At the same time, though, I was determined to be civil and decent to my traveling companion. Here is a lesson I learned long ago, and which my kids remind me of whenever I need reminding: When you are a crank, you put yourself on the top of the list of people you make miserable. So I would be decent, I’d be perfectly polite. I’d give Mr. Rinpoche a taste of solid old midwestern American hail-fellow-well-met.
