WHEN MY 59-YEAR-OLD NEIGHBOR KNOCKED AT MIDNIGHT, I THOUGHT I WAS FIXING A PIPE, BUT I WAS REALLY SAVING MY OWN LIFE…

into the front pocket.

“Looks like you came to supervise,” I said.

“No,” she said gravely. “To provide strategic oversight.”

The job should have taken an hour. Instead it took most of the afternoon because we kept talking. She handed me bolts, made dry commentary about my technique, and at noon called a recess for iced tea. There was a looseness in us continue reading …