A FAVORITE AUNT

It's refreshing to know people who are anything but mainstream.

Everyone has cell phones, cable or satellite television, cars, and computers (wow, there's a lot of "c"s in that sentence, aren't there?).

My aunt Sue and my mother-in-law, Sam, who remind me a great deal of each other, are two of those off-beat sort of individuals

Both always seem to be the ultimate small-town girls.

Both of them had a rotary phone until the phone company simple refused to process rotary dial any more.

I know Sue, at least, had a small black and white television with rabbit ears on top for years after color t.v. was available. And although Sam went color, I still think it's been non-digital until this last February.

Neither of them every learned to drive, or owned a car. I know that Sam has never owned a cell phone - and I just can't picture Sue with one.

And a computer? Come on.

But both of these women have always been very involved in the community - get everywhere by walking or the bus - and are just dear, sweet and chatty cuties.

They both survived - almost thrived - after divorce and death deprived them of their spouse (another sentence with a long series of unintentional consonants).

Although I know my mother-in-law is in excellent health, at least as of Sunday evening when I last spoke with her, I just found out this evening that my aunt Sue passed away yesterday - she was 91.

I'm going to miss her.