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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Geneva" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Geneva;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Hello Herodotus readers,</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Geneva" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Geneva;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I hope some of you have begun to enjoy the epic storytelling of Book I, the myths, and legendary characters in the backstory to the "current events" of the Greek-Persian conflict. I've cut and pasted everyone's personal notes of introduction to the group so you can get a complete sense of who will be on our calls.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Geneva" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Geneva;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">This week I will send out some study guide questions for the first half of Book I. I will try to get study guide questions out next week for the second half of Book I. The following week I will start asking a few of you to take on a study guide question to introduce to us with your observations during our next discussion. Our next call will happen on Monday November 15.</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Geneva" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Geneva;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Happy reading,</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Geneva" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Geneva;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Andre</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Tom Adams</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I work for the California Department of Education in the areas of standards, curriculum, and instructional materials. My fascination with ancient Greece goes back to childhood and it was reborn when my daughter started to read the Percy Jackson series. She has continued on to other reading adventures but I am remain fascinated with the Greeks. I have tried reading Herodotus before but quickly got lost and confused. I look forward to obtaining inspiration from my fellow readers and to enjoying their insights.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Marty Brody</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I live in Skokie Illinois, a Chicago Suburb. I'm the credit manager for Tech Lighting, a manufacturer of very up to the~moment mostly~overhead lighting. Lots of LED and other energy saving fixtures in addition to great styling. Five mornings a week~I do water aerobics or stationary bicycle~ride. I'm a great fan of theatre and classical music.~I am able to~attend~40 to 50 live~theater performances~and Chicago Symphony Orchestra performances each~year by volunteering through a performing arts volunteer group called "The Saints". I enjoy reading histories and biographies. This is my second encounter with Reading Odyssey. I read The~Odyssey with this group last spring. Herodotus looks great from what I've read so far and I'm looking forward to this experience.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Margaret Carayannopoulos</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I along with my husband George, will be joining you every month as part of the Herodotus 2010 reading group. I work at Harvard University as a Financial Officer for the Museum of Comparative Zoology:</font><a href="http://www.mcz.harvard.edu" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;">http://www.mcz.harvard.edu/</font></a></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">George has just retired as a scientist from MIT-Lincoln Laboratory and is finding his way into a whole new lifestyle.~ I love being with my grandchildren, walking and traveling. We wanted to let everyone know that yes, we both have a strong Greek back round (George is from Egypt.), speak <u>modern</u> Greek, but have <u>no</u> real knowledge-base of the ancient Greek language; we have much to learn from all of you.~ Also, we are one of the few Greek-Americans who decided to keep all fifteen letters of our last name! We look forward to gaining insight into a part of the world that at one time was so dynamic and gifted.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Nova Clarke</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I currently live in Auburn, AL. I am a 13 year veteran of the National Park Service, and moved to AL in January to work at Tuskegee Institute. I love history but my focus has always been more modern time periods and usually American. The last time I read anything ancient was in political philosophy in college so thought this would be a good way to break into that. Aside from history, I love being outside, gardening (about ready to harvest the peanuts planted in honor of Dr. Carver from outside the museum), opera, and hockey and am also really happy it is finally fall in the south.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Helen Haertl</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I live in Portland, OR and work in the consumer experience arena (mainly online) in the healthcare industry.~ This is my second Reading Odyssey - the first was The Odyssey.~I've always wanted to read more of the classics and this is a great way motivate myself to do so and to get insight from others doing the same thing.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Jason Happel</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">my wife and I are on vacation in the White Mountains in New Hampshire -- I'm reading Herodotus at the foot of beautiful Mt. Washington. I did manage to join the conference call Monday night and look forward to diving in. I teach, practice law, and read classical philosophy in my free time with two friends. I taught Jewish law and philosophy for a number of years, and currently teach a summer course on justice with a bio-ethics theme. I practice in the areas of family law, estate planning and probate, and small businesses, including social businesses. This is my first Reading Odyssey adventure, and from all indications, it will be a good one. I am delighted to see our wide-ranging backgrounds and interests. What a great group -- I feel lucky to have stumbled on it.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Gabby Hon</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I'm an independent User Experience Consultant in Chicago -- basically, this means that I do my utmost to make online experiences useful and usable for people. I'm currently doing a distance learning course in Latin (using Wheelock) via the University of Alaska--Fairbanks. I've previously studied both Latin and Ancient Greek but never for a grade. I'm entertaining the notion of getting my MA, Classics online from the University of Florida at some point in the future. When I'm not being a closet Classicist, I travel as much as I can and futz about with my new DSLR which has a bunch of whiz-bang features and a really thick manual.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">William Johnstone</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I'm British living in the UK just outside London. With the time difference I'm preparing myself for some very late nights! I studied theology as my first degree and was an ordained clergyman in the Church of England for a few years. After a while my outlook shifted quite dramatically and I converted to Catholicism nearly ten years ago. I now work for a charity as a fundraiser and have also returned to university as a mature student. I am studying classics at Univeristy College London, possibly with an idea of teaching Latin and Greek at some point.~I have an interest in Greek philosophy and literature and am very much looking forward to being part of the group.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Debi Lemieur</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I taught Latin (and occasionally ancient Greek) at the high school level for about seven years. Eventually I went back to school myself for higher degrees and am now teaching part time as an adjunct professor in the Classics at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia...Latin or courses in translation like "Ancient Tragedy", "Mythology", and "Classical Epic" (i.e., Homer). I also am involved in teaching a couple of courses called "Intellectual Heritage" at Temple University which cover an amazing span of subjects and authors in order to acquaint undergrads with the iconic texts of the modern world. I haven't read any Herodotus for years and thought that this would be a good time to renew my love of his Histories. Reading in a group is always more fun than reading alone!
