The "Way-Back Machine," again

...but not as far back this time. In the early 1980s, I worked for a couple years as a pump attendant in a full-service gas station (remember those?), and became friends with the assortment of coworkers. Louisville is a small enough town that I would encounter one or another of those guys--or a wife of one--from time to time in my getting around town, but I didn't keep up with them on a daily, weekly, or even annual basis.

One of that crew died a few days ago. I hadn't seen John in five or ten years, and regret not keeping up with him. I was glad to go to the visitation and funeral--well, glad is not the right word, as it implies, well... I was glad to see some of John's friends and family--his first wife, who remembered me immediately, although it had been thirty years since I had seen her, the gang from my time at the gas station, and a few new connections as well. I would not have not gone, as I told some of the folks there.

The focus of the gathering was not as much fun as the last time I cranked up the way back machine, but I'm glad I went. There are some good folks who have influenced my life, and it's worth paying homage to those influences from time to time.