I was often turned down. Most of Hollywood turned me down, and I spent a lot of time trying to figure out why that was. There was a real reticence among actors to do this. They have more gatekeepers.

The Goth kids ... are searching for something, he says, and it's not him. But he can try to point them in the right direction, toward the things he was searching for as a Goth teenager and as a depressed, self-absorbed young adult.

Jesus must have had man hands. He was a carpenter, the Bible tells us. I know a few carpenters, and they have great hands, all muscled and worn, with nicks and callused pads from working wood together with hardware and sheer willpower. In my mind, Jesus isn't a slight man with fair hair and eyes who looks as if a strong breeze could knock him down, as he is sometimes depicted in art and film. I see him as sturdy, with a thick frame, powerful legs, and muscular arms. He has a shock of curly black hair and an untrimmed beard, his face tanned and lined from working in the sun. And his hands—hands that pounded nails, sawed lumber, drew in the dirt, and held the children he beckoned to him. Hands that washed his disciples' feet, broke bread for them, and poured their wine. Hands that hauled a heavy cross through the streets of Jerusalem and were later nailed to it. Those were some man hands.

In her inestimable audacity, Julia was the catalyst in my life for something beautiful. I hadn't anticipated her—hadn't even wanted her, truthfully—but there she was. A little something extra that made all the difference in the world.

I spend a lot, a lot, a lot of time on the Web.

These are the people that Barbara and I have both built relationships with over time. Some of these relationships are those that I brought to the table.