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Toyama
Cliff Toyama
IRS
8/16/99
My name is Cliff Toyama, and I worked
with your mother, Annabelle, over at the IRS for many years.
But for the six years prior to your mother's untimely passing,
Annabelle and I worked together as International Examiners,
specializing in the foreign tax. We were the only two international
examiners in the Honolulu post of duty, and within the Honolulu
office, we would refer to each other as partners.
While in Honolulu, we each had our own
assignments. Your mother for the most part worked on a long
term project. I on the other hand, worked the various other
international assignments. Accordingly, while in Honolulu,
we pretty much did our own thing. However, our continuing
professional educational training (CPEs) were held on the
Mainland, and this is where I got to know your mother.
Like most CPEs, the attendees are there
to learn. However, since we're all away from home, away from
our families and work, the atmosphere is a bit more casual
and a lot less formal. We had and made a lot of friends in
the Los Angeles District, with whom we would go to dinners
and do other activities after work. The foremost of which
of course was golf.
As I'm sure you well know, your mother
had a passion for the game of golf. I can still remember the
first time we all went out on the golf course. Your mother
had taken a few lessons, but as most beginners, she was having
a rough time. The guy she was riding with (Lou) was given
her all kinds of lessons, and I guess he was trying to make
the game easier for her, including tips that were against
the rules of golf. I remember golfing with her after that
first day, and our four-some would all get a big laugh out
of the things she would do on the golf course, such as teeing
up her golf ball in the fairway, tossing her ball out of rough
and back into the fairway and other minor things to make her
next shot a little easier. When told about the her infractions
of the rules of golf, she would look embarrassed, and claim
than she was innocent and that Lou said it was okay to do
it. But to your mother's credit, she learned quickly, and
became a very accomplished golfer in a relatively short time.
She was a tough competitor, and loved the challenges that
the game of golf offers
As much as your mother loved golf, she
equally loved going to Las Vegas. Fortunately, so did we,
meaning myself and our friends who lived in Los Angeles. I
couldn't afford going to Las Vegas as often as she did, but
I managed to go there a few times a year on the tail end of
one of our trips to the mainland. Like golf, being in Las
Vegas is an escape from the stresses that life sometimes can
bring. There were many happy times spent on the crap tables
as we went casino hopping. By the way, your mother was a crap
guru. She knew the game and she knew how to play it, and she
wasn't afraid to press it. I can't think of anyone who could
bring a crap table to life like your mother. She was Ms. Excitement.
I still see our friends from Los Angeles on occasion, and
we still remember the good times we spent with your mother
in Las Vegas.
Like most women including my wife, your
mother loved to go shopping at the malls. If she wasn't golfing,
or having dinner, your mother was shopping. I think the phrase
Shop Till You Drop was made with your mother in mind. I remember
on more than one occasion where I had to hunt her down in
the mall to remind her that we have a plane to catch. It was
particularly bad if the malls had a red tag sale. Your mother
could smell a bargain sale five days before it started, and
if the stores didn't have a sale, your mother would try and
convince the manager to start one. I never understood why
women love to shop. I guess it's the old hunter/gatherer theory
of human evolution. Speaking of bargains, your mother's ability
to find a bargain wasn’t restricted to the shopping
malls. We stayed at very nice hotels while we were in Los
Angeles, thanks to your mother's ability to convince the reservation
managers to give us the lower government rates even if they
were booked.
Your mother loved life, and lived it accordingly.
I also know she loved her family caused she always talked
about you guys. I glad I got the opportunity to get to know
her as a friend and co-worker. Our friends in Los Angeles
and I still go to Las Vegas on occasion, and it's a little
different without your mom. The crap tables seem to be a little
quieter without her.
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