Family responsibilities came a-calling last night. My beloved mother, Eva Picerno, passed away. Her 94 years finally caught up with her. But she went peacefully, in bed, watching her favorite show—Dancing With The Stars. Her passing isn’t terribly surprising—the finale came after a long, slow decline. But her New England spirit kept her optimistic and cheerful to the end. Her graceful exit comes nearly three years after my dad, Joseph, slipped over to the other side. I miss them terribly. As the only child of loving, devoted parents, I was given a great gift. But now duty calls one more time for my mom and it seems appropriate to take a breather from macro and markets. At some point, soon after the Memorial Day holiday, these pages will again be buzzing with the usual commentary and number-crunching. Meantime, in honor of my mom, The Capital Spectator will go dark in the days ahead as your editor transitions from sober-minded analyst to grieving son struggling to say good-bye one last time.