(Heather is organizing for Willow’ last week. She placed stickies on the bottles allocated to the regulars).

If you don’t like food and fellowship, loyalty and class in the face of adversity, you can keep moving. Willow had it all last night with six days to go until the Irish Wake on Saturday night.

The LT made a long planned and fortuitous appearance, just in the nick of time. He is done with Japan and back in town for a bit before moving on to the next big thing. I picked him up at Reagan National in the afternoon, and we had a late lunch at his favorite Mexican joint over in Del Rey: Taqueria el Poblano. We enjoyed some fabulous LA-style fried tacos, and he said he had been waiting for two years to taste one again.

Then over to Willow, for the start of the count-down week to closing. Pert Holly was behind the bar with Marvin and cutting up with her usual flair.

Where Old Jim was holding court in the usual place at the apex of the Amen Corner.

Owner Tracy O’Grady made an appearance to greet the regulars. I was rewarded with a hug, and I accpeted it gratefully. I told her the outpouring of sentiment from the community was truly moving, and that what she had done with Willow for a decade had made the whole town a better place.

“If I had known how it was going to end,” she said wistfully, “I probably wouldn’t have done it.”

“Yes,” I said. “But you touched so many lives. And you made us all better for it.”

She smiled sadly, and went back to the kitchen to work her station as the count down continued.

Copyright 2015 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com
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