When not involved in teaching I keep busy hiking and canoeing with my husband and our two dogs. Nic, my husband, is joining me in this Herodotus reading group experience.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Nick Lemieur</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I will be attending along with my wife Debi. We have lived just outside Philadelphia for the past 25 years, before that we lived in Lansing, MI and Boulder, CO. I work with a large global computer company in software asset management and distribution. On my own time I enjoy playing music, working with our 2 delightful pups, cooking, and the plethora of locally available art forms. My life~has been greatly enriched by Debi's passionate studies and teaching in the ancient classical~languages and history. I look forward to studying with you, drawing from the rich collective knowledge, contributing as possible from my own resources and perspective.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Suzanne Lewis</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I teach AP history courses at a private school in Ft. Worth. I have created a senior elective called The Art of War. It isn't a military history in any conventional sense. Rather it focuses on certain time periods, and battles, from economic, social, political, cultural, and so forth basis. I begin the course with a few comments, and very short readings from Herodotus and Thucydides. When I heard about this group, I decided it would be a challenging and interesting activity. I am not certain how much would translate into the course; I am doing it mostly for myself. I also recall that the first day of a Freshman history class on a Thursday afternoon the teacher assigned reading in Herodotus. I recall a very bewildering weekend, trying to plough through the many pages she assigned.
I look forward to discussions and reading with you all.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Kent McKamy</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Ran two of the US's larger public relations firms for nearly 35 years, got out of that field to focus on helping people develop more satisfying, better rounded lives through coaching, personal leadership development (taking charge of one's own life, one's own time and becoming more effective in whatever one chooses to do). Raised in Kentucky, lived for 28 years in Connecticut, have lived in New York City the past 29 years. Two years ago, I took off on a solo trip around the US to attempt what William Least-Heat Moon described in his wonderful book, <i>Blue Highways.</i> Keeping to back roads and country highways, I logged more than 7,000 miles, saw 36 states at ground level, met & talked with some 350 people (many of whom I'm still in touch with). Best adventure I've ever had. How I spend time:
walking 4-7 miles every day...reading spy books (Alan Furst & Olen Steinhauer particularly), mysteries (from Reginald Hill to Lee Child to Steig Larsson), motivational stuff (e.g., Dan Pink's <i>Drive, </i>Stephen Sample's <i>The Art of Contrarian Leadership)</i>, short story collections (James Salter, Mary Gaitskill, John Updike, John Cheever and Tobias Wolff are favorites)...seeing too many disappointing movies...writing short stories. ..and devoting time to my wife. Married (for the second time), have four grown children.</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">This is my first experience with the Reading Odyssey, having been inspired and challenged when I met Phil Terry last month. Looking forward to more.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Nan Okarma</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I was born and raised in NJ, but currently live outside of Boston.~ I work for a pharmaceutical/biotech company in Accounting and Finance and have spent my career in the Pharmaceutical and BioTech worlds. This is my 4th reading with The Reading Odyssey.~ I have also read with the group Thucydides, The Odyssey, and Xenophon. While not reading with The Reading Odyssey, I enjoy reading other genres with English authors being favored along with mysteries.~ I also spend time volunteering and enjoy biking, cooking, sports, and travel.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Tim Reagan</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I retired last year from many years working on the staff of a labor union. ~I have a project, currently on hold, writing a novel about the secondary characters in the Iliad. ~I'm also sitting in on a great Shakespeare class at U.C. Berkeley--I've never had enough Shakespeare in my life. ~Last year at this time I was traveling in Greece--the Pelopenese, Athens, Delphi, Santorini--and had gone to Turkey--Istanbul, Troy, Ephesus, and Capadokya.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Virginia Rowan</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I'm in the UK and several hours ahead of the States, so the reading group takes place during the night, for me.~~Hope I'll be able to keep up.~~Found the maps in Robert B. Strassler's edition of Herodotus very helpful. Never taken part in a reading Odyssey before, or used skype either.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">James Stathis</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Am an American-Greek and award-winning ancient & modern Greece documentary filmmaker and I founded </font><a href="http://CelebrateGreece.co" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;">CelebrateGreece.com</font></a><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">.~ I created the website to share with the world my passion for Greece’s history, culture, traditions, food and travel destinations.~ My lifelong passion for Greece was ignited like an Olympic torch when I first traveled to Greece with my family at age 13.~ I am presently producing </font><a href="http://www.celebrategreece.com/media.aspx?ID=5" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0"
