"The dead might as well try to speak to the living as the old to the young." - Willa Cather

This guy is the envy of every other guy on the ship and most of them on land.

Interesting day. Lots of mental stimulation and completed tasks.

Started out on Ilsa. I got the three buggered screws drilled out and tapped for oversize screws. I also got the steering wheel shaft fixed. I committed a rookie mistake and messed up the threads at the top but the old guys down at the Sun City metalworking club were able to get them straightened out. 

Do you have any idea how many times the phrase "one another" occurs in the NT epistles? I knew it was a lot, but I had no clue it was that many! Discovered that as I was rewriting my sermon and making the slides. I also finished the song slides by creating the set for "Be Thou My Vision." My concern is that the powerful lyrics, using words and phrases rarely heard anymore, go by too quickly for younger audiences to process. 

Yes, younger. Punk kids. 

Had lunch with my friend Cheryle and then drove down to Scottsdale to visit with Carl again. We just met earlier this week but conversation is easy and enjoyable. 

I understand we want to have an influence in the Middle East, especially given the significant changes in several of the Arab countries. But I need someone to explain to me why, given our country's serious financial problems, our President today forgave $1 billion of Egypt's debt and promised them another $1 billion in additional aid. Should he be doing that now? Will we get $2 billion worth of bang for those bucks? 

OK, maybe not the best turn of phrase in this case but you get my drift.

Kareem Abdul Jabbar was supposed to be a 5-minute interview on Mike & Mike this morning, mostly to plug a movie that debuts tomorrow on Netflix Streaming, a movie he produced. He ended up staying for almost an hour at their request. I was frozen in my seat watching and listening. Fascinating and troubled soul. He's had remarkable success as an athlete and now in film. But he's never experienced a fraction of the love and adulation his most famous teammate, Magic Johnson, has enjoyed. And he struggles with how he's perceived. To his credit he understands much of that has to do with his shyness. 

Most of us expect(ed) the early stages of adulthood to be difficult - those early years of marriage, career and parenting. But by the time we get to the sixth or seventh decade we should be surrounded by friends and loved ones, and feel a sense of ease. It doesn't have anything to do with money; that can seriously get in the way. Professional recognition is nice, but only as an accessory. Having a tightly knit circle of friends and family is what matters. My sense is that Kareem doesn't have either. And that's what makes me feel so bad for Carl. Such a good guy to be so alone in life.