At every Christmas, I fail to remember the daughters' shoe sizes, and they are not growing, but grown. After ostensible hard thought about who needs what, I have failed to give good gifts; I have failed to receive good gifts.

If you're going to write a book that might, in its very best accidental career, sell 30,000 copies, you've got to have a day job.

It's hard to say conversation has become a minimal thing, because look at the rise of mobile communications in the last 10 years. It used to be only the president had a mobile phone. Now everyone on earth, even if they have nothing else, they have a cell phone.

If I slip up and receive a good gift, I will not have given a good gift. This is probably a natural law that affects us all and needs a name. The Gift Reciprocal Law.

Sometimes if I do radio interviews or certain kinds of interviews or things that would require me to travel, then I'll get a nice car ride. Someone will take me, drive me to that place, and I'll actually get to see around.

My life and career is my own adventure.

When l write my own stuff, that's my only alone time. From wake-up to going to bed, I'm with someone. I don't like to do anything alone. I guess it's insecurity. When I travel, I won't go anywhere without people to go do something. I'm happier around people; the more people the better.

To get away from one's working environment is, in a sense, to get away from one's self; and this is often the chief advantage of travel and change.