If I could have dinner with anyone, I would have two choices. The first one would be my father. I was very close to my dad, and we would have nice conversations. I could ask my dad for advice, and he was always very helpful. He just gave his opinion, and it was still my choice as to what I would do.
My dad helped me when I was buying my first car. He had a job that took him out of the office occasionally, so on one of his trips, he went to a car dealership and looked around. He called me at work and said he found a nice little Chevy Nova. I asked what color it was, and when he said it was red, I knew this was my car. He went with me that evening, and I bought the car. I could have paid cash for it, but he advised me to take out a loan with my company credit union to establish a good credit rating.
The other help Dad gave me was when I decided to open my fabric shop. He went with me when I looked at several sites for sale and totally supported me when I chose a shop in Wheaton, Illinois. I miss my chats with my dad. He died when he was only 70 years old. We had so much more to talk about.
My second choice would be with my best friend, Marge. Marge and I were more like sisters than just friends. We laughed together, and we cried together. Marge and I had been friends for more than 50 years. In all that time, we never had a disagreement or an argument. Marge knew most of my extended family, and I knew most of hers. My family always had a big New Year's Day party, and her big Irish family always celebrated St. Patrick's Day. There was a lot of food, music, singing and dancing. I remember one St. Patrick's Day, her brother found a dog on his way home from work and brought it home. Her dad said, "No dog, absolutely not," but after a while, he got to love that little critter, and they named him "shamrock."
Marge had a lot of health issues and passed away a few years ago. It was quite sudden, and I never got to say goodbye. I miss her very much.