Me and My Life

1 July 1985: I am born.
7 March 1986: Richard W. Hamming gives a speech entitled "You and Your Research" that includes this part-of-a-paragraph:

Over on the other side of the dining hall was a chemistry table. I had worked with one of the fellows, Dave McCall; furthermore he was courting our secretary at the time. I went over and said, "Do you mind if I join you?" They can't say no, so I started eating with them for a while. And I started asking, "What are the important problems of your field?" And after a week or so, "What important problems are you working on?" And after some more time I came in one day and said, "If what you are doing is not important, and if you don't think it is going to lead to something important, why are you at Bell Labs working on it?" (emphasis added)

circa 2000-2003: I read said speech off a printout m'dad had lying around. I am greatly impressed.
Ten minutes ago: I realize that this is relevant to my own life, to what I want to do in grad school and after.