My father-in-law, Kalman Tillem died today. He was 92. I should write more, and someday I will. Even when expected such things always come as a shock. I feel fortunate to have known him. The picture at the right was one I took in May when I was in Detroit, and just ineptly hacked down for the moment.

I imagine the blog will be in sorry shape for the next couple of weeks. As it is, I'm packing now to start the drive tonight.

Update: I got to Detroit late Sunday night. Stopped over Saturday in a place called Sweet Spring, MO, about 1/4 into the 1000 mile drive. Had good weather and a smooth drive all the way, but I was surprised at how thick the traffic was. Still, a long, tiring schlep.

Funeral is Tuesday, July 8, 1PM, at Ira Kaufman Chapel.

Matthew R Simmons: Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy (2005; paperback, 2005, Wiley)

Simmons is chairman of Simmons & Company International, a Houston-based investment bank specializing in the energy industry. He made a big splash with this book, which questions whether claims are true that Saudi Aramco can significantly expand their petroleum production to keep up with projected demand. His background is in business (MBA), not geology, but the book is remarkably detailed in terms of Saudi Arabia's oilfield geology and technology. I figured at first I'd just read the early history sections and skip the fine print, but the latter proved irresistible. Info toward the back of the book on non-Saudi oilfields is also very interesting.