Teach Your Children Well

"There's an old man sitting next to me, making love to his tonic and gin." Piano Man, Billy Joel (Columbia Records, 1973).

I learned how to be a man from my father. I learned how to laugh, to love and to work hard. I also learned to drink from him.

His favorite summer drink was the Gin and Tonic. Burgundy Basin Inn bartender Vinnie (his real name - he had been a Monroe County Sheriff's deputy in the '60s) never served one without priming the rim with a lime. My friend John Needham and I sat for hours, solving the problems of the world as only 20 year olds can, with Vinnie's handiwork before us.

My dad is gone, his life's work done. Tonight, I toasted him with a G&T. Happy Father's Day, you goofy old guy.