Well, I quit drinking 21 years ago, but Whiskey was usually my drink of choice. I'll do this vicariously...father of my buddy (of 44 years) died this past Summer. I wasn't hurting for a father figure, but I grew up with the whole family, basically, and consider all of them dear friends.
My buddy's dad would usually let chatter go around the room for a good 15-20 minutes, then say one thing, totally stoned-faced and without a hint of irony, just lay the entire room flat with a desert-dry one liner. All original material, too. (one of my favorites...my buddy decided he wanted a dog one year. Well, actually, he apparently decided he wanted ALL of the dogs, but just in four legs and one enormous head (I wear an 8 1/2 hat, and this dog's noggin was noticeably larger than mine). I could say, "think Marmaduke", but that wouldn't suffice. Put it this way...no one ever taught the dog NOT to jump on people. I'm 6'3". When the dog put his paws on my shoulders to greet me, he'd be at about a 45 degree angle from me and the ground. I think it was part black lab, and part Palomino horse. Dog's name was Duke.
We're sitting around the house one day, Summer and high school is out. Duke walks into the house with a small child's tennis shoe in his mouth. We'd all been laughing and joking a while, but that stopped when Duke walked in. My buddy's dad looks over the top of the newspaper he's been reading, pauses about 1 second, and said "oh my God, Duke ate a kid!", then just goes back to reading. It's hard to pull a horse off of someone when they are on the floor, convulsing with laughter.
So this Summer, after the funeral, and before getting to my buddy's house, I picked him up a bottle of Jack D single barrel (kee-ryst, I'm glad I quit drinking...it's farking expensive!). Gave him that and several high-end Padrons at the house. He knows his Whiskey, and he's still a bit of a noob on cigars, but catching up. Frankly, for a good friend, even when I'm hurting for $, I'm springing for the good stuff for something this important and heart-breaking. I think I got that one right...no?
RIP, Chuck. You were a good man, loved by many, and you and your wife raised three great kids. Think I'll give your son a call this weekend.
pacman357 wrote:
