Two people died yesterday that were known to my family. One was Hobo Jim known as the Alaska Balladeer whose real name was James Varsos. He has lived in Alaska since 1972 but spent time Outside due to his music career. He was diagnosed in Nashville and died last night of stage 4 cancer. Here is the obit if anyone is interested. The other death was the spouse of a coworker of my wife. He was in his mid-60s and a very active biker, hiker, and outdoorsman. He picked up his new bicycle yesterday and was excited so he was riding it home with his wife accompanying him in her car. She saw him fall over and ran to his side. He was still conscious and she called 911. He was taken to the hospital where he died of a massive heart attack. He was fully vaccinated but I don't know if that is relevant. I only mention it because if he hadn't been, Covid would have caused his death.
Sorry of the loss of your friends, @Don Alaska . And you are right about the cause of death statement. My sister-in-law went to the hospital last month, they told her that she had pneumonia; but when she died, they called it covid. I am not sure whether she had been vaccinated or not. Some of her family said she was and others said she was not.
I'm sorry to hear of the loss of your friends, Don. I had a spell a few years ago where there was a series of deaths of people close to me (one being the only decent sibling I had), but not on the same day as you experienced. It can be a sobering reminder. On the other hand, a few of those friends were black, and in my rural county that community doesn't hold funerals, they have "Homecomings." It is truly faith in action. A celebration of Earthly lives lived and eternal lives begun, held in the short walk-down cellar of an old house converted to a funeral parlor...with "club music" being played as you walk in. I would leave one service mildly depressed and the other uplifted & at peace. Hmmmmm.......
It's the opposite of what most of us know of funerals. I left the first one I attended thinking "That's what I want!"
The man I posted a while back who was piloting the aircraft that crashed has passed yesterday. Perhaps he and Lon will pass each other. The man was the most experienced pilot I know here, and there are many. He flew for the Air Force for many years and followed that with the Air National Guard until retirement. He also was a pilot for FedEx and flew around the world several times with them. He was also an experienced private pilot, and on one of our wilderness canoe trips with the scouts, he dropped the makings of ice cream sundaes on small parachutes from his plane after he located us and flew over. He will be missed by all of us in this community.
@Don Alaska I'm so sorry to hear of all this happening back-to-back. It's a cliché, but this stuff really seems to come in groups. edit to add: I just read about Hobo Jim. Dude was only 68 years old. It no longer sounds as old as it used to...
My youngest daughter text me this morning to tell of a close friend who died in her sleep last night. This is the third friend or close acquaintance in maybe 2 weeks. My Daughter is a stressed person anyway and this does not help. I know she worries about when I am gone or my husband whom she considers her dad. I make light of upcoming death because it is my way of dealing with something I have no control over. I do not do it a lot, but my hubby hates it when I do. Such as - if i am still here tomorrow,yeep I can do that.Just needed to get this out of my system.
How old was your daughter's friend? And as weird as it sounds, I'll spend time at this spot in the woods of my property just to be in a peaceful place:
@John Brunner - glad for you to have a peaceful place to go. I assume her friend and friends are in late late 40s to mid 50's. She is 52
I feel bad for your daughter. I guess we all worry about our own death and the loss of others to one degree or another. But to be one of those folks who worries to that degree and then lose a friend out of the blue like that just adds fuel to the fire. And as you said, none of us have any control over it.