Happy Birthday Stephen Hawking

"Before, I was very bored with life. I drank a fair bit, I guess; I didn't do any work... When one's expectations are reduced to zero [being diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease in the mid 1960's], one really appreciates everything that one does have."  -Stephen Hawking

Twenty years ago Gary Lynn Jepsen and I spent several years having more laughs together than a pack of hyenas.  Over tanker truck loads of beer we played endless hours of pinball, went to countless horse races, took dozens of Cornhusker road trips to exotic lands like Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri. Gary was like Sara Lee - nobody didn't like him.  He never had a bad day, was always funny and fun to be with.  A very large and brilliant man, he was uninterested in any physical exertion (at least any vertical physical exertion), and had what he called "a touch of the sugar diabetes." (When he would say that K would squirm like an Episcopalian in a Catholic pew).

Thursday, in Omaha, Gary was shoveling snow, had a heart attack and died.