During 1999 (this page) or During 2000, 2001

I guess from an early age I was a roamer and would often wander away so as to make my parents (mother) think I was lost. I always knew where I was. I would plan my roaming trips as to allow a determined amount of time not to raise suspicion  that I was away roaming. It was sort of another life I led one of adventure. I always was eager to go someplace, when my family or a group was to travel or visit places such as trips to the city (San Francisco) and the Zoo or park.

I remember once when I was up at a family camp in the mountains and while wandering came across a road bed out in the middle of the forest. It went on for miles and I tried to follow it wondering what it was for and who made it. Just finding a place to wander was the adventure that drove me. I would think of places to go that no one else had gone before (My Friends and Relatives) so as to have a place all my own. I recall one of my greatest adventures, that took me to the Treasures of The Sierra Mountains in Mexico back in the late 50’s when seven of us took an Acapulco Taxi into the hills to find that special place in the imagination of the adventurer Humphrey Bogart in his movie of the same name. What an adventure to go up into those mountains where few Americans have gone to find the very site where they filmed the movie and to see all the actual places used in the movie. To sit at the little round table where the author penned the famous story of greed and gold. The remnant of Poncho Vila's army there with their bandoleers and long rifles, probably old extras used in the movie that cornered Bogart and poured out his sacks of gold thinking it was sand. We took a school teacher with us and he interpreted for us all the explanations we got from all those in that little town. If I had hot read the story and seen the movie, I would have never known that adventure. We kept repeating, “I don't got to show you no stinking badges!”

Getting back to reading; this year I read a book on the Sierra Rail Road, and the beginning from Riverbank through Oakdale and on to Jamestown on the way to Yosemite and all the history in between. The continuation up into the Yosemite Valley and all over the Sierras where the road bed went to the trees that were cut and brought to Tuolumne City and the Pickering Saw Mill. The original reason for the railroad was to bring ore down from the mines. The second reason was to bring timber down to the mines. The third was to bring tourist (adventurers) to Yosemite from San Francisco. The forth reason was to bring Marble and timber to Build San Francisco. Guess what, I found out who put that road bed in and what it was that I followed through the Sierras when I was at camp. It was the railroad that went all the way to big trees where I traveled on the old road bed from Sonora to Arnold and the big trees with my old Volkswagen over those dusty roads in the 60’s.  I never knew what those name were about as Camp 9 and Camp 6 along the rivers up there, they were railroad camps. That brings to memory when I was a little kid I saw the movie Sara toga Trunk, and was disappointed when I missed the trunk. Where was the trunk? I was looking for a trunk that one would put clothes in. It wasn't until a couple of years ago I read the book and realized it was a railroad trunk, the it all made sense. Reading opens the world to the adventurer.

When I was in high school, and the teacher suggested I read those books that matched my likes, I started reading about the old west, not novels, but real life stories. The author I fell in love with was Will James who could write and draw just as it was from a real life cowboy. All his books kept me on the edge of my seat and just could not get enough. I read all of his stories and now they are collectors and very rare. I read the whole story this year again and it brought back memories. I also read all of Charley Russell's books too.
Anyway, here is a list of the books I have read, hope they might cause you to check them out from your local Library and enjoy some of the things I have.  There are also Audio Books and they are great while traveling. If you wonder when I find time to read, well, I speed read now ant that really makes reading fun. If you can find a speed reading class, take it! It will open up a world you never knew existed and that will never be boring. I read about 3 to 5 books a week now and usually read about 10 - to - 20 books at a time. When I get stir crazy, I just go down to Barns and Noble and pull up a chair and read a book. It only takes about and hour or so and is cheap intertwinement. I have been reading travel books and planning my trip to India.

