Weekend Activities

* Dog hikes at Cardiff and San Elijo Lagoon.

Weekend Activities

* Visited the zoo to see the Elephant Odyssey exhibit which was very nice. I liked the comparison of prehistoric animals to present day ones.
* Spent time at the beach to take advantage of the nice weather.

Books

More Books:

• Geek Dad by Ken Denmead - has some interesting projects but not as good as Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction.


• Throwing the Elephant: The Art of Managing Up by Stanley Bing - a goofy book about managing executives; only common sense advice; more satire than real advice.


• Victory and Deceit: Dirty Tricks at War by James F. Dunnigan and Albert A. Nofi - An ok book on deception tactics over the years. The most interesting items were the late 20th century deceptions like Bosnia and the Gulf War.


• Iwo Jima: Portrait of a Battle by Eric Hammel - A truly outstanding book. The pictures should be mandatory viewing. The narrative is well written but a bit tough on the brass.

X-Com

Thanks to Three Moves Ahead #92 and Steam, I am playing X-Com again. Time-waster supreme.

IBD Wonk

I started a new blog about investing the CANSLIM way, IBD Wonk.

1955 on Kickstarter

I just become an official backer of "1955: The War of Espionage" board game on Kickstarter. Can't wait for it to be produced. They only need $132 in the next 5 days.

Busy Weekend

* Bengt tested for his orange belt and passed!
* Jaya finished up her performances in the Star Theater production of Annie.
* Tried to stay dry.

More Books

• Hell Is Upon Us: D-Day in the Pacific--Saipan to Guam, June-August 1944 by Victor Brooks - There aren't many books on the Marianas Campaign (except for the naval Battle of the Phillipine Sea) so I had high hopes for this one. Unfortunately this is one of the most poorly-edited books I have read. The author has some good material and you do get a good feel for the invasions of Saipan, Tinian and Guam, but the errors and never-ending references to the Civil War are bothersome in the least.


• Persian Gulf War (America At War Series) by Rodney P. Carlisle and John Stewart Bowman - A decent basic history of the 1991 Gulf War.

Why I Like Board Games

Here are some good reasons why I love board games and play them with my family.

Book Potpourri

Knocked out a few more books:
* Kingmakers: The Inventions of the Modern Middle East by Shareen Blair Brysac and Karl Meyer - a very rich inspection of the history of middle east beginning at the end of the 19th century through the middle of the Iraq War. Very well done, but a bit British-centric (it helps to know English titles and government).
* The Vietnam War: A History of US Involvement by John Dunn - read this basic narrative in preparation for more detailed books on the Vietnam War.
* The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle - a somewhat interesting book on how talent can be cultivated using different methods of practice; it could have been condensed into 5 pages.
* One Square Mile of Hell: The Battle for Tarawa by John Wukovits - a ground level view of the harrowing battle of Tarawa, one of the Marine Corps' finest moments.

November in Herndon

I just finished a month-long stint in Herndon, VA for a work assignment. Its good to be back.

Weekend Activites

* Attended the last of the three Gold boy Bar Mitvah's.

Shaara WWII Trilogy

Just finished Jeff Shaara's final episode of his WWII trilogy, "No Less Than Victory." It was one of his best. I always enjoyed his chapters dealing with the grunts and the thread of the two 106th Infantry Division soldiers in this novel was thrilling.
I can't wait for the Pacific War episode.

Cuyamaca Camping

Last weekend we did a short camping trip up at Cuyamaca Rancho State Park. We had a great time with friends, old and new. One of the highlights was the nearby creek and waterfall, complete with swimming holes.

Karate Yellow Belt

Bengt started taking karate at the local USSD dojo. The sensei is a great guy and is providing some much needed discipline for all the kids. Bengt just passed his yellow belt test and was very excited.

UCLA On The Road

Last night I attended a UCLA On The Road event at the Estancia Hotel in La Jolla. It was a panel discussion centering around Coach John Wooden. The panel included gymnastics coach Valerie Kondos, Field, basketball player Kieth Erickson and track and field legend Rafer Johnson. The speakers had great stories of their lives with Coach Wooden. Very nice event and the facilities and food provided by Estancia were top notch.

Custer's Last Stand

It is said that more books have been written about the Battle of Little Bighorn than that of the Battle of Gettysburg. I decided to try one of the more recent entries.
James Donovan's "A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn: The Last Great Battle" is a superb, in-depth narrative of the Battle of Little Bighorn and the events leading up to it. Donovan's style is almost movie-like in describing the 7th Cavalry's fight against the Sioux. My only complaint is the lack of detailed maps, but almost every book has this issue.

Mike Wright Collection

Mike Wright has written a series of books around the "What They Didn't Teach You About..." concept. They contain snippets and stories that revolve around a greater narrative. They are solid, if unspectacular, books; great for book reports.

• What They Didn't Teach You About the 60's


• What They Didn't Teach You About the Wild West


• What They Didn't Teach You About World War II


• What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War


• What They Didn't Teach You About the American Revolution

Okinawa Books

Continuing my look into the Pacific War, I picked up a few books on Okinawa, one of history's most interesting battles.

"The Ultimate Battle: Okinawa 1945: The Last Epic Struggle of World War II" by Bill Sloan - A gripping narrative told at the level of individual soldiers and units. Some of the names will be familiar to views of the HBO series "The Pacific." Suffers from lack of maps.

"The Battle of Okinawa" by Hiromichi Yahara - The battle as told by the senior most Japanese officer to survive the battle. Very insightful as to the Japanese mindset and their method of warfare.

"The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima" edited by Daniel Marston - Not the picture and map book that the title suggests, but a wonderful collection of scholarly essays covering major aspects of the Pacific War. My favorites include the chapters on atomic bomb v. invasion decision (which makes the case for using the bombs) and the ANZAC involvement (which is often overlooked in Pacific War books).

UCLA Football

Is awesome!