It’s been a tough couple of weeks for me out here. I spent all of last week in Charleston, West Virginia saying goodbye to my dad and trying my best to sort out his affairs. While he had many health problems over the last few years, his death still came as a surprise. It wasn’t something I was ready for at all. While my dad and I were not super close, I will still miss talking with him and visiting with him. I hope he is in a better place and I’m glad he is no longer suffering from any pain or discomfort. My brother flew in for a few days and we were able to spend time with Judy, my dad’s partner of 33 years, and their two Japanese chins Jake and Charlie. I was also really thankful to have a friend passing through Charleston while I was there who took me out to dinner and helped me talk through a lot of my pain. I had another friend drive out from D.C. for my dad’s memorial service which was really something. I’m very blessed to have so many good friends in this life. Since I last wrote, I also turned 50, a milestone birthday which snuck up on me with everything that was going on. I’m glad I didn’t have any exciting plans for it as they probably would have fallen through. Anyways, I am back in Washington State and I am writing to you today from Bellingham in the far north of the state. I’m still sorting out a lot of things in my head, but I wanted to write about my time leading up to my flight to WV because it will be good for me to write.
