Brenda came to visit Emily and me in Tuscaloosa sometime in 2009 I think. It must have been winter because it was cold and we decided to build a fire. I am good at building fires, but I am not always skilled at picking the right location to light one up. In a house, flues need to be checked and that sort of thing so that one is assured proper ventilation. I think that night we decided to watch "All The King's Men." I remember there were big politics involved. I lit the fire, things progressed. Soon there was a lot of smoke in the house. Somehow I managed to get the smoldering log out of the fireplace and out of the house and doused with water. At least I'll just say that's how it went. At this point, the night could have gone a lot of ways. You know what happened? We opened the doors and windows, turned on fans, got out the blankets and the quilt Brenda had made for Emily and my wedding, snuggled up on the couch, and kept watching the movie (after the smoke had cleared a bit). I must have been thinking to myself, this woman must think I'm completely mad. How can she trust me with her daughter? But we watched the movie, froze our asses off, and the next day and forever after that we laughed about the whole thing. I can't imagine two other people on the planet I could have had that experience with and yet here I am, missing Brenda, and feeling lucky I get to spend my life with Emily.