"For here we have no fixed resting-place, but our search is for the one which is to come." Hebrews 13:14


I figure I might as well make a post about what is really going on in my life; otherwise, when I look back here in a year I will feel terrible that I didn't make a single note about what is going on.

Yesterday a very dear friend of mine died suddenly of a heart attack. His name is Curtis Cannell and he was only 37 years old.

Curtis was a brilliant artist who I had the good fortune of working with for many years. We had a mutual friend, Jeff Dobson, and their greatest goal was that they would be able to work together again. Recently Curtis was able to join a team with Jeff, and he was extremely happy down in Austin, Texas.

Today it was such a shock to absolutely everyone. Curtis was mowing the lawn on Sunday and began to feel some chest pain. He assumed he was just getting overheated so, he finished mowing the lawn and then went inside. He called his good friend Drew and said he might need to go to the hospital. On the way to the hospital he had a heart attack and died before he arrived. There was no way anyone would have, or could have, imagined he would have a heart attack as such a young age. It is truly a shock and he will be terribly missed.

Unfortunately this isn't all of the sad news going on around me. A little over a month ago my father found out he had colon cancer and had surgery at the VA hospital to have a section removed. He felt great before he found out, and has been recovering well since. Based on feedback from his surgeon (who saw no other evidence of cancer and received a negative biopsy from his lymph nodes) he was hopeful it was a cure. However, the cancer specialist wasn't satisfied until a Petscan was performed. Last Thursday my father had the Petscan and the results were not good. He has stage four masticised cancer in three locations on his liver. The long term prognosis is not good and the course of treatment has not fully been decided. He may have sugery soon and recovery could be difficult.

Tomorrow I am taking off of work to help my father get his affairs in order, just in case. It's that time of life where we go to more funerals than weddings. I'm trying to do the best I can to help my family through these difficult times.

I don't have a whole lot more to say than these basic facts of the situation. I will try to scan in one of my favorite pieces of artwork Curtis gave me and upload it to this blog sometime soon.

Comments

Widow's Son said…
Brother John,

My thoughts are with you as you and your loved ones go through these trying times.

Fraternally,


— Widow's Son
11:54 PM
Greg Stewart said…
Br. John,
My deepest sympathy to you. If you need anything, I know it sounds lame, but all you need do is ask brother.

Greg
1:12 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Planetside Screenshots

Image
I realize that this post is going to cause some Web-Wiplash, but I think that is ok. For years I have held onto some old Planetside screenshots that I wanted to post online some day. After scouring an old hard drive yesterday these are the ones I came up with. Still, I know I am missing many of the screenshots I really wanted to keep. Especially ones from when the game was very early in development. I designed the entire client side game engine myself and I had a lot of fun during the development process. One of my regrets is that, in many respects, the final game did not look nearly as visually impressive as it did at certain points during development. There were a number of reasons for this. One was from a technology stand point. Most developers of an MMO game engine might assume it would be reasonable to stream data in as a player moved around the environment. That was certainly my original design. However, once the game got into heavy beta testing there was a strong push to get eve
Read more

Ten Reasons *NOT* to become a Freemason

Image
"Why I became (and proudly remain) an 'antient' Freemason" Well, I see no reason I cannot make a Freemason themed post. Last evening I attended a third degree at Naphtali lodge. It was my candidate being raised, my friend William Bean. It was an incredible night, especially since we had 28 Master Masons present for the event which was held at the incredible Masonic Temple in midtown Saint Louis. My friends Right Worshipful Brother Chris Neubold, Russ Tinker, Densel Webb, and Fred Statler drove down all of the way from Wentzville and Troy; over an hour drive each way. I acted as the Senior Steward and Junior Deacon for the ceremony. This was the largest gathering of Masons we have had in as long as anyone could remember for a degree. It is so very gratifying to see Naphtali growing and area members supporting the lodge. After the degree Jesse's wife Meryl provided a lovely dinner in the dining room where we shared fellowship and conversation. All of this had me thi
Read more