Print Story R.I.P. Jason Graves
Death
By zarathus (Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 10:22:20 AM EST) (all tags)
News arrived this morning that my friend Jason died.


Shortly before 7:00 AM I received a text message from Jason's sister informing me that he passed away in the early morning.  No details on the memorial service yet.  He died with his Dad and his sister - the only two surviving members of his immediate family - by his side.

In a way I'm grateful for the way he was able to spend his last few weeks.  He was in a familiar, comfortable place surrounded by friends and loved ones.

A few weeks ago, Jason's sister asked me to make a memorial photo montage video for his service.  We haven't decided if I've made the final version or not yet, but I suppose now we'll have to come to a decision soon.  I'll try to upload it to YouTube, I suppose.

This is the second time I've been informed of a friend's passing via mobile text message.  I don't feel slighted or upset by this.  I wouldn't want to be in a position of calling every far-flung friend individually if someone I were caring for died.  When my parents first got internet access, they used to tell me about relatives passing away by e-mail and I used to get upset.  I think I understand now, though.

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R.I.P. Jason Graves | 7 comments (7 topical, 0 hidden) | Trackback
I'm very sorry. by toxicfur (2.00 / 0) #1 Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 10:36:35 AM EST
My best wishes to you and to Jason's friends and families. It's so incredibly unfair.
--
To Rollins lesbians are like cuddly pandas: cute, exotic, forest-dwelling, dangerous when riled and unable to produce offspring without assistance.-CRwM


Fucking retroviruses by BadDoggie (2.00 / 0) #2 Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 11:23:20 AM EST
Sorry to hear it (and glad you got your chance to catch up with him last month), but I don't understand being upset by the use of technology to transmit the news. Only since the 1930s were telephones available; such urgent news previously had to be conveyed by a very expensive telegram, and you'd have to send one to each person you wanted to notify. Then came phones and while it was more efficient and somewhat cheaper (until the late 1980s), you still had to call each person. E-Mail and SMS are just more efficient ways of notifying everyone, allowing the person dealing with the whole thing to spend that much less time on one of many unpleasant tasks.

woof.

OMG WE'RE FUCKED! -- duxup ?


Sympathies. by ana (2.00 / 0) #3 Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 11:27:48 AM EST
I do like the video montage idea, though. It makes the memorial a celebration of a person's life.

*hugs*

"And this ... is a piece of Synergy." --Kellnerin


Wow. by blixco (2.00 / 0) #4 Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 11:41:48 AM EST
Very sorry to hear this.
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"You bring the weasel, I'll bring the whiskey." - kellnerin


Thanks, everyone! by zarathus (2.00 / 0) #5 Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 03:29:58 PM EST
I appreciate your sympathy, everyone.

I went over to the Grapevine Market in Round Rock for lunch and had them make up a gift basket to take to the family.  Such nice people at Grapevine.  It's nice to have a tasteful way to give the gift of liquor.

I paid a short visit to Jason's sister and Dad just to chat and hand out hugs.  There's a memorial this Saturday in one of the DFW suburbs.

It was impressive to see how Jason's sister and Dad are still puttering around the house and doing chores.  It's plain to see they didn't slept at all last night and they haven't had a good rest in way too long.  There's still some humor there, mixed in with the mourning.  We were commenting on how Jason just had to pick Tax Day to die, as if this day isn't shitty enough already.

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Memorial video montage on YouTube by zarathus (2.00 / 0) #6 Thu Apr 17, 2008 at 09:14:22 AM EST
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k0HBkwXuFg

My first upload to YouTube.  Does embedding youtube videos not work in comments?

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Jason Graves by bufohorror (4.00 / 1) #7 Sun Apr 20, 2008 at 04:35:50 PM EST
I just received word from John Stewart yesterday afternoon about Jason Graves and I am terribly sorry. He used to drive me around Deep Ellum and Oak Lawn when I was only sixteen in a heightened haze. Corruption! HA! Tragic for he was far too young. I sit here listening to "Dancing Now" (the new B-52's song :  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSmGC31XUmU) and can't help to think during the chorus of Jason and hope that he is dancing now somewhere in space and time. Jason, old friend, you will be missed.

Michael Loris
New York, New York
April 20th, 2008



R.I.P. Jason Graves | 7 comments (7 topical, 0 hidden) | Trackback