It's an unnerving thought that we may be the living universe's supreme achievement and its worst nightmare simultaneously.

Four times I was honked at for having the temerity to proceed through town without the benefit of metal.

Christmas tree stands are the work of the devil and they want you dead.

America is a very seductive place in terms of lifestyle and comfort, but it wasn't for me.

In a funny way, nothing makes you feel more like a native of your own country than to live where nearly everyone is not.

To me, the greatest invention of my lifetime is the laptop computer and the fact that I can be working on a book and be in an airport lounge, in a hotel room, and continue working; I fire up my laptop, and I'm in exactly the same place I was when I left home - that, to me, is a miracle.

When I awoke it was daylight. The inside of my tent was coated in a curious flaky rime, which I realized after a moment was all of my nighttime snores, condensed and frozen and pasted to the fabric, as if into a scrapbook of respiratory memories.