don gramm has been a real mentor. the former editor of the post was with me -- of "the post" was with me all the wsay. ay. >> are you back here for good? >> i would never say that. for now. i always want to be able to travel and go back overseas again. i am not sure i have the chance. net -- i would not say anything is permanent. it was time to move on from "the washington post" and do new things. i wanted to try more writing and teaching. after the book came out, "out of america: a black man confronts africa," a lot of friends have been saying, you have got to write another book. i have not had time to sit down and develop one. as i started to look at it, i am 54 years old. i do not have a lot of time if iraqi -- if i want to write more. i got to be in china at an exciting time. this is the time now to step back and use these last healthy years to try to do more types of writing, specifically, book writing. it is difficult to leave "the washington post" but if i want to write more books and do more things, this was t