I grew up in a small town in Illinois and my dad was a basketball coach. Thanks to him I have excellent fundamentals in both basketball and baseball.

My dad tells me that he took us to a pantomime when I was very very small - panto being a sort of English phenomenon. There's traditionally a part of the show where they'll invite kids up on the stage to interact with the show. I was too young to remember this but my dad says that I was running up onstage before they even asked us.

My dad liked to boil a squirrel head and suck the brains out the nose. Smaller than a chicken bigger than a rat.

I sort of always had an inkling towards some kind of an art form. I grew up in a very small town and I just figure-skated. My dad played hockey and I was surrounded by sports but it wasn't quite doing it for me. I wasn't totally fulfilled and I did a lot of skating.

My Dad a small-town lawyer was also named Paul. Until we lost him when I was 16 he was a gentle presence in my life. I like to think he'd be proud of me and my sister and brothers because I'm sure proud of him and of where I come from Janesville Wisconsin.

The place of the father in the modern suburban family is a very small one particularly if he plays golf.

When we read stories of heroes we identify with them. We take the journey with them. We see how the obstacles almost overcome them. We see how they grow as human beings or gain qualities or show great qualities of strength and courage and with them we grow in some small way.

You take a number of small steps which you believe are right thinking maybe tomorrow somebody will treat this as a dangerous provocation. And then you wait. If there is no reaction you take another step: courage is only an accumulation of small steps.

America needs jobs smaller government less spending and a president with the courage to offer more than yet another speech.

Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task go to sleep in peace.