Osmium Dirigible

From the Acknowledgments page of his thesis, 1974:

A man is no more than his friends, no stronger than his motivation.

From the Acknowledgments page of his dissertation (University of Missouri 1976): 

I shoot the hippopotamus
with bullets made of platinum.
For if I use the leaden ones
his hide is sure to flatten 'em.   Duroc

 

Comments

[thejetset]

His life was gentle; and the elements
So mixed in him, that Nature might stand up,
And say to all the world, THIS WAS A MAN!

William Shakespeare.

[Green Dragon]

....a gentleman, a prince and a scholar - he made his mark and this world is the better for his efforts

[coco]

...He was an avid sportsman, hunter and fisherman. He especially enjoyed overnight float trips with his children and friends on the streams in Ozark County, Missouri, his wife’s home, and fishing on the Gulf of Mexico with son Sam and their friends. He died Friday morning at the controls of his fishing boat, the Catch and Keep, as he and a friend headed out the Anclote River, bound for the Gulf.
Memorial gifts may be made to the Dave Jones Youth Outdoors Fund, a part of the nonprofit Community Foundation of the Ozarks, Box 218, Gainesville, MO 65655.

[Rocky]

Though I met him just briefly, it was clear he was a man of character – forged in the crucible of his family, but polished by his own pursuits - a cabin in the woods may be the least of his accomplishments, yet it is great in its own right beyond what many people even dream of doing –

[Inky Ink, Inc.]

There are only five great men in the world and three of them are hamburgers. - Don Van Vliet

If Don is correct then there's some odds our man Osmium might have been a hamburger. A damn good one, too. A double. Maybe even a triple. With bacon. And sharp cheddar. Some green chili. And a side of fries and a Coke. Husband, father, brother, friend--he left before his time and will be sorely missed by many.