I shared a special bond with Anne. She was grandmotherly in all the right ways. She was a tough cookie and she knew it; she didn't take gruff from anyone. If you crossed her, you'd get a whiskey in your face, or a lit cigarette in your eye.

But if she saw that something special in you - that younger man looking for a little grand mommying - she was a wildcat that couldn't be tamed. In a good way.

She'd ride you till you ached for her to stop, but you begged more every time. And there was always more.

That was the specialness that was Anne Ramsey. I will never forget her, especially on those long, lonely nights.