We meet again

I took the day off today to make sure I didn't miss a lunch appointment with a couple of old friends, one of whom is dying. He's only about 10 years older than I am, so of course he's too young to be that close to the precipice.

But there he is, looking like hell but sounding like the same guy whose jokes and observations about life I've been chuckling over for the last seven years. A Boston Democrat, he sent me an e-mail back in '99 after I wrote nice things in the paper about The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Turns out he's a Heinlein nut. His e-mail began something like, "I usually disagree with everything you say, but if you like Heinlein you can't be all bad."

It turns out we have more in common than we thought at first, especially as I've shed the last vestiges of my belief in the Republicans. He may be a Boston Democrat, but he has the sense to know when his party is off-base (sometimes at least), and as you might expect from a Heinlein nut, he also has taught me a thing or two about libertarianism.

I have another friend whose 13-year-old son is fighting for his life. My old friend and my young friend are reminders of how we have no guarantees in this life.

Those reminders hurt, but they also empower. These friends may have a matter of months left, or years, or decades - it's hard to say. But they are reminders that we all have a finite lifespan on this Earth.

Time's a-wasting, in other words, so I'm saddling back up sooner, not later. I wasn't planning to be gone for more than a few more days anyway. Thanks for holding down the fort while I was off contemplating my navel. I pulled a few intriguing ideas out of the lint, too. (Yeck, Brian, way to extend the metaphor out to its full grossness ...)

I have a launch date for one project of May 1 - that may be a tad ambitious, but I like a good challenge. Expect an announcement in a week or so.

Both of my grandpas lived to be 85, so I've been ambling along figuring my time left could be measured in decades. At the risk of sounding like a failed president in his sixth or seventh year, at some point you start thinking about what legacy you want to leave behind. I think I've found my themes, now it's time to start developing them. Montag has always been part of the plan - now I'm starting to figure out what that plan really is. Stay tuned.