hard to replace:
a customer came in and we started talking and I asked him if he was enjoying the fall/winter and looking forward to Christmas and he explained that this year had been difficult as his wife has been bed-ridden for the past 9 months and confined to a nursing home. He visited her every day - and I commented to him that I found that extremely loyal and commendable, and he said: (and I quote)
'She was my pal....she was my best friend...'