfolded but I never understood them until I read this book.

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21: Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions, Ben Mezrich

The dis-oriented author is not a gambler. I did however major in mathematics, so I have an interest in numbers. After seeing previews for the movie based on the book, I decided to pick up Ben Mezrich's book, 21: Bringing Down the House. In the book, Mezrich tells the story of a group of MIT math whizzes who form a team to go to Las Vegas and beat the house at Blackjack.

This was a fascinating book.

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Washington's God, Religion, Liberty and the Father of our Country, Michael Novak and Jana Novak

The dis-oriented author has has been reading about the founding of our nation. I have been particularly interested in the religious underpinnings of our Republic. While the religious influence of the original settlers is unquestioned. The religious influences on the political founding of the country by the generation of 76 is not as clear. The Novacks' Washington's God makes a case for the religious faith of George Washington.

After reading this book I have more questions than answers.

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Ducks Hanging in the Window

The dis-oriented author is Chinese. I am actually only 1/4 Chinese, my grandfather was from China. This week I an in San Francisco and tonight I was in the mood for Chinese food.

When I am in San Francisco, I typically buy a MUNI passport so I can ride the buses and the cable cars. Tonight, I took the Powell and Market cable car to Chinatown. I was looking for a Chinese restaurant and I had only two criteria in mind:

It had to be full of Chinese patrons and there had to be Ducks Hanging in the window.

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Jimmy Stewart: Bomber Pilot, Starr Smith and Walter Cronkite

The dis-oriented author is a Jimmy Stewart fan. I know that my younger readers may not know who he is. Jimmy Stewart  won the Oscar for Best Actor in 1941 for Philadelphia Story. As an actor, Stewart was known as a self-effacing everyman. The closest modern equivalent would be Tom Hanks. What I learned from Smith and Cronkite's Jimmy Stewart: Bomber Pilot is that during World War II, Stewart volunteered for service in the legendary VIII Bomber Command that flew heavy bombers into occupied Europe and Germany.

Jimmy Stewart was not just an actor — he was a patriot and a hero.

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Segway — Nothing New Under the Sun

The dis-oriented author watched with interest in 2001 when inventor Dean Kamen unveiled the Segway. The Segway is a two wheeled, self balancing scooter. If you listened to the hype, Kamen suggested that his device would revolutionize transportation all over the world. The Segway has not lived up to the hype. It does, however, represent original thinking and some pretty clever engineering.

Recently I was in Amish country near my home and I discovered that the Segway may not be as original an invention as Kamen suggests.

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RAGBRAI XXXVI

The dis-oriented author rode his first RAGBRAI in 1977.  RAGBRAI stands for Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa. Ragbrai is a bicycle ride across the state of Iowa. It lasts seven days and averages just over 400 miles. My first ride was RAGBRAI IV and this was RAGBRAI XXXVI. I have ridden about 12 complete rides and parts of another 15 or so.

Bicycling is one of those sports that I had put aside in order to raise my family. Now my youngest children are old enough to ride with me so I am on my bike again. The real joy of riding now is spending time with my 12 year old son. Like every other twelve year old, he has his moments but when we are together on our bikes he is nothing but smiles.

We are going to keep riding together.

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