The avocado tree is one of striking dichotomy: Both deciduous and evergreen, it sheds its leaves every season, but only after growing a new set to replace them. Wood bearing characteristics of both hardwood and softwood, and notoriously difficult to grow to maturity, a ring bearing this wood must have its own dichotomies. Titanium, the alloy of modernity, mixed with this most ancient and beloved wood, and worn by a man who is both tough, rugged as a hardwood, but with the sensibility of understanding, of nuance.