Pulitzer Prize? Okay!

So, in the Health Sciences Library today... I was collecting chairs for our group to meet around a big table and asked a kindly little old man if I could use one across from him. He said that was fine (in a funny old man way) and then grabbed my arm and said: "Are you a student here?"

Of course I say yes, and so began a 10 minute or so conversation with who turned out to be William Herman Bloom, a poet, novelist, 6-time coronary survivor, retired neurologist and brain surgeon, and (most recently) a Pulitzer Prize Nominee for his new book, "Wit, Wisdom, and Whimsy".

So I basically am in love with this tiny man who, as it turns out, is basically me trapped in a much more well-traveled, experienced, 80-year-old male body. English is his first love and he went into science as a default because he couldn't make money, back then, as a writer (ME). His daughter is an epidemiologist at the CDC in Atlanta (um, ME PLEASE!!!!) and he was just the coolest ever (well... me, you know....)

Anyway- my teacher finally asked a girl in our group to come over and get me so I could be included in this graded meeting, so I had to pull myself away from Mr. Bloom. But he didn't leave before quoting me as many inspirational sayings as humanly possible in about 30 seconds. But before he got up and left a few minutes later, he leaned to me, smiled like a 10-year-old boy and said:

"If you shoot for the stars, but land on the moon, you'd be happy right? Well I landed on the moon. And I think I'm doing okay."

I hope I meet him again!!