I savor my despair.

We are meant for each other.

The show documents the incredible history of the 761st Tank Battalion. Almost half of the battalion’s men suffered casualties during the last six months of World War Two as they conducted campaigns that might charitably be described as suicidal. The 761st Tank Battalion was a segregated unit comprised entirely of black men. Quite a coincidence that they got some of the most dangerous assignments, no?

The Unlikely Liberators documented how the men of the 761st Tank Battalion liberated concentration camps. I was deeply moved by the accounts of black soldiers only too familiar with racial abuse and lynchings rescuing the concentration camp inmates.

The huge gulf between past and present vanished when I spotted Floyd standing in front of a photograph of him made during the war. There he was a couple meters away, a retired fighter wearing medals from a war that ended well over a half century ago.

I spent an inordinate amount of time composing my introduction before I approached him.

“Thanks,” I said as I shook Floyd’s hand.

“My pleasure, son,” he replied.

This is the first—and probably last—time I’ll ever brag about shaking someone’s hand.

I was tempted to take the lovely piece of sculpture, but that would have destroyed it. The net will die where it’s lived; there’s no other possibility.

Recently, Evy told me that she’s renaming the nights of the week to Saturnight, Sunnight, and so on. And today, I read that Saparmurad Niyazov, the president of Turkmen, née Turkmenistan, wants to rename most months as well as weekdays.

If his proposal is approved by the Khalk Maslakhaty (People’s Council), January will be renamed after the ambitious president himself, and April will henceforth be named after his mother: Gurbansoltan-edzhe. If all goes according to plan, September will be called “Rukhnama,” the title of one of Niyazov’s books.

Here’s the new lineup of weekdays ...

Monday will be Main Day;
Tuesday will be Young Day;
Wednesday will be Favorable Day;
Thursday will be Blessed Day;
Saturday will be Spirituality Day;
Sunday will be Rest Day.

For some reason, Niyazov decided not to rename Friday. I want to advise Niyazov to call Friday “Beerday,” but the crafty megalomaniac hasn’t published any contact information.

Something’s going on here, and what it is ain’t exactly beer.

“I think it’s good that you support your friends,” I said.

“But I’m not supportive,” Ruth replied. “I know exactly why they’re getting divorced. That’s why I dumped them long ago.”

“So what do you tell them?” I asked.

“I tell them to call me when they’re sober,” Ruth responded, “even though that means I probably won’t hear from some of them again.”

I felt a little like I’d joined a party already in progress. You certainly have a commitment to excess.

Abstemiously,

Melissa

Or perhaps Blake was wrong. I live far away from the palace of Wisdom. In any case, I’m sure Melissa wasn’t surprised when I admitted I’d never heard the word “abstemiously” before.