How could we remember Taylor without remembering his humor? Reflecting back on our friendship, it's the thing that shines brightest. But to say Taylor was a funny person would be to trivialize the character traits that made him funny: he had the intelligence to recognize absurdity, the heart to see that humor is sometimes the only way to confront sadness, and, most importantly, the self-restraint and selflessness to never waste time laughing at his own jokes. That last trait -- a perfect deadpan -- would sometimes make me a little uncomforable. It can be intimidating to see someone living so fearlessly in his own mind.

Driven people -- the people who really care more about their art than their egos -- are hard to find, but Taylor was one of them. He never let trivial things distract him from ob-serving the world around him at a cool distance. I'm the kind of person who gets angry in the face of foolishness or ignorance. It was both admirable and infuriating the way Taylor, faced with an offensive remark or person, would simply roll his eyes and squelch a grin, as if to say: we need not waste our time on all that.

--Emily Hartwell Howorth

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