Long road and sad eyes

Well, yesterday I bought the seventh and last of the Dark Tower books by Stephen King (entitled The Dark Tower, apropriatly enough). I first found the Dark Tower series in high school my junior year (oddly the same year I met the Demon). A good friend of mine introduced me to them and we swaped books when he had the first and I had the second. I loved King before I'd found this particular series, I just hadn't come across them before. It was the first time Stephen had done anything that continued past one book. It's now been 15 years since I opened 'The Gunslinger" which was the first of the series, and it's been a long and often scarey road we've traveled together. Now here I am and Mr. King is retiring and I feel sad to have reached the clearing at the end of the path with him. I'm almost afraid to start reading it because it kind of represents almost a saying goodbye to an old friend to me. For so many years I have enjoyed Stephen's stories. They are like bookmarks of my life. If I knew how, I'd like to write him and thank him for all the memories and smiles and yes even a few sleepless nights over the years. I still have other writers who I follow (Clive Cussler is a great adventure writer and Terry Pratchett has a new book due out this month - Postal Service- which I am quite looking forward to). But in the begining, when I first picked up books and learned that not all friends were people or animals, it was Jim Davis (Garfield) and Stephen King that I found. I wish Mr. King all the best in life and hope that from time to time he might still get the urge to put pen to paper (or fingers to keypad) and I will welcome him back like the old friend he is. But for now it must be.... oh hell, I can't say it. Let's just leave it at see you next time. I can at least lie to myself.