I saw so many people that I haven’t seen in over a year. It made me sad and nostalgic. I was glad I could be there for my friends.
Last night there was a wake at Gabe’s in the upstairs where everyone could gather and talk. I hugged a lot of people. We all shared a lot of stories. The service today was very well done and very moving.
I was glad to see so many people and catch up. It just sucks that one of our own had to die for it to happen. I told Zach a story last night that I remembered. It was the first time the Ten Grand boys had made a big impression on me as people, not just guys in a band I liked. That was at Tyler Corbett’s 21st birthday november of my sophomore year at Iowa. There was an insane party at the Potata house. I was wasted out of my mind and eventually Zach and Matt had found me wandering on my way home. I walked with them down to the L&M; and they called me a cab. The next time I saw both of them, they checked up to see how I was.
The thing I really respected about Matt was that he went out of his way to say ‘hi’ to you if he knew you and saw you. I remember seeing him at the cheap beer nights at Gabe’s frequently, drinking water or soda, there just to shoot the shit and hang out. Given what a desolate shithole that bar is (an endearing one, no less) that amazed me that someone who didn’t drink or smoke would hang out there just to hang out. I wish I would have had the chance to know him better.
I was glad I could be there to give Brizzi a great big hug and see how he was. When Brian called me and told me, Jason was one of the first people I thought about. I was glad I got to see Jason, Brian, Drew, Sam, Dan-O, Adam, Bob, Bill, Noah, Bradley, and others. It’ll probably be a little while before I can go visit again, but I’ll be happy to go up on better terms. There’s a lot of people I’ll never forget from that town.
And that’s all I got tonight. I drove a lot today, I’m tired, and that’s enough.