Stories of an Unusual Life

An epic story of how the GI Bill made it possible for the author to travel around the world to teach in strange and exotic places, and still enjoy the luxury of a professional career as a Schoolteacher, a Scientific Research Analyst; a State Department Foreign Service Officer, and work for pay as a part-time boat captain.


The book is a collage of episodes describing daring adventures abroad that will captivate the reader. On private contract he taught school in Haiti. He tells about brutality and poverty endured by most of the population. He relates how he was in harms way trying to prevent a brutal killing. The reader also gets an inside look about teaching six grades simultaneously in a one-room schoolhouse in the jungle of Sumatra, far removed from civilization: including some curious events that happened while living in almost complete isolation.


A portion of the book tells about his research activities. One unusual experiment shows how devoted a researcher must be. Dr Woke and the writer sat half naked in a cage feeding hundreds of mosquitoes for two months. "Thou shalt not kill."


While teaching in Afghanistan, the author gives a detailed account of his adventures including a solo trek through the infamous Khyber Pass, from Jalalabad, Afghanistan to Islamabad, Pakistan, and visits to other countries as well. As a Foreign Service Officer, in the U.S. State Department, the author shares his knowledge about foreign countries including Vietnam and Egypt, and related experiences with the reader. While in Egypt, the author documents memorable and sometimes risky experiences exploring the Sahara Desert and the Sinai.