“Who do you think will win Iowa?” I asked Stan as he replaced the starter on my 8-year-old beater. Stan watches all those cable TV shows that talk about politics, so I knew he’d have an informed opinion. It’s a well-known fact that the more TV you watch, the smarter you become.

“Oh, I don’t know,” he said, “I guess it depends on what the people in Boise decide to do.”

“Boise? What has Boise got to do with it?” I asked.

“What’s Boise got to do with it?” He lifted his head from under the hood and spoke to me very slowly as if I had just flunked English as a second language.

“Boise is the capital of Iowa. It’s the biggest city in the state. Whoever wins in Boise is sure to win the whole state.”

It was pretty obvious that Stan was confusing Iowa with Idaho, which is a common mistake. Some people confuse Iowa and Idaho the way I confuse my left and my right. I can almost guarantee you that if I say “Turn right,” I really mean “Turn left,” which is what makes traveling with me so much fun. Every day is an adventure. Sue’s even invented a word for my syndrome -- dysleftia.