Ben Gardner, a good influence

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Despite my start as a wild and unruly college kid, I have survived to become an old-fashioned considerate monkey. Instrumental in that evolution were my many friends. Ben was one of those helpful people who has humored me then, now and in the days to come.

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Hi-res	Ben, a cynical, harmless and eminently talkative fellow. Part-time devil's advocate, he is great at delivering inspired rants. He even laughs at my jokes, probably for the sake of good manners. He has an amazing range of characters. Next time you read on-line personals, remember that the pictures below all show the many facets of the same mild-mannered artist.
A macho man.	A dangerous intellectual with high-brow tastes.
. Shy, almost reclusive boy?	Philosopher? Why, yes. Ben reads and thinks more than a normal prole ought to. The authorities have been notified.
	An in-your-face take-charge dynamic nutcase? Nah, that's my job description
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	An unassuming wage-earner? He can cook up a soup, a cappucino or a literary allusion with equal aplomb. His collection of Shakespeare plays is most impressive.
Hey, droog!	"He was such a quiet fella", the neighbors would say. The badass side of Ben is completely imaginary, but you wouldn't know it from this photo. How do you think TASS, AP and other fine information services make news photos interesting?
	So who is he, in the end? From where did he spring? This early picture of Ben shows his then-furry look. It proves conclusively that he evolved from a dignified bearded primitive to a normal, well-adjusted modern human via the college student stage.