Post #319,647
1/6/10 6:26:07 PM
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Mortality
Recently I reached a milestone birthday which was quickly followed by my loss of employment, making 2009 nothing to get excited about. An hour ago I received a call from a friend I've known since freshman year high school that a mutual friend we've both known for 35 years dies of a heart attack Monday morning. He worked himself to death running a business in the Chicago suburbs while also running a fishing lodge, restaurant and motel in upper Wisconsin.
He was 4 months older than me.
Now I have the pleasure of trying to schedule plane tickets while a storm hits the Midwest tonight and tomorrow, or the option of attempting to drive through it for the wake Friday and funeral Saturday. He leaves a wife and two stepchildren; he never had any kids of his own.
This could possibly be my last chance to ever see a group of friends alive - we've all scattered throughout the country for jobs over the years and basically got too lazy to remain in touch like we used to do so well.
I'm getting too melancholy and nostalgic in my old age. I don't like it.
"Chicago to my mind was the only place to be. ... I above all liked the city because it was filled with people all a-bustle, and the clatter of hooves and carriages, and with delivery wagons and drays and peddlers and the boom and clank of freight trains. And when those black clouds came sailing in from the west, pouring thunderstorms upon us so that you couldn't hear the cries or curses of humankind, I liked that best of all. Chicago could stand up to the worst God had to offer. I understood why it was built--a place for trade, of course, with railroads and ships and so on, but mostly to give all of us a magnitude of defiance that is not provided by one house on the plains. And the plains is where those storms come from."
-- E.L. Doctorow
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Post #319,649
1/6/10 6:30:04 PM
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Condolences.
It's hard to lose an old friend. :-( If you go, have a safe trip.
You've certainly had a rough stretch the last few years. I won't say that it can't get any worse, because it always can (unfortunately). But I think things will get better for you.
Hang in there.
Cheers,
Scott.
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Post #319,651
1/6/10 7:01:32 PM
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Re: Mortality
Sorry to hear it, take care and hope things get better for you
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Post #319,653
1/6/10 7:14:05 PM
1/6/10 7:23:20 PM
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My condolences
Not sure where you're coming from, but be cautious traversing the midwest. We are already under a Winter Storm warning here in St. Louis, and Chicago is probably under the gun too.
EDIT: I checked the forecast for Chicago, and it has snow every day, 1-2 inches tonight, 4-6 inches expected Thursday morning, and another 2-4 inches Thursday night. Also very cold temperatures are expected.
I know Kansas City has a lot of snow. Not sure what airports are doing yet.
I do know the snow is supposed to stop here Thursday morning, maybe you could wait till the storm ends? I think driving would be the safer bet, but it's your call.
Either way, I'll pray for you to have a safe trip.
Brenda
___________________________________________________________________
When asking God for a break, be sure to specify what KIND you want!
Edited by Nightowl
Jan. 6, 2010, 07:15:56 PM EST
Edited by Nightowl
Jan. 6, 2010, 07:16:48 PM EST
Edited by Nightowl
Jan. 6, 2010, 07:23:20 PM EST
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Post #319,654
1/6/10 7:14:15 PM
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I'd go for the driving
assuming a certain base level of competence in winter driving, of course.
It's always hard when friends die... I've lost a couple, though they (so far) have been due more to mishap than the ravages of age. However, don't forget, we all have the same amount of time left... the rest of our lives. Time is not what makes us; it's what we make of it. I have no doubt that things will become better... and use the opportunity to renew and strengthen the ties of friendship, and try to organise meetups with them from time to time; the web of friendship is far more than any wealth.
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Post #319,660
1/6/10 10:38:19 PM
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The thing is
that this isn't a relative calling up and saying that my grandmother died, or a great uncle passed away - this is someone who I've literally grown up with and known for decades, and suddenly he's gone. Being only 4 months older than me has affected me in a way that I can't put into words. Scary is the best I've got right now.
Owl, thanks for the weather info. I still retain my winter driving skills, having worked in Chicago last winter. However, weather.com has an advisory out for many of the Midwest interstates: high winds through Saturday, snow-covered roads and even some sections getting shut down due to drifting snow and poor visibility. If I were to drive, it's possible that I wouldn't make by the funeral Saturday morning if the weather shuts down the interstates or forces cars to drive very slowly. I'm going to risk flying into O'Hare Friday morning and take public transportation.
"Chicago to my mind was the only place to be. ... I above all liked the city because it was filled with people all a-bustle, and the clatter of hooves and carriages, and with delivery wagons and drays and peddlers and the boom and clank of freight trains. And when those black clouds came sailing in from the west, pouring thunderstorms upon us so that you couldn't hear the cries or curses of humankind, I liked that best of all. Chicago could stand up to the worst God had to offer. I understood why it was built--a place for trade, of course, with railroads and ships and so on, but mostly to give all of us a magnitude of defiance that is not provided by one house on the plains. And the plains is where those storms come from."
-- E.L. Doctorow
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Post #319,662
1/6/10 10:55:49 PM
1/6/10 11:00:46 PM
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Re: The thing is
Lincoln wrote:>>Owl, thanks for the weather info. I still retain my winter driving skills, having worked in Chicago last winter. However, weather.com has an advisory out for many of the Midwest interstates: high winds through Saturday, snow-covered roads and even some sections getting shut down due to drifting snow and poor visibility. If I were to drive, it's possible that I wouldn't make by the funeral Saturday morning if the weather shuts down the interstates or forces cars to drive very slowly. I'm going to risk flying into O'Hare Friday morning and take public transportation.<<
You're welcome. And I have to agree with your decision not to drive. We had almost nothing coming down here at 6:00 p.m. and then suddenly at 8:30 p.m. they were shutting down parts of highway 70 because cars were stalling while trying to get up a steeper snow-covered section of it. I think flying would be the best bet under these circumstances.
And I completely understand about the "scary" part. A dear friend of mine even younger than me, died a year or so back, and I still haven't really gotten past that. One minute she was fine, next minute she had a heart attack at 40 yrs old. I understand the importance of your being at this funeral. Safe trip.
Brenda
___________________________________________________________________
When asking God for a break, be sure to specify what KIND you want!
Edited by Nightowl
Jan. 6, 2010, 11:00:46 PM EST
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Post #319,671
1/7/10 9:10:34 AM
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I hear you
It's like when I got a 3 am phone call and heard that my friend Joe passed away due to his peanut allergy in Amsterdam. Didn't think it was going to happen, ya know? Cruising along, and gone, just like that.
It is the ineluctable fact of life that this whole experience thing ends sometime, and we never really know when. On the plus side, life is good... so when you go, make sure you renew the bonds with those of you that are left so that you don't waste the time you've got.
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Post #319,664
1/6/10 11:18:25 PM
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Condolences and safe trip
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