“If I've learned anything in twenty-nine years, it's
that every human being you see in the course of a day has a problem that's sucking up at least 70
percent of his or her radar. My gift - bad choice of words - is that I can look at you, him, her,
them, whoever, and tell right away what is keeping them awake at night: money; feelings of
insignificance; overwhelming boredom; evil children; job troubles; or perhaps death, in one of its
many costumes, perched in the wings. What surprises me about humanity is that in the end such a
narrow range of plights defines our moral lives.”