Do you think there comes a point in your life when you should just stop learning completely, be the smartest person in the room and give your knowledge and wisdom to those who need it? This is why staying in your league is important, am I right?

No. That hasn’t happened yet for me. I am 70 years old. I am a retired Apple engineer with two engineering degrees (B.S. & M.S.) from Texas A&M University, the latter at the top of my class. Throughout my life I have almost always been the smartest person in the room. I have no intention of stop learning. In fact, I am back at school a third time at Texas State University — San Marcos as a student. This time I am taking music performance classes in the School of Music in order to learn how to be a better jazz musician. I am already playing semiprofessionally in three different jazz bands, and I still have a lot to learn from the very talented faculty at Texas State. Some of them were trained in the Juliard or Berklee School of Music. Some of them are my age.

C’est la vie.