I’m often asked how I find fresh anecdotes from history for this weekly column, now in its ninth year. As a child, I was fascinated by the past and I read voraciously. While I recall some stories and events in detail, most are filed away as impressions highlighted by key points, names and time periods, which come in handy when I search both online and off to fill in the blanks.

In 1065, Emperor Yingzong, of the Northern Song dynasty, commissioned Sima Guang to compile a grand narrative of China’s past. Sima and his team of scholars took 19 years to complete the three-million-word Zizhi Tongjian (“Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in Governing”), which covered almost 1,400 years. The utilitarian aim of the tome, as reflected in its title, meant it focused on politics, with little coverage of economics and culture. While the compilers were unabashed about twisting the past according to their own biases, it’s still regarded as a great text.

Historians work for goals both noble and ignoble: to give an impartial account of historical events; to use the past to understand the present; to validate current regimes; or to justify the status quo.

But I’m no historian. I use the past to pay the bills.