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“The great supercomputer Deep Thought is the most powerful computer ever built, with one exception.

“It was designed by hyper-intelligent pan-dimensional beings, who wanted to know the answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything.

“Its creation annoyed a fair few philosophers, who felt that it was taking over their turf.

“After seven and a half million years of serious cogitation, Deep Thought spoke the answer. However, it was so inexplicable that Deep Thought then had to go on and design the most powerful computer ever built (with no exceptions) to work out what the question was.”

— BBC Radio 4

Douglas Adams may have been as suspect of deep intellectual speculation as the writers of “Saturday Night Live” when they created Stuart Smalley. I have my own opinions but we know what they’re worth on the open market.

If it seems that in these pages I have attempted to dazzle you with my own cogitation, there was no such intention. That being said…

Several of the entries in this blog have resonated one way or another with the handful of readers with some time on their hands and an open mind. I appreciate your comments and suggestions, especially when my text resonates with some personal aspect or memory. The story of Nina Köpman, for instance, came from nothing personal, but seemed to me to typify the emigrant story during a portion of the American Experience. Miss Köpman, it turned out, was an echo of reader’s grandmother’s story and for that confirmation I am deeply grateful.

The question du jour is simple: Should I measure this project’s worth by the number of visitors or the earnestness of their comments? Consider the question asked and answered.