stubborn raze i called him to thank him for the message he left yesterday wishing me a happy_birthday. i said i was sorry i missed him. he said not to worry about that. he asked me how the day was. i said it was pretty good for a milestone i had mixed feelings about. "i didn't want to say the number," he said. "i thought i'd let you absorb that in your own way, in your own time. but that's the thing to remember: it's just a number. you've got a lot more ahead of you." i asked how he was doing. he sounded pretty good for someone who just had a piece of his lung removed last week. maybe a little slower than he is at his best, but no less vital. "i'm getting better," he said. "one day at a time." i told him i was glad he was still with us. "we need more good people in the world," i said. he laughed through the dense fog of pain-dulling narcotics and said, "us hard, stubborn types tend to be hard to get rid of." i told him i considered myself lucky to be a part of the club. "it's good to have you here," he said. 230817 what's it to you? who go blather from