After we returned home from a celebration dinner with Buddy Quinn, my mother and I didn"t say much. Exhausted by the excitement of the day, we had retreated into separate rooms without as much as a goodnight. I awoke before six the next morning without having bothered to set an alarm. The morning sunlight blasted through the window of my bedroom, casting its warmth across everything. No corner of the room seemed untouched by its brilliance.
Mother was still asleep, her door bolted against intrusion from the outside world. I scribbled a note on the back of an unopened Visa bill, letting her know I had left for the Home early and would not be home until late that evening. Not to worry. I"d be okay. Thus it was that I found myself walking into the Liberty Street Home almost a full hour befor
