Retired Rear Adm. Maurice H. “Mike” Rindskopf, who when he was 26 was the Navy’s youngest submarine commander, died last month (link):

Firing torpedoes is “all about mathematics,” and Adm. Rindskopf — who was known for his quick mind for math — played a critical role in firing 125 of them. He often volunteered for the night watch, drinking hot soup while decoding messages about the movements of enemy targets. Fellow crew members always knew when it was time.

“I would don a garish yellow aloha shirt I had purchased in Hono­lulu,” Adm. Rindskopf wrote in his memoir, “and lo! we went to Battle Stations.”

Not all who offer an aloha wish to have the greeting returned.

Brigham Young had a lot of zest for life, but you wouldn’t know it from some of his preaching. He seemed to take the position that this life is the time to prepare to meet God and only valuable insomuch as it prepares us. (more…)