Dear Ann Landers,
our response to "Tom in Atkinson," whose friend still had his deceased wife's voice on the answering machine, was heavy-handed. I married my wife after her father died. Her mother still keeps his voice on their answering machine, even though it's been five years since he passed away. The message he left is very funny, saying he's a robot. Whenever my wife calls and gets the machine, she says, "Hello, Daddy-bot" and leaves her message. Nobody expects him to call back, nor do we think he's really alive somewhere. My wife is not living in denial. It's just a sweet way to remember her father's voice.

Dear Greg,
I see your point and stand corrected. Thanks for hauling me up short. I had it coming. As I said before -- to each his own. If keeping a loved one's voice on the answering machine is comforting, so be it.