style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;">Greece: Spirits of the Ancients</font></a><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">® (documentary) which showcases the amazing times, stories and accomplishments from ancient Greece that have touched so many individuals, societies and cultures of our world.~ Along with my wife Cynthia, I am also the director and co-producer of </font><a href="http://www.celebrategreece.com/media.aspx?ID=3" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;">A Greek Islands Destination Cooking Class</font></a><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;"> (DVD), which was voted as the </font><a href="http://www.celebrategreece.com/images/NYTimesAboutdotcomGiftChoice.jp" target="_blank"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0"
style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;">#1 New York Times’ About.com culinary-travel DVD gift</font></a><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">. CelebrateGreece.com is a growing online, video collection of Greece, Greek culture and history.~ We will be launching an expanded, new version of the website in about a month.~ We
independently produce, archive and offer video journeys exploring modern and ancient Greece.~ We reach, inform, educate and inspire worldwide audiences of all ages to celebrate Greece's everlasting ancient roots and modern historical and cultural traditions.~~ Our mission is to continue providing original Greek-themed productions produced by CelebrateGreece.com as well as representing talented, independent filmmakers who are aligned with our mission. I find I can never learn enough about the ancients and the wisdom they continue to feed to us all.~ I like to say that history and culture remembered allow us to know where we have been, who we are and where we are going.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Jeff Stehle</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I live near Detroit, Michigan. I feel like the odd-man-out in this group as I am a letter carrier with no degrees or college background. However, I have been a fan of ancient Greek history since first reading The Odyssey back in high school many,many,many~years ago. Just this past month, I fulfilled a life long dream by taking a three week trip to Greece and Turkey. I love to travel, having been to 49 of the 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. I am in the process of writing a blog of my recent trip for celebrategreece.com. Other than that, my hobbies include photography and geneaology. I have read Herodotus twice and look forward to reading it a third time with a group.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Marie Studer</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I am the~Learning and Education Group director~for the Encyclopedia of Life, an on-line resource that strives to be a "one-stop knowledge shop" of the latest scientific information about all life on Earth.~ By making this information freely available to all, EOL hopes to energize the science of biology and make it engaging and available to people from all walks of life, all over the world.~ I live and work in the~Boston, Massachusetts area.~ I'm interested in this time period and learning about the evolution of modern day cultures, languages, thought~and perceptions of the world.~ I especially like~Herodotus' holistic approach to writing (i.e., the~"digressions").~ In my spare time I enjoy being active outside, cooking (and eating!)~and beekeeping.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Bill Swislow</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I oversee content, development and hosting for the Cars.com<<a href="http://Cars.com" target="_blank">http://Cars.com</a>> web site. My background is in journalism. My main avocation is art, especially outsider/folk. I read a pretty random mix of non-fiction and fiction. Some years ago I started adding classical authors to the mix. Having since then done Aristotle and Xenophon with the Reading Odyssey, it's clearly an advantage to read these with a group, not to mention an expert.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Tom Tilley</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I'm British and moved over to Los Angeles with my wife when she began her PHD at USC. Prior to moving to the US I spent the past 6 years working in the UK and Hong Kong as a corporate strategist for a large British bank. I studied Classics as an undergraduate and want to renew my engagement with the subject.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Brooke Tolmachoff</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Am from Westminster, Colorado. ~I am on the call with my history club which consists of between 9-15 high school students. ~They are very excited for this opportunity and would be happy to tackle one of the questions in the next session</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Danny Weitz</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">a retired teacher of AP European and Classical History. I am currently in Istanbul after a cruise to Egypt, Israel, Crete and Cyprus. Saw lots of places mentioned by Herodotus. ~I'm an avid miniature war gamer and live near Princeton New Jersey.</font></div>
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<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">Martin Williams</font></div>
<div align="left" style="text-align:left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="+0" color="#000000" style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:12pt;color:#000000;">I spend my days as a research & sponsored programs administrator at William Paterson University (a public university in northern New Jersey) which means that I help folks apply for and then manage state and federal grants.~ I found my way to this by the fortunate coming together of two very different other things I am involved in.~ I started studying the Ancient Near East several years ago on my own, with an emphasis on the Persians and Israel.~ I taught a ancient history survey course as an adjunct for four years that made me expand my area of study to include the Greeks, Romans and Byzantines.~ Then, very separately, I got to know Pat Wictor through a coffeehouse I help with and his mailing list brought me to this reading adventure and Marathon 2500.~ I also spend time with my wife, the kids, my lawn, and chairing
a professional association.~ This I do for me.~ A suggestion: add Gilgamesh to the Reading Odyssey.</font></div>
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