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Some thoughts from Ian:
What the world needs to know about him is he was a DaVinci of his time.
I am a history major and know more on various subjects than 99% of all people I have ever met. Yet I couldn't last 5 minutes on ANY historical subject with my father. He knew dates and theories on all historical topics due in large part to his vociferous reading. He could details any of the Chinese dynasties, speak of the Roman Empire or Greek expansion.
Explain the rise of the Jewish faith or debate whether or not Macedonia was ever a true part of the Ottoman Empire. He knew modern history as if he memorized an encyclopedia on the subject. He knew ancient African history and was an expert on the Incas and Aztecs. WWI, WW2- flawless and of course he would love to chat for hours on the Russian Revolutions and European development over the centuries.
He appreciated all forms of art - African, Chinese, Japanese, and all the great painters of all eras- Renaissance and the like.
He moved to China for a semester to teach graduate students in the top textiles University in the world. He was a mentor to so many over there. He embraced the culture - teaching himself to WRITE Chinese in a matter of months. He took up Chinese calligraphy and nearly mastered the art. In less than a year! Without being able to speak the language!
He would tell me whenever he could that I was wasting my weekends going out on dates when I could spend an afternoon in MOMA or another great art museum. He used to spend dozens of hours a year exploring the world's great art museums and he soaked up knowledge while there.
The man repaired anything that ever broke in our house. He skillfully could build or rebuild anything. It was flat out shocking.
He read vector calculus, organic chemistry, physics, creation theory, Chaos theory, and other forms of advanced math - for pleasure!
He could drink with the best of them. He appreciated the glory that is Beer and gin and lived his life his way. Enjoying and savoring his gin - like he did everything in his life. Later in life he even started making his own wine and beer.
At first a work in progress, he later became very skilled and for 5 years or so we produced all of the family's wine! And, lots and lots of beer. This was before home brewing was as popular as it is today!
He was always a rabid gardener. When we moved to North Carolina, we lived on this large piece of property on a hill. Tons of beat up soil with nothing but weeds. Quite an ugly mess... and it was all on a hill. He bought a pick-up truck , in large part to ship soil and stones back and forth from gardening stores until all was perfect. He converted about an acre of land into a spectacular flowing garden.
My father loved to cook and he did so passionately. I was a fickle child who rejected his more elaborate creations until I was an adult. Once I started eating ‘everything’ I fell in love with his food. He took dishes that were already masterpieces and made them better. He didn’t just mimic complex recipes from cookbooks, he took the recipe and expanded upon it and added to it until he created a masterwork.
He loved Crossword puzzles and could complete the Sunday New York Times crossword (one of the toughest in the world) before lunch.
He SAVORED life and SAVORED knowledge. He enjoyed every second. And he will forever be missed and thought about as long as anyone who knew him shall live
Thank you God for him.
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