My condolences to Katie, Joey and family. Phil was a wonderful man, but let me start from the beginning. He was my first boss in Calgary (at 21….I’m now just about 50). Oh boy, Katie, why in the heck did you have to get kicked off of the damn school bus so much?? That was the ONLY thing that put Phil in a bad mood. Well, that and Harley pooping on the carpet. Joey, you did no wrong, and Katie, I also had a dad that blamed everything on me, and not my brother so feeling for you my sister, but he LOVED you both so much. There were actually times that I wanted him to shut up about you two so we could actually focus on oil and gas law.
Nathans? Was it called Nathans? Since shut down, but that was our lunchtime spot. He would have 1 or 2 drinks and I would have 6 and then he would get all annoyed that I didn’t feel like working for the rest of the afternoon. I don’t drink anymore, but the happiest moments of drunkenness were from those lunch dates where we would get back to the office, listening to all of my life woes while rolling his eyes at me, just wanting me to focus on oil and gas law.
The client events….he always gave me shit after those. Apparently, peeing in the bushes 3 feet away from clients on the golf course isn’t appropriate, but when we had THAT talk, he would giggle and give the famous Phil “grunt”. I was a little terrified that I would get fired, but he wouldn’t ever do that – he always looked after his people.
The trip to the Ya Ha Tinda. I thought it was an hour away. It wasn’t – it was like 3 hours. Also got shit for that, but did we ever have a good time when we got there. Phil was a terrible horseman, but he would always claim otherwise. That said, his cribbage skills at the Ya Ha Tinda were extraordinary and made me proud – I think he made about $1,000 that night, and then gave half to me to help me pay my rent – sweet Jesus he was a good man.
And the client “event” at the ranch. I took Phil et al to my parents’ ranch for the weekend. We duck hunted (something that he loved) and visited a few local establishments. The ranch was in Hardisty, AB. Phil gave me endless shit because he thought for sure the bar was so old that we were going to fall through the floor (he wasn’t wrong). He had given me a Rolex watch that I cherished (pretty sure it was fake – jerk), but I lost it in the field waiting to murder the ducks and I also got shit for that, but every trip he made, whether it be Indonesia, China, Africa, Miramar, etc. he always brought back a most excellent gift. I still have a beautiful jewelry box from Colombia sitting on my nightstand.
There was also the time that he was in Indonesia and I decided to organize his office. That was a big fail. That massive disaster took him about a month, and likely around 1,000 billable hours to figure out.
When Phil moved to Vancouver, I missed that man. We remained in contact, and he still whined about what a brat Katie was, but always ended that with what a wonderful little soul his daughter was. What he loved, was Katie, Joey, the dog that pooed everywhere, and his law practice. I will be forever grateful that he loved me too. Whenever I visited him in Vancouver, I always booked the most expensive restaurants, which also resulted in the Phil “grunt”. Gawd I loved that man.
Thank you Phil, for being a friend, a mentor, a wonderful family man, and really, a 2nd dad to me (like, he gave me WAY more shit than he gave you Katie – even when he wasn’t my boss). You will be missed my darling. I owe you so much. Sending tears to you, but will always have you in my heart. I love you. Until we meet again.
