Steve Jobs passed away today. And I mourn him, and then I think I never knew him. I think of how he touched my life, and then how he was a CEO of a major corporation. That he created products I bought, formed a company I believe in, brought it back from the brink, helped create markets, lead technology. It's crazy. But he's not family, he's not a close friend. But yet I mourn him. I try and think of other examples, of situations like this. I think of when Michael Jackson died. He was a forerunner. He changed things. But he was also well past his prime. Steve Jobs was in the middle of an incredible hot streak with the company he led. Then I think of JFK, before my time, but the difference being that Kennedy was stolen from life. Abruptly. At least with Jobs, there was a little preparation. At least a little. But I guess it's the same sort of thing? Maybe? A visionary. Against the grain. No other. I wonder what he could have come up with if he wasn't force out of Apple all those years ago. Might we have been 12 years past where we are now? Or did he need that stuggle to be the person to help create all those iProducts? Without him where would the world be? What would technology be like? I hope that his vision, his visions, his dreams, live on, in some black sketchbook, in some doodles, in images, in journals. I wonder what else he dreamed and wished and would have the force to make reality. I sadden at the thought that somewhere, some CEOs might be rejoicing, thinking that now the iFad will pass away. I sadden at some article putting Steve Jobs in the 1% that #occupywallstreet is protesting. Because he wasn't just about making money. He was about doing great things, and understanding that to do great things, you had to be successful, or else you can't do the great things. That he was putting power back in the hands of the people, and not just looking to make more money. But as I type this out on an iMac, planning on which iPhone 4S to get, before reading a bit on my iPad before bed, I have to thank the man who lead the team, who I'd like to think willed those products into existence. For believing in them so they could be made. Thanks. The world is better off because you were here.