I can't avoid the interest in the fact that I'm an injured female soldier.

When I joined the U.S. Army Reserve in 1992, there were no female four-star generals. I still remember the day in 2008 when a woman first achieved that rank.

My first direct encounter with the military was when I joined ROTC as a graduate student, although my father, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, can trace the military service in our family all the way back to the Revolutionary War.

I'm glad that people know my military service. But, like this nation, we are more than our military. And the rest of our story is the same as the rest of my story.

My view is that homeopathy is what you can do before you go to a doctor, not instead of going to a doctor, and it's a way of being positive and pro-active about health.

A memoir forces me to stop and remember carefully. It is an exercise in truth. In a memoir, I look at myself, my life, and the people I love the most in the mirror of the blank screen. In a memoir, feelings are more important than facts, and to write honestly, I have to confront my demons.

I try and maintain a little bit of fitness, man.

Bipolar disorder is a scary disease, but it is manageable. And I feel blessed that I was able to get the right attention and the right medication to deal with my specific illness.