I'm a little worried about Mara. She's been down lately. She gets this way every year around the anniversary of her father's death. She told me that she was a little down. Ass that I am, I tried to cheer her up by pondering in messages what could have her down. It never occurred to me that it was about Tom's death.

I will say in my defense that I tend to remember birthdays and people's lives more than their deaths. I've never been one to observe death dates. I miss Tom. But it's his life and personality that I remember. That's what should be observed.

Anyway, here's to Tom Nickell. A better father-in-law a man could not ask for. It will always be my deep regret that I didn't have a chance to get to know him better. He died too young.