Old Friends...

I was lucky enough to see two old friends this past week (Chelse & Courtney). While I saw Courtney just last fall, I hadn't seen Chelse in 9 years (since her high school graduation). So often it happens to lose touch with old friends who were once so frequent and important in my life, and yet I'm always meeting new people and having new adventures and take each day, month, year... so dwelling on the older, less frequent people in my life is few and far between regardless of how much I care for said friends (oh, and I care a lot). Over the last month or so, I've thought about old buds a lot, as I heard some tragic news...

Unfortunately, an oldie but goodie of mine passed recently. I've known Jake for many years - since high school. We rocked out at many a show together. He was quite the drummer; he dated my high school bestie for a looooooong time. He was smart and funny. He recommended my first tattoo artist (the bassist in his band). He played in one of the quintessential Phoenix punk bands of the time (Jedi 5)... plus multiple bands with said high school bestie and her sister... plus a bunch of other bands, too. He wore Dickies and Chucks the entire time I knew him. One year, he helped me bring Halloween to Paul by decorating his driveway with pumpkins and other not-so-legally acquired lawn ornaments (too bad Paul & the Ess fam weren't amused by our stunt). Yes, yes... He was one of the good ones and only 29, too. So many good years to go.

He and I had kept in touch via Facebook and Myspace over the last few years, so I always knew to a small extent what he was up to... Now, while I wish that our messages back and forth would have been more frequent (more than just 3 - 5 times per year), I can't help but think of how lucky I am to have known Jake. He'll go down as one of my favorites in life... even if I only knew him for a short while; he was that kind of dude.

Miss you, bud.