And now a word from...

I promise I'll get to the next post, titled "Of Dogs and Droids," soon. But first, a serious and annoyingly out-of-character pause.

Upon diagnosis, the five year survival rate for pancreatic cancer is 4%. My coworker's son didn't last nearly that long (I think four months) and died a year ago at the age of 37. His by-all-accounts-excellent doctors were impressed by his "tenacity." This disease also wiped out much of Jimmy Carter's family.

I don't often pimp for charities, but an optimistic five years' warning followed by nonstop suffering (for you and your family) is hard to comprehend. In the unlikely event you have a few extra nickels you don't know what to do with, keep that in mind. Think of what you were doing five years ago, and how short a time that was even if you are in the habit of living each day as if it is your last.