I enjoyed Christmas dinner this year with three wonderful ladies "of a certain age"; one, a few months shy of her 100th birthday and her two friends a bit younger. I was struck by their warm friendship and nurturing support of each other, as when two of them read the menu to their friend who was near blind. They got to giggling when she ordered a "gargantuan" shrimp cocktail, realizing, as the poor waitress did not, that she was poking gentle fun at the venue which had described it on the menu as "colossal." Their dignity and manners were awesome, and the flashes of wit and wordplay made for a lovely meal.