Bret Stephens: Hallo from Berlin, Gail. The weather’s perfect, the cabdrivers are friendly and you could eat off the floor of the train station (and probably not regret it). Just like New York City.

I’ve been thinking a lot about John McCain. His political hero, Teddy Roosevelt, believed the good life should be lived “in the arena,” and even now he seems to be living that creed to its fullest. He’s still a force in the Senate, he has a new book and he’s planning his own funeral (like his other hero, Winston Churchill). The president is not invited. Your thoughts?

Gail Collins: I’ve been thinking about the first time McCain ran for president in 2000.

It was the absolute best political event I ever covered. Not sure it was entirely a race, since he was up in New Hampshire for months and months all by himself, just going to town meetings and talking about campaign-finance reform.

Bret: The best political hour and the most tedious political subject. Go on.

Gail: It was what everybody imagines an underdog campaign would be like — a few reporters and the candidate, driving around in a bus, telling jokes, talking about issues, and of course arguing about where to eat dinner that night. But it was also a crusade — McCain thought if you reformed the way politicians raised money to run for office you could change the world.