I decided to write a book

about myself and what I ve

seen in a number of years of living because whenever I tell a new

friend or acquaintance a story about what I ve seen or done, the

new friend or acquaintance expresses astonishment.

Why astonishment? Because, I suppose, I m so average.

Average looks, average intelligence, average background, average

~education, average ambition. And yet I ve seen and done things

and known people the average person does not get to see or

know, and have gone places where the average person does not

get to go.

And it occurred to me that quite apart from the usefulness

of sorting out experience for my own education, and quite apart