Here is the list: 1999
 

1. · The String Theory; Green. It takes Quantum Physics beyond imagination.
2. · The Beginning of Time;  Hawking. Extends Einstein's theory of relativity to reality called quantum physics.
3. · Stories of Lake Woebegone; Keener. Stories about life we try to hide from.
4. · The Call of the Wild; Jack London. What one becomes when pressed hard to learn how to survive and not quit when going gets tough.
5. · Hamlet; Shakespeare. Great lesson in human nature.
6. · Macbeth; Shakespeare. Lesson in justice.
7. · The Merchant of Venice; Shakespeare. Greed and justice.
8. · Red Dirt; A story of growing up Okie, a history of times in the  20’s and 30’s up to present day.
9. · The Jew Store; a story of a Jewish family going to Tennessee in the 20’s to open a merchant store and being the only jewish family for miles and how they cope in an alien atmosphere and how they deal with the prejudices, KKK and the blacks all the time keeping their own integrity. When they leave to go back to New York 11 years later the are loved and no one wants them to leave, but their jewish roots are in Brooklyn.
10. · Splendora; Jonathan Swift. A spoof on a town of nuts by one of their own. A lesson on Vanity.
11. · Christopher Park Regulars;  Swift. The odd people in Greenwich Village that frequent this little park, Hilarious.
12. · The City of  Light; Boston neat Niagara Falls and how someone that cares makes a difference.
13. · Beauty Fades, Dumb is Forever; Judge Judy. The excuses we think up and lies we believe.
14. · Boggs, A comedy of Values; Boggs. The value of money to an artist that draws money.
15. · The Great Hill Stations of Asia; Crossette. The places to regain sanity from the pressures of life in an alien society.
16. · Don't Pee on My Leg And Tell Me It's Raining; Judge Judy. An old Jewish saying when someone is giving you a line of bull. Peoples lack of values and truth in our time.
17. . The Holy War; Bunyon. The Battle for our souls.
18. · Pilgrims Progress; Bunyon. The Road a Christian Travels.
19. · Blind Man's Bluff; Submarine espionage during the cold war and naval intelligence. Excellent!
20. · Portable Life 101;  So true.
21.   The Lord Will Gather Me in;   by David Klinghoffer  Going back to being Jewish.
22.   The Practice of the Presence of God;   by Brother Lawrence
23.   How Could You Do That?!   by Laura, Dr Schlessinger
24.   Ten Stupid Things Women Do to Mess Up Their Lives;  by Laura C. Schlessinger
25.   The Ten Commandments: What's in It for Me by Stewart Vogel, Laura C. Schlessinger
26.   Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God;  by Jonathan Edwards
27.   Complete Idiot's Guide To The World's Religions; by Brandon Toropov
28.   Don't Sweat The Small Stuff, It's All Small Stuff; The more he wrote the worse his language got and I had to quit before reading it all, what a waste for a good point he had to make.
29.   Book of Cowboy Stories; James. Audio Book Great.
30.   Cowboys...; James.
31.   Sun Up; James.
32.   Smoky; James.
33.   Big-Enough; James
34.   Sand; James.
35.   Scorpion; James.
36.   Home Ranch; James.
37.   Will Rogers, Will Rogers.
38.   Christian Manifesto; Schaeffer. Not too bad, typical Reformed idea of life and government, has a good point to make.
39.   What Happened to the Human Race?; Schaeffer and Koop M.D.. Makes his point on Pro-Abortion, good.
40.   How Should We Live Then?; Schaeffer.  Typical Reformed View of Societal reasoning of the Rise and Fall of western thought and culture. The governments' place in keeping morals and ethics.
41.   Escape From Reason; Schaeffer. About denying Gods' presence in our world and lives, especially in our government.
42.   The God Who Is There; Schaeffer. Same idea.
43.   Love Worth Finding, Series; 1) One Lord, One Love (Creating Intimate Marriages); Adrian Rogers. Great lessons on building the marriage bond and union. (CD)
44. Truman,  This was a great read and was rich in history. I had to read it twice to get all the info it had to offer. I read it to get the story about his life and then went back to get the story of his integrity and his political success. People in politics hated him be cause they could not trust him because he was too honest, that's good.