Recognizing the Kerry speech pattern.

ME (reading): Okay, who said this: "The sea is important to me. I get a lot out of being close to it. It's my connection. It's where I've always been. It's where I get a peace of mind and creativity."



JOHN: John Kerry?



ME: How'd you get that?



JOHN: It sounds like him. That's the way he talks. It sounds like when he was talking to Larry King about his religion--his feeling of being centered. He's always talking in abstractions.

For the record, here's the Larry King interchange (my son) John remembered:

KING: OK, what part does your faith play in your governance?



KERRY: It guides you. It's your rock. It's the bedrock of your sense of place, of where it all fits.