“On the desk beside my keyboard lies an artifact that I have kept at my side for more than half of my life. We’ve been through a lot together. Both of us have undergone a lot of changes over the years, but both of us, deep down inside, remain essentially the same as we began. The object in question started its existence as a ‘Colt Super .38 Automatic,’ one of the first few — according to a letter I used to have from the company historian — manufactured by the Hartford armsmaker when they retooled to make civilian weapons again after World War II. I was born in 1946; the pistol and I are about the same age.” (05/11/08)