I can't believe it was 11 years ago. I remember reading the post that Plawrence had passed and - despite never having met him - feeling very sad. I always loved his Paulie Walnuts avatar. Although I didn't know Plaw well, I suspect he had a little of Paulie's feistiness inside.

Salute!

Of course I was thinking of my Paulie on that day. I miss him always. He was one of the smartest people I ever had the pleasure of knowing. One of his favorite things was to chat online with me and my daughters when they were doing their homework. He used to make fun of their assignments (name 5 places that start with the letter Z), but he loved to do math with them.

He loved politics, and I can't imagine what he would have thought of the world today.

God bless you, Paulie. You made my life richer simply by being you.

We bonded on these boards, and personally. He organized several memorable dinners at Italian restaurants for us, and they were all wonderful. RIP, Paul.

I'm late to the party but RIP Plaw. Never forgotten.

Hey guys, Plaw's (now 29 year old) son here. I just wanted to say how much I appreciate this thread and, more generally, this whole forum. It's been almost 12 years since he died -- roughly half of my memorable life -- and I've found his post history here to be an invaluable resource to connect with the past. Every once in a while I like to spend a couple hours sifting through old threads to read his posts on politics, movies, life, etc. I can always count on reading a several posts that bring a smile to my face. And 12-16 years later, I can't help but reflect on how much his way of viewing the world rubbed off on me.

I unfortunately didn't inherit his love for sports, aside from the occasional NJ Nets nostalgia... so I have no idea what he's talking about in 90% of his posts. I knew he was into fantasy sports when I was younger, but geez. Looking through his post history and seeing all those replies was really something else

But 12 years is a long time. Occasionally I have dreams where it turns out he faked his death due to mob-related reasons, and is still walking around out there. And I can't help but think that, while it's highly unlikely, I'd be okay with that in a certain sense. It sounds like a movie we would have watched together back in 2005. I often wish that, in lieu of something more emotionally fulfilling, I at least had the opportunity to grab lunch with him in 2018 so I could pick his brain for opinions on Uber/Lyft, the financial crisis, the Trump administration, and movies from the last decade.

Anyhow, I'm on the hunt for good anecdotes/stories about my father that he may not have been wary about posting on the internet, or telling me when I was 14. So if you know any good (or bad) ones, then drop me a line! And even if you don't, I'm happy to chat about whatever.

spike716@gmail.com (Email is best. If you DM me, there's a good chance I won't respond until 2021).

If you're too lazy to get in touch but want to know how I turned out, here's the TL;DR: I'm a fully functioning adult, graduated college, moved to Chicago for a few years to be a financial analyst, and then moved back to NY to be a software engineer. Now I live in Brooklyn, maybe a 10 minute walk from his childhood home in Crown Heights. And, of course, I love having a good argument.

Wow! What a pleasant surprise to see you here, Spike. It's so hard for me to believe that it's almost twelve years since he's gone. It was 12 years ago this week that he went into the hospital for the last time.

I think of your dad often and wonder how different these boards became after he died. He was always in the middle of something here, whether it was sports or politics or "The Godfather". He would have a field day with what's now going on in this country politically. I think of some of your dad's stories, and how he'd tell them. Some hysterical (like when he met actor Frank Vincent in Madison Square Garden), some just plain interesting (like when he happened on a bar in which Billy Joel gave an impromptu 'concert' for the patrons there). We were in the same line of work so I always appreciated his take on the industry (and its connection to the Mob).

You're ALWAYS welcome here, Spike.

Happier Days: (me, Geoff, your dad). This was taken in one of your dad's favorite restaurants, Lantana, a few miles from his apartment. Sometime in 2003.

Hello Spike,

What a very pleasant surprise. How nice of you to check in with us. I know you were young when your father passed and I know many of us old timers have wondered how you where doing. Sounds like you have done well for yourself. I have no doubt your father would be totally proud of you.

Even tho we only met once, we still communicated and conversed on the so many different topics here on the BB. He was always the go-to person as to where to stay/eat etc. I believe it was him who suggested Carmines for the 03 meet. Your dad was a smart and kind man. He was exceptional at politics. Just ask SC, TB, Geoff, SB etc. The Frank Vincent story (SC mentioned) your dad told us was hilarious. I know that was brought up more than a few times. He was always straight forward and when it came to politics he was wonderful. One time I posted so mething in disagreement with another poster and he PM'd me to ask why I was so easy on the guy. Ha ha.

In 2006 there was BB meet Your dad couldn't make it but all of us got to talk to him on the phone. He really wanted to be with us. I remember (and I'm sure others will) PLaw saying that he considered his BB friends just as the friends he saw regularly. That was so sweet.

Spike I saved a PM thread he sent me in 2006 regarding the BB meet that year. All these years later, I couldn't delete it. I will be happy to e-mail it to you if you like. Nothing lengthy or major BUT I have no doubt you'd like to see even small talk from you father


So nice to hear from you and I wish you the very best.

TIS

Yes, Spike, those dinners were memorable. I had a one-on-one lunch with him, after making his acquaintance here, at Scalini Fideli, the four-star Italian in Chatham, NJ. Thinking he might dress p as a gangster, I wore a big black hat and a black leather dust coat. But he dressed like a normal guy. We had some great conversations.