On Signatures

I was writing a thank-you note tonight, and had some trouble picking the right closing for the paper. It's very rare that people consider their endings, but I do. It's amused people in the past, but that's not why it matters. The way I close a note says something my feelings toward the recipient. It might only matter to me, but I want my statements to represent what I feel. For instance, if I say "truly yours", I'm writing a formal letter. My few close, trusted friends will get messages ending with "Love", but only if they would appreciate the remark. Some of my friends act too tough for hugs and love. A casual note gets a signature like "Hope and happiness" or "Peace and joy". Letters to very religious folk get signed "Faithfully yours" or "Yours in Christ". I won't give away all my closings, as an incentive to write me a note so you can get one.

While at Chicago, I've always had an email signature, which changes from time to time. The choices reveal things about what I think and what I feel, and thus they illustrate my life. Here's the list, chronologically, with the authors and why I used them.

"It's not the numbers themselves, but what you do with them that matters." [K. A. C. Manderville. Fall 2000 - Winter 2001.] This comes from the frontpiece of Kendall's Advanced Theory of Statistics, in reality. The book mentioned doesn't really exist. It's a safe choice for a statistics department. Still, it hints at my applied and worldly emphasis - what I do with them.
"Whoever fights monsters should see to it that he does not become a monster. When you look into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you." [F. Nietzsche. Winter 2001 - Winter 2002.] I based this on a conversation with a friend. She described me once as a monster-fighter, to take down all the evil entities I see. I also thought it was fun to use an athiest in my sig line. This attracted attention from the chairman, although I wasn't implying anything about the department. After 9/11, in the rush for vengence, several people (including my mom) commented on its appropriateness.
"To understand God's thoughts we must study statistics, for those are the measure of his purpose." [Florence Nightingale. Winter 2002 - Summer 2002.] This just fits me. It's theological and statistical, and relates the two. The author is sort of interesting, since most people know here as a nurse. Less well known are her contributions to epidemiology and descriptive statistics, though I'm amazed by the 40 percent hospital mortality rate. Keeping track of how people died made improvements possible, and life better, which is what Science should do.
"If I can ease one life the aching, or cool one pain, or help one fainting robin unto his nest again, I shall not live in vain." [Emily Dickinson. Fall 2002 - Winter 2003.] OK, I got a little literary and sweet here. That's me. By this point, I was a little concerned with the moroseness and abyss of a PhD program, particularly in winter quarter. Didn't help much, though.
"And Man as a whole, Man pitted against the universe, have we seen him at all till we see that he is like a hero in a fairy tale?" [C. S. Lewis. Spring 2003 - Summer 2003.] This quote is the header for my positive Christianity series, but you can see that I have liked it for several years. It comes from Lewis's review of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. I still don't understand why we don't pursue our fantasies, what we read to reach fleetingly. Is it because we'll fail? Look at Boromir, or Saruman; of course we fail sometimes. That doesn't make it a wrong goal.
"Statistics are like a bikini. What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital." [A. Levenstein. Fall 2003 - Winter 2004.] I put this one up while I served as TA for two undergraduate courses, figuring the younger students would appreciate the imagery. I did get two negative comments, that it was a bit too, um, suggestive. I also got about seven positive comments, including from my parents. (They have a healthy sensuality.) Overall, it was a big success.
"Faithless is he who says farewell when the road darkens." [J. R. R. Tolkien. Spring 2004 - Summer 2004.] After my latest bout with clinical depression, I decided to change my signature to something with personal meaning. The road was extremely dark (and I write about it elsewhere) but I was trying to find my way back.
"Go in peace! I will not say: do not weep, for not all tears are an evil." [J. R. R. Tolkien. Spring 2004 - Summer 2004.] I used this on my Yahoo account, for personal email only. Like the one on faithlessness, this is a reference to my emotional situation. Plus, it's fun to send messages in the macho gaming world that favor crying. It's Tolkien, so nobody can complain.
"A witty statesman said, you might prove anything by figures." [Thomas Carlyle. Fall 2004 - Winter 2005.] This is a cool little signature for work, talking about statistics. It's also a little witty, like the statesman, since numbers can be used for good and evil means. Sometimes, by the same person.
"If a man takes unto himself God's right to punish, then he must also take upon himself God's promise to restore." [Alan Paton. Spring 2005.] I picked this in late February, after the whole Calvert House thing, for only my Yahoo account. I found the quote in the excellent free e-book Why Forgive?, which I was reading to try to reach an accomodation with the Catholic Church. The line comes from Too Late the Phalarope, Paton's second novel. The first, Cry the Beloved Country, apparently was an Oprah's Book Club selection. Who knew?
"Is there any more effective weapon than love, alone?" [Bishop Anders Arborelius. Spring 2005 - Winter 2006.] Bishop Arborelius, Bishop of Sweden, came to Chicago for a couple talks. I attended the student lunch with him, to get free lunch, and felt bound to go his talk that afternoon. It wasn't very good, and I can't remember the topic. I learned a lot more about divinity schools. About 40 attended. Only two people were not dressed in dark, muted color: myself, in light green, and white-clad Simone (of the parish visit.) This line was a throwaway somewhere in the speech. I switched to this almost immediately afterwards. The Bishop has been associated with the Escrivites, so like Nietzche, I'm amused by using an intellectual opponent in my signature.
"Statistics are human beings with the tears wiped off." [Paul Brodeur, Winter 2006.] I searched for a more businesslike quote as I continued my job search. This mentions statistics and the humans behind them, making it very appropriate. The quote comes from the book Outrageous Misconduct. Brodeur, a writer for the New Yorker, pursued the efforts by key U.S. asbestos firms over some 50 years to challenge their liability for numbers of asbestos workers' deaths. It's a typical story of corporate malfeasance. Asbestos was touted as wonderful insulation, and it is. Unfortunately, the fibers, when inhaled, lead to serious lung problems. Now, asbestos removal requires hazard suits, but the damage was done.

Last updated: February 2006. I'm not particularly exact about time normally, so why start now?