Cassidy Meijer, 1978-2012

Abbey found out a couple days ago that the lead singer from a band she really liked while she was an undergrad at Santa Cruz died recently.  Abbey tells me Cassidy Meijer was the lead singer of a band called Sin in Space from around 1998-2002.  From what I understand, he had been a heroin addict on and off for over 13 years.   In one article from 2009, he was quoted as saying, "I believe that opiate withdrawals are absolutely a form of torture, and I believe that torture is something that just about no one can withstand for too long."  He died of a heart attack on Valentine's Day, during an attempted detox.  He was 33.

Cassidy was an acquaintance of Abbey's about 10 years ago.  Abbey was close friends with Cassidy's girlfriend at the time.  Abbey would go to his band's shows frequently.  Abbey told me that Cassidy was a really sweet, nice, soft-spoken person.  Very sensitive. He clearly had a hard life, but a good heart.  It seems from the comments at the bottom of the obituary below, he was loved by many in Santa Cruz and in the other places he lived.

I encourage you to listen to this song called "My Freaky She" by Sin in Space.  It's a beautiful song.  I hope it serves as a reminder that we need to care for people suffering from addiction, not incarcerate and demonize them.

My Freaky She

so much love to Cassidy, who I never knew, and to his friends and family,
Anthony

http://www.santacruz.com/news/2012/02/21/cassidy_meijer_1978_2012

Guy in the Gym

There was a guy working out in the gym the other night.  He was overweight, balding a little, kindof nerdy looking.  But he was busting his ass doing hard exercises.  He had a trainer, but she was just sitting watching him work hard.  I wanted to tell the guy, "man, what you're doing is so strong, so brave." fuck all these dudes in the gym chisilling their 32 inch biceps.  this overweight guy was out in this difficult space; gyms can be so intimidating and unwelcoming, usually dominated by really buff, in shape guys, staring into the mirror, just admiring how big their muscles are.  But this guy was doing exactly what he needed to do.  He was in the process of getting healthier, losing weight, feeling better about himself.  I felt so inspired by this guy.  It takes such courage to be overweight and not look like someone who belongs in a gym, and go into a gym and really work hard.  He was doing squats and pushups and free weights, exercises that can make someone who is out of shape look funny.  But I didn't think this guy looked funny. I was impressed.  People like him are the type of people I respect.  These are the people I want to follow.

I was reminded by a lot of friends and family this week that life is just fucking hard.  There's no way to get around it.  We lose people we love, we're faced with difficult choices, we sacrifice, we suffer, we experience trauma.  But in the face of all this we must continue to love ourselves and love the people around us.  And we must, like the overweight guy in the gym, show up and do the hard work.

I really love you all,
Anthony

Sad Song