It's one of those things you look back on and kick yourself. Like the fish that got away. This was the story I let go. 

It was an overcast Saturday afternoon 25 years ago. I was working for a newspaper in Oregon and had just finished whatever it was I was doing. Instead of going home, I decided to pop over to Rockford and catch the St. Patrick's Day parade.

You probably can't tell it from my name, but I'm part Irish on my mother's side. In fact, I've always felt more allegiance to Ireland than I do towards Norway, where my father's ancestors are from. For some reason I can't really explain, whenever I see a movie set in the Emerald Isle, I feel a little tug like that's where I really belong.