Yeah. I realized that it's a near certainty that all the retirees I traveled with 32 years ago are now dead, especially the Hellcat pilot. He was I think 75 at the time.

Sitting in a hotel bar in Kiev with him, drinking vodka, and listening to tales of the Pacific theater -- mostly just antics with his buddies, but some flight stories -- was pretty amazing. I wish I had kept a journal back then, because I've mostly forgotten any specific anecdotes.