Writing words is what I've done as a sportswriter for 32 yrs. But it's been very tough to find the words to describe how hard the death of New Haven Register colleague Dave Solomon has hit me.
I knew Dave nearly 28 years and he was the epitome of sportswriting-a stickler for details and a stickler for getting the facts straight using a unique style to always get his point across.
Dave was so talented he could have surely taken his trade to any of the major newspapers or magazines in the country. Instead, we were all fortunate he had a fondness for home and shared his talent with us at the Register.
Dave always had an opinion and he would debate you incessantly proving his point.
But there was the soft side too, a mentor, friend and guy you could count on for advice and help.
The only place Dave couldn't help me was on the golf course. After every erratic swing, shank and slice, all Dave could ever do is shake his head and sometimes look at me with that big smile of his and say "Dan, I love ya like a brother, but you're a pip, a real pip."
Dave, I'm going to miss those thousands of columns that should have been written and won't be, I'm going to miss our friendship, you'll be missed, a lot. Rest well as myself and my wife Vanessa wish your wife Judy and your daughters our best in this great time of sorrow.