Old, Dear Friends

I hadn't seen my friend Edee in a long while. Last night we went for dinner, along with Dr. Barry. Barry was coming off a horrific week in the pediatric ICU, including one case that he said was straight out of "House." He was SO happy to have his 2 stoli martinis along with his meal.

Edee and I went to UM together. Her father was a Maine yankee who went to Cuba to work in the oil business, and met and married Edee's mother. After Castro they came to Miami, where Edee and her brother were born. A very unhappy divorce followed, whereupon her father returned to Maine. Afterwards he wanted little to do with his children, though Edee always traveled to see him, and kept up a relationship.

Her father became pretty wealthy, and remarried, but had no more kids. Edee worked 2 jobs while putting herself through college, a Master's degree, and finally a Doctorate. The old son of a bitch wouldn't help her at all. When he died, he left $1000 to Edee and her brother, and his millions to his elderly widow.

I use Edee's father as my example of a piece of crap father, whenever I need such an example. If there is a hell, I hope he's in it. I say that because I watched his daughter struggle so hard to become a success, while this mean old coot sat in his house ignoring her life. Whatever...

Anyway, Edee has become a nationally respected neuroscientist. She's also a full professor at UM's Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. She just published a book on spinal cord injury rehab that's probably going to become a standard text for those treating these patients. She travels all over the world (2 years ago she was honored in Australia) for meetings, and teaches whole crops of research therapists.

She also found the time to marry a great guy (I performed the ceremony) and now has a terrific 8 year old. Somehow she balances all of this.

Do I sound like I admire this little Cubana from Hialeah who has ascended to national prominence?

So, last night, we talked about ---our college years. Edee has a keen memory of all of our adventures, misadventures, and the like. We were uniquely blessed with a dorm full of colorful folks, most of whom went to to become raging successes. In their 20s they were just, well, strange.

We sat at Manny's Steakhouse for hours, laughing and remembering. Poor Barry actually had to go back to the hospital to finish his week's medical notes. It was 10:30 pm. Edee was going home to pack for a conference in California, followed by a vacation in the Sequoia Forest with her son and husband.

I drove home listening to great Blues music on satellite radio --a music I fell in love with in college.

If there's something better than dear old friends who happen to be terrific people, I don't know what